Moonlight Wishes In Time (20 page)

A dark-haired man at the far end of the room caught Mattie’s
eye. Tall and slender, he struck an intriguingly handsome pose as he leaned an arm against the white mantle of the fireplace. She reddened when she realized that he was looking at her, and dropped her eyes, but not before she saw him move in their direction. She turned to face the conversation once again, acutely aware that he approached. She wasn’t sure why, but something told her this man might not be easily fooled. She hoped he was just a passing acquaintance of the family. 

“I hope I’
m not interrupting?” the newcomer said with the air of one who assumed he was not. Mattie swallowed hard and kept her face down, focusing her eyes on the tips of his black, well-shined boots. His baritone voice was deep, cultured, with a hint of amusement, and his accent was…American.

“Stephen,” Louisa murmured
. “Are you back from America, then?” She didn’t wait for him to answer. “Permit me introduce you to our newest American, Miss Matilda Crockwell. Mattie, Mr. Stephen Carver, a fellow countryman of yours. You will have much in common.”

Mattie heard her name, and raised her eyes to Stephen’s penetrating blue gaze
. While she should have been elated to find another American in the crowd of very and sometimes unintelligible British accents, she had a sickening feeling that she might not be able to deceive this man.

She felt William’s touch at her elbow, and she looked up at him quickly.

“Welcome back to England, Carver. Are you visiting your aunt again?” William’s tone sounded less welcoming than his words. His hand remained under her arm, and she felt more secure at his warm touch.

Stephen executed a small bow before Mattie
. He raised his head, his eyes lingering for an instant on William’s hand, before he fixed her with his startlingly blue eyes.

“Miss Crockwell, I am delighted to find a fellow American here in the English countryside
.” He reached for her hand and brought it to his lips. William could do nothing but release her.

“How do you do, Mr.
Carver?” she enunciated, sounding for all the world like Eliza Doolittle in
My Fair Lady
practicing her elocution.

Stephen turned to Louisa and Sylvie and bowed to them before addressing William.

“Yes, I have returned, Sinclair. My aunt asked me to help her with some matters of estate. Since my uncle died, she’s been anxious to turn the estate over to a manager and move to London.” His handsome face wore a friendly expression that lessened Mattie’s anxiety. Maybe he wouldn’t be a problem after all, she thought.

“Have you recently arrived, Miss Crockwell?
” Stephen asked. “What ship did you sail on? I can only hope that your journey was less prone to storms than mine.”

Mattie swallowed hard
. Ship? The USS Enterprise? The USS Missouri? No, those were aircraft carriers, weren’t they? She was fairly sure she couldn’t just wing it. So much for Stephen Carver not being a problem! She turned instinctively to William, hoping he would come to the rescue.

“Miss Crockwell arrived on the
Daniel Webster only a few days ago, Carver. She is a distant cousin who has come to visit with us for a short period.”

Mattie fought the urge to throw William a grateful glance
. She nodded mutely and waited with bated breath for Stephen to announce that he too had sailed on that very same ship.

Stephen nodded
. “Yes, of course, the Daniel Webster. I heard it had arrived. And was it a smooth sailing?”

He directed the question to Mattie once again, and she threw herself out there, hoping the answer would be right.

“Yes, very smooth, thank you, Mr. Carver. I’m—I am sorry to hear that yours was not.”

Stephen smiled ruefully
. “I have had several pleasant sailings, so I was due to have a poor one. At the risk of alienating our British hosts with boring talk of America, perhaps we could talk again? If I may call upon you tomorrow?”

Mattie choked on something
. Air? Saliva? Impossible. Her mouth had gone dry. She covered her mouth with a gloved hand and threw a panicked look to William. His face darkened, and he gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head in her direction as if to warn her. Not that she needed warning. She might be able to fool English aristocrats who knew nothing of the United States, but she wasn’t sure she could bamboozle the intelligent-appearing American in front of her.

“I-I
…” She coughed again, trying to stall while she thought fast.

“That would be delightful, Mr.
Carver,” Sylvie chimed in. “We would be happy to receive you tomorrow. At two o’clock?” She smiled graciously, ever her mother’s daughter. Mattie could have hugged her.

Louisa unwittingly helped distract Stephen’s attention
.

“I am sorry to hear that your aunt intends to return to London permanently, Stephen
. We will miss her presence here in the country.” She smiled warmly at Stephen. “How long do you propose to stay in England this time?”

Mattie regarded Louisa and Sylvie with admiration
. These young women, not older than twenty to twenty-two, were superbly poised and polished, displaying gracious manners beyond their years. Mattie felt clumsy and tongue-tied next to them…and old. Even at twenty-eight, she had still not mastered the social skills that Louisa and Sylvie effortlessly demonstrated.

Stephen’s smile, when he answered Louisa’s question, was warm and friendly, showing even white teeth
. Mattie hadn’t realized that most of the people she’d met in the last twenty-four hours since her “arrival” in the Georgian era rarely showed their teeth when they smiled. Every smile appeared to be somehow thin-lipped, as if it were impolite to show one’s teeth.

“I am not sure, Louisa
. I am quite content to delay here in England as long as possible, but I do have responsibilities back in New York.”

Mattie’s eyes widened
. New York? Oh, why hadn’t she said she was from San Francisco or even Boston? She stole a glance toward William. He studiously ignored her, keeping his attention on the exchange between Stephen Carver and Louisa. Mattie tried to read his face. Was he jealous? Her heart skipped a beat as she watched Stephen and Louisa. They certainly seemed to know each other well. They were even on first-name basis, which she thought wasn’t really common in the Georgian era between men and women who weren’t married.

“Yes, of course,” Louisa murmured
. She turned to Mattie with her beautiful smile. “Stephen is a philanthropist, Mattie. He sits on the board of many charities.”

“Louisa seeks to put me in a good light, perhaps in honor of my fellow American, Miss Crockwell
. I do not contribute as much as I should, I fear.” Stephen bowed his head deprecatingly.

“But of course, I would wish for Mattie to think the best of her compatriot, Stephen,” Louisa said
. “Do not believe him, Mattie. I believe he recently oversaw the building of something called City Hall in New York City, did you not, Stephen?” Louisa turned to William, Sylvie and Mattie. “Mrs. Brookfield has been boasting on his behalf. She is very proud of her American nephew.”

Louisa’s lips curved into a playful smile, which Stephen mirrored
. Mattie eyed them both with blatant admiration. Everyone really was quite beautiful in her Georgian novel metaphysical experience. They really were. Never again would she look at the cover of a romance novel without seeing Stephen’s brilliant blue eyes or Louisa’s burnished brunette curls.

“Ah, yes, my aunt has placed me on a pedestal from which I will undoubtedly fall one day
. But let us talk of more interesting matters.” To Mattie’s dismay, Stephen turned to her again. “And where do you reside in America, Miss Crockwell?”

Mattie threw another look in William’s direction, but he had turned to listen to something Sylvie was saying.

“Oh, uh, New…New York,” Mattie stuttered ungracefully. She interlaced her gloved fingers together.

“New York
! What a wonderful coincidence,” Louisa exclaimed.

“We are practically neighbors, Miss Crockwell
. How delightful,” Stephen said. “We must talk further tomorrow. I look forward to meeting with you again.” He bowed to the group. “For now, I see my aunt beckons to me so I must attend to her.”

Mattie swallowed hard as she watched his elegant figure move across the room toward a plump
, elderly woman in a purple satin gown.

“William, I
…” Mattie began anxiously as she turned back toward the group. She caught sight of Louisa and clamped her lips together. Louisa appeared not to notice. William caught Mattie’s words and flashed her a nod of understanding.

“I m
ust mingle as well, I am afraid,” Louisa said, to Mattie’s relief. “My mother will be pleased to know that Stephen has returned so soon. She seems to be inordinately fond of him.” Louisa laughed. She leaned forward to kiss Sylvie on the cheek, and turned to William. “You have been very silent this evening, William. Are you well?”

“Quite well, Louisa,” William said with a smile not evident in Stephen’s presence
. “I was content to listen to you and Mr. Carver exchange pleasantries. At the risk of annoying you, I must say that not only is your mother inordinately fond of Mr. Carver, you seem to harbor some great regard for him as well.”

“William!” Sylvie chided
. “Do not tease her.”

“Tease me?” Louisa laughed
. “Whatever do you mean, Sylvie?” Louisa ran a hand to several perfect curls at the nape of her neck. “I am only acquainted with Mr. Carver through his aunt.”

“Mr.
Carver, is it?” William snorted. “I am certain I heard you call him Stephen…more than once.”

“Stuff!” Louisa murmured
. Her lovely white cheeks took on the faintest pink hue. Mattie was surprised to see the break in her composure, infinitesimal as it was.

William bowed in Louisa’s direction with a teasing smile
. “Please give your mother my regards.”

“And mine as well,” Sylvie said.

“Mattie, you and Sylvie must come and call on me soon. My mother would enjoy that.”

“I’d
—I would love to,” Mattie ventured, unsure if that was a good idea or not. However, failing to answer would be noticeably rude, and she could only stall for answers by coughing into her gloved hands so many times before someone carted her away to a tuberculosis sanitarium.

“Lovely
. Perhaps you would be so kind as to bring them around, William.” Louisa allowed William to kiss her hand before she moved off, a vision of elegance in lilac satin.

“Well, William,” Sylvie said with a chuckle
. “You certainly are fast on your feet. Did the Daniel Webster really arrive a few days ago? You know that Mr. Carver is quite likely to discover whether that is so.”

William’s lips twitched as he looked from Sylvie to Mattie.

“Yes, it did, my dear sister. Though how the voyage went, I do not know. Perhaps Miss Crockwell can embellish that portion of the tale, should the need arise.” He cocked his head to the side as he regarded her. “Although Miss Crockwell appears to be remarkably tongue-tied at the moment.”

Mattie raised a hand to her cheek as if to unlock her tense jaw
. She released a deep breath.

“I can’t thank you enough, William
. I didn’t know what to say. I have no earthly idea how long it takes to sail from New York to London, or—”

“The voyage is from New York to
Southampton. London does not have ports deep enough for seagoing vessels.”

Mattie wrinkled her brow
.

“See
? That’s exactly what I mean. How would I know that?” She hugged herself, looked down at the tips of her small slippers and shook her head. “I have no idea how I’m going to get by. Perhaps we should have introduced me as your mute cousin.” She raised her eyes and gave them a crooked smile.

“Dear ones,” Mrs. Sinclair murmured in a low voice as she approached
. “Please do not allow Miss Crockwell to cross her arms in that unbecoming fashion. People will begin to talk of our strange American cousin.”

Mattie dropped her arms as if they were on fire
. No, of course, young women in the Georgian era didn’t cross their arms at dances. Sylvie had already said so.

Mrs. Sinclair came to stand beside them
. “Take her to dance, William. She will be less conspicuous on the dance floor amongst other young women. I have had several inquiries about her already, and I am quite beside myself trying to remember what story we agreed upon.”

“I would be honored, Mother,” William said as he held his arm out to Mattie with a reassuring smile
. “We are also finding that it has been difficult to remain true to the narrative we fabricated. However, any alternative is quite out of the question.” Mattie put her hand on his arm, grateful that he always seemed ready to defend her from his mother’s sharp tongue.

Wh
at alternative, Mattie wondered?

“Mother, I am sure William is happy to oblige you, but he has already danced with Mattie once
. If you want her to be inconspicuous, perhaps dancing two dances within one half-hour with the most eligible bachelor in the county is not quite the best way to achieve that.” Sylvie’s smile bordered on a smirk.