Storm On The Horizon, a paranormal Regency romance novella (Vallen) (6 page)

Tatiana was amazed at how quickly her sister was blooming. It was only four days ago that Trina had been introduced to the world of the
ton
, and then she’d been so shy she’d hardly said a word to any of the gentlemen vying for her attention. Her beauty enhanced with Tatiana’s magic, and a marriage portion fit for a princess, had quickly made Trina one of the most sought-after young ladies of the season. Unfortunately, she had absolutely no experience being in such a position and had seemed, at first, to be entirely out of her league. But now…

Tatiana’s watched with a combination of pride and dismay as her usually quiet sister laughed out loud at the utter nonsense being spouted by the gentleman sitting next to her. They were sitting in the arrangement of chairs closest to the fireplace, although the gentleman had pulled his chair even closer to Trina’s than was strictly proper. Other men had dragged more chairs over so that they too could be a part of her exclusive circle.

“But, sir, you cannot mean it!” Trina said, still giggling. “You would never do something so bold.”

“For you, Miss Ashurst, I would do anything,” the gentleman said, bowing as well as he could while sitting.

Trina laughed again and turned her attention to the gentleman on her other side. “You, I know, my lord, would do nothing of the sort. You are too clever of a gentleman to do something as silly as Mr. Bretton.”

The man smiled and took her hand. “You know me entirely too well, Miss Ashurst.”

Trina very delicately extracted her hand from his grasp. “You were going to tell me about your latest journey to your estate. Did you find all as you had hoped? I do hope that by now your crops are…”

“Please, Miss Ashurst,” the man interrupted her, “You cannot seriously be interested in the state of the crops at Sligington.” He laughed at the thought.

Trina smiled in response, but turned her head slightly to catch Tatiana’s eye. The expression Tatiana saw there was a sad,
you were right
.

Tatiana nodded a sympathetic response. It was so sad that these men could not believe that Trina could have a brain in her head and actually want to use it.

“Did you say that you and Miss Ashurst are twins?” asked a gentleman standing near Tatiana.

She turned towards the man. He was dressed to the hilt in a ruffled shirt, with ruffles coming out of the ends of his sleeves and a quizzing glass dangling on a bright red velvet ribbon around his neck. A dim-witted dandy, then, she surmised. Speaking slowly so that he could understand her, she said, “Yes. That’s right.”

“But you don’t look alike. She’s far prettier than you,” the man said, looking Tatiana over from head to foot. The gall of this man!

Tatiana lowered her eyes so that he couldn’t see the fire leaping out of them. She certainly would have scorched the wig right off his head. Instead, she stared at his feet ensconced in shoes with high, red heels.

How dare he, she thought. She was not ugly. Even with her beauty dimmed, she was still not even close to being as ugly as this fellow. And the nerve…

The smoke coming from his shoes snapped her back to her senses.

“Humph! Cat got your tongue, Miss? Did no one tell you that it is polite to respond when you’re spoken to?” the man sneered, not even aware that his toes were practically in flames.

Tatiana could almost see Mr. Vallentyn’s face in her mind’s eye, shaking his head sadly at her despite the twinkle in his eye. No, she should not do this. She must control herself.

She also had to banish Mr. Vallentyn from her mind. She thought she’d gotten better—she’d only thought of him a few times the day before and only twice so far today. She was determined to put him out of her mind entirely, but, she supposed, that would take time.

She looked back up at the dolt in front of her, still waiting for her response. “My sister and I are twins. We are not identical twins. We are merely as alike as two sisters might be.” There, that should be simple enough so that even such an imbecile could comprehend it.

She really must learn to control herself, she thought, without Mr. Vallentyn’s intervention—either actual or imagined. But then again, when dealing with such idiots as that fellow, why should she? She sniffed and a scent caught her attention—musk with a hint of ink.

Mr. Vallentyn! She spun around, her heart pounding with joyful anticipation.

He looked startled for a moment at her sudden movement, but it quickly dissolved into a warm smile. “Did I surprise you?”

His presence left Tatiana nearly gaping for words. It was as if her mind had conjured him to her. But that was ridiculous. She had invited him, hadn’t she? She laughed. “No. I just didn’t see you come in. I am so glad you could come.”

“Thank you. Your back was to the door, but you knew I was here?”

“Er, yes,” she could feel heat flooding her cheeks.

“Something tells me I should not ask you how you knew,” he said, beginning to chuckle.

“It was not in the way you think,” she assured him, looking to see if the imbecile was still standing within easy hearing of her words. He wasn’t. But despite the fact that it was a good-sized room, there were so many people present that it was impossible for there not to be someone who could overhear her.

“No? Well, then you have been very good, restraining yourself. I saw what you did just now. It was very well done.” Pride laced through his words, and Tatiana felt a little thrill of excitement that he had witnessed her control and recognized it.

“Thank you. I
am
trying.”

“Not only are you trying, but you’re succeeding.”

“Just wait, sir, I have something even more interesting planned for a little later on,” Tatiana admitted. She didn’t know when her sister would finally get fed up with the mindless nonsense from the gentlemen filling their drawing room. But when she did, Tatiana had a little plan ready to go into action which would solve all of her sister’s problems. And it didn’t involve any magic at all—well, hardly any.

Even poor Trina simply could not flatter herself enough to believe that so many men were more interested in her than in her money. But she was still hopeful she could find one who wasn’t courting her for only that reason. The two sisters had decided that she would do her best this afternoon to speak with as many men as she could, to try to determine who might be true suitors.

But if that didn’t work, Tatiana had her back-up plan.

“Your tone makes me quake in fear, Miss Tatiana,” Kit said, a gleam of amusement in his eye belying his words. He paused for a moment then said a little shame-facedly, “Do you know that I haven’t even had the honor of meeting your sister? Would you mind terribly?”

“No! Not at all,” Tatiana said, truly not minding at all. She’d been wanting her sister and Mr. Vallentyn to meet. Then Trina would understand why she was having such a difficult time getting him out of her mind.

As they squeezed through the crush to reach Trina, who had moved to the middle of the room, all of Tatiana’s promises to keep her distance from Mr. Vallentyn disappeared like the Isle of Avalon. By the time they reached her, it was as if her good intentions had never existed.

After the introduction was made and Mr. Vallentyn had bowed to Trina, he said, “You are patience personified, Miss Ashurst.”

“Oh, no, why do you say such a thing, sir? Indeed, I have been thinking the same of you.” She gave a little laugh, but Tatiana knew better than to think that her sister was flirting with Mr. Vallentyn. Oddly enough, Tatiana felt nothing but happiness that her sister and Mr. Vallentyn were already becoming friends.

“For dealing with all of this,” he said, indicating the room full of men.

“Oh, that. Well, it is only because I have put my trust in my sister that I am able to do so,” Trina responded, reaching out and giving Tatiana’s arm a loving squeeze.

“She mentioned just now that she has something in mind for later, but didn’t say what it was,” he responded, giving her a smile.

“No, we shall not say a word, sir. You will learn of it when the time comes—which, Tatiana, I think may not be in the very distant future.” Trina said, looking around the room.

“Already?” Tatiana was a little surprised. She was sure her sister would want to bask for some more time in the limelight, but then again, she wasn’t used to so much attention.

“Soon,” Trina nodded. She then turned back to Mr. Vallentyn, who was looking back and forth between the two of them, a slightly hesitant smile lingering on his lips.

“And why is it you believe I am so very patient?” he asked Trina.

“For dealing with my sister, of course. Our mother has been forever scolding her for doing what you seem to be able curtail with ease.”

Mr. Vallentyn burst out laughing. “Why am I unsurprised by this revelation?”

Trina just looked up at Mr. Vallentyn. “You seem to have gotten to know my sister very well very quickly, sir.”

Tatiana could feel a little heat beginning to rise in her cheeks.

“Indeed,” Mr. Vallentyn said, smiling over at her, “I feel as if I know her quite well. Why do you think that is?”

Was he asking her? Tatiana wished for all the world she knew, but all that she did know was that she felt the same way. There was a connection between the two of them—as if they’d known each other forever. She’d never felt so comfortable with a man who wasn’t one of her own brothers. “I wish I knew,” Tatiana admitted. “But it’s true, we’ve only known each other for a week, and yet it seems like…”

“Yes,” the word was little more than a whisper on his lips—and the world paused.

“Here now, Vallentyn, you’ve had enough time with Miss Ashurst. Time you shared her with the rest of us,” one of the pushier dandies called out, breaking the spell under which Tatiana had fallen. With a rush, the room and all of the noise surrounding her exploded onto her senses.

When had the room gotten so loud and the men so boisterous? Tatiana blinked, looking around. There must have been thirty men in the room—all chatting, laughing, and every now and then attempting to catch hold of Trina’s attention.

“I think now would be the time, Tatiana,” Trina said, her eyes darting around the room.

Tatiana nodded. She couldn’t agree more. Focusing herself inward for a moment, she reached out with her mind to Thomas, her grandmother’s footman, who had been warned to be prepared for her call.

Now.

Within a minute, he was at the door a letter in his hand. “Miss Ashurst, Miss Tatiana?” he asked, looking desperately around for the two sisters. He was a talented actor, Tatiana noted; she really must tell her grandmother—the man deserved a raise.

Trina looked over in mock surprise. “What is it, Thomas? Can’t you see that we’re busy?”

“I apologize, Miss, but a most urgent message has just come from your father,” he answered her from across the room, to be sure that everyone heard him.

“I’ll see to it, Trina. You go on with what you’re doing,” Tatiana said, making her way over to the door. She took the missive from Thomas with a tiny wink of thanks.

She opened the letter, skimmed it for what she knew would be inside and then let out a shriek of shock and dismay, feigned well enough to fool the idiots in the room.

“Oh, no! Oh! Excuse me,” she added more quietly, looking around her as if she’d just remembered that she was surrounded by company.

“What is it, Tatiana?” Trina asked from across the room.

“The ship carrying the goods Papa had invested in to fund your marriage portion has sunk! It’s gone, Trina!” Tatiana dropped her face into her hands and pretended to cry. She chomped down hard on the inside of her mouth, hard enough to truly bring tears to her eyes.

“No! It can’t be so!” Trina nearly screamed.

Tatiana could hear scrambling as her sister attempted to make her way over toward the door where Tatiana was standing. The letter was snatched from her fingers.

Tatiana looked up to see Trina give a squeal of shock and then ‘faint’ right into the arms of one of the better-looking men.

Another man, completely ignoring the collapsed girl, took the letter from her limp fingers and read it himself. Tatiana almost shrieked with true anger at his gall at reading a personal letter. But she had deliberately had her grandmother’s man of business write it to ensure that it both looked and sounded authentic. She was glad now that she’d been overly cautious.

“My, God, it’s true!” He turned to Trina, but she was still ‘unconscious’—probably enjoying being handled by the man into who’s arms she had fallen. So he turned instead to Tatiana. “I am most deeply sorry.” And with that he shoved the letter back at her, bowed, and left the room.

Within minutes, the room was nearly empty. Trina had ‘recovered’, but she’d clearly chosen her savior well, as he was one of the few men who hadn’t left. Instead, he had softly lain her down on a sofa and was sitting on the floor gently waving a fan in front of her face, working to ensure her speedy recovery.

“You are too good, Mr. Havelock,” Trina said, her voice sounding weak and frail. Tatiana thought she was overdoing it just a bit, but naturally couldn’t say so.

“Poor, poor, Trina,” Tatiana said, taking her sister’s hand and patting it gently.

“I have to disagree with you, Miss Tatiana,” Mr. Havelock said. “In fact, I think that both your performance and Miss Ashurst’s was brilliant.”

Trina was so startled she bolted upright. “What?”

Mr. Havelock laughed as he folded away the fan. “There is only the five of us here now, Miss Ashurst. I’m sure Lord Bruntly and Mr. Vallentyn agree with me?” he asked, looking over at the other two remaining gentlemen. Lord Bruntly was calmly sitting on the opposite sofa drinking his tea, and Mr. Vallentyn was still standing where Tatiana had left him—only now his hand was covering his mouth. Tatiana was pretty sure there were tears of mirth glittering in his eyes.

“Absolutely. Brilliant,” Lord Bruntly confirmed. Mr. Vallentyn could only nod, as his shoulders were shaking with suppressed laughter.

“And, I imagine, it got exactly the response you hoped it would. Only the gentlemen who are truly interested in pursuing Miss Ashurst for herself, and not her money, are still here,” Mr. Havelock continued. “Bruntly is as rich as the king, I’m not too badly off myself, and well, Vallentyn, I have to admit I am rather surprised to see you still here.”