The Marquis At Midnight (18 page)

Hester came down after another hour and
found Grace reading by the fire. She looked a deal better, Grace
was relieved to see. She listened to what had taken place during
Grace’s interview with Morvyn, grimacing a little when she learned
that Porter would probably have to know everything.

‘I thought as much,’ she
said in resignation. ‘I should have told him to begin with, but I
felt such a fool.’ She gave a wry smile. ‘I should have trusted him
and I did not.
That
is what is going to hurt him the most. Now it is too
late.’

Grace thought that this was probably true.
Porter would not be able to understand why his wife had not trusted
him. ‘He will come around.’

‘He will have to. I was laying in bed just
now and it occurred to me…’ She looked at her friend. ‘Grace, I am
late.’

It took Grace a moment to realize what
Hester was saying, but then she jumped to her feet and embraced her
warmly. ‘Oh my heavens! Are you sure?’

‘I am. It should have
struck me before now, but this business has preoccupied me so. Yes,
I am most definitely late. I counted the weeks most carefully and
there can be no mistake for you see, I am
never
late.’ And despite everything
that had been happening, she beamed with joy.

Porter and Hester had been trying for a baby
practically since the day they were married. For eighteen months
they had been trying. Now, it seemed, they had succeeded. Both
women sat and stared at each other.

‘Porter will be thrilled.’

‘When he is speaking to me
again,’ Hester allowed with a watery chuckle. ‘Oh, I have been so
emotional. I put it all down to this wretched business with
Lovington, but now, well women
do
get emotional, do they not?’ She touched a hand to
her stomach and smiled. ‘Grace, you must think me quite mad, but I
feel ridiculously happy for somebody who is in so much
trouble.’

‘Well, so you should. It is very
exciting.’

‘Only tell me, was Morvyn horrified by my
behavior?’

‘Not really. Like we did,
he believes that you were deliberately seduced into visiting that
place. I’ll warrant it was not
your
idea to go there. Lovington knew what he wanted
and he selected you as his best chance of obtaining it. Selena
Ramsay would have been told to take you to that club. I wonder how
many ladies he has been blackmailing and manipulating?’

‘Odious man. I hope they make his life
miserable.’

Grace smiled. Hester was still anxious about
her forthcoming meeting with Porter, there was no doubt, but some
of the tension seemed to have drained out of her with the discovery
that she must undoubtedly be with child. It was amazing what a
great leveler the more fundamental aspects of life could be. There
was nothing more fundamental than the advent of a baby.

They sat by the fire, chatting idly while
they waited for Porter to return for dinner.

But he did not come home for dinner.

In fact, he did not come home at all that
night.

Chapter Ten

There is nothing more irksome, Grace
reflected wearily the next morning, than a recalcitrant husband who
is sulking. At least, she assumed Porter was sulking, thrown into a
pet by the knowledge that his wife had been keeping something of
considerable importance from him.

Well, now she was keeping
something
else
from him and it was entirely his own fault. Honestly, Grace
thought rather crossly, it was hard to broker peace between warring
parties when one would not cooperate and come home.

Hester, her former good humor undermined by
Porter’s continuing absence, had grown quiet, sitting over her
embroidery without speaking for long minutes at a time. She had
responded to Grace’s attempts at conversation absently, her
thoughts obviously elsewhere. At eleven, Marsh came with a note
addressed to Hester. She took it eagerly, thinking it was from
Porter, but it certainly wasn’t in his handwriting.

‘What is it?’

‘I do not know.’ Almost listlessly she
opened it and read what was written. She passed the note to Grace
who looked at it apprehensively.

It must be within the next two days. You are
running out of time.

It had been signed only with an L.

‘Lovington,’ Grace murmured. ‘He must be
getting desperate.’

‘I suppose so.’

‘Hester,’ Grace looked at her friend, ‘I am
sure he is delayed for a reason. Remember the work he does. Who
knows how Morvyn’s information may have affected things?’

‘He did not send word.’

‘Perhaps he could not.’

Hester gave her a look and Grace knew she
had a point. It took very little to send a note saying one was not
coming home that night. It was most unlike Porter.

‘It does not matter.’
Hester seemed to get a grip on herself, her blue eyes beginning to
sparkle again. ‘He can be as angry as he likes, but it does not
change the fact that he is going to be a father. He will
not
spend my confinement
in a dungeon because I acted like a fool. I will not let
him.’

Grace smiled at this. This was more like
Hester, determined to deal with things. Now that everybody knew of
her disgraceful behavior, paradoxically, it seemed as if a great
weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Hester had always dealt
with adversity better when it was out in the open. It had been the
necessity of creeping around, something that went against her
nature, that had worn her out, trying to think of a way of
recovering the Woodward necklace.

Grace waved the note thoughtfully. ‘I should
let Morvyn know.’

‘Indeed. As Porter is refusing to return, I
suppose we must.’ Hester agreed crisply. ‘Write a note, Grace, and
ask if he can pay us a call. Unless you would prefer to call on
him?’

There was something in her friend’s tone
that brought the color to Grace’s cheeks. ‘I think I preferred it
when you were browbeaten, you horrible woman.’

Hester chuckled. ‘Nonsense. I have never
seen two such smitten people. If I am quick, then it is possible
you can be in the family way as well. I would so enjoy company in
my confinement.’

Grace tried to find it within herself to be
indignant, but honestly, the very idea of just how she and Morvyn
might try for such an event made her tingle. She wanted him as much
as he wanted her. So much so that it would take very little for her
to ignore the normal boundaries of convention. If Sherry wanted to
seduce her in the drawing room – or anywhere else for that matter –
she knew she would be a willing participant. Rather than voice
these shocking thoughts, however, she contented herself with
saying, ‘I do not know if I can have children. Remember, Justin and
I were married for several years.’ The idea sent a pang of
apprehension through her. She and Justin had not produced children.
What if she could not give Morvyn the heir he would undoubtedly
desire? All men wanted an heir; it was simply a fact of life.

‘We shall see,’ Hester said calmly. ‘I would
be most surprised if your clever marquis cannot achieve what
another man has failed to do. Incidentally, I insist that the
nuptials be sooner, rather than later. I do not want to attend the
celebrations looking like a whale.’

‘He has yet to ask me. Just a small thing,
but worth mentioning.’

‘He probably has not been able to get the
words out as yet. Too busy kissing you.’

Grace shook her head, horrified, but amused.
‘You are a shameless woman.’

‘So you keep telling me. So shall we call on
Morvyn? You should be safe if I am present,’ Hester added wickedly.
‘Even with all that intensity, he would not dare to seduce you in
front of me.’

Grace nodded slowly. Why not? There was
nothing wrong with a widowed woman, accompanied by a married woman,
paying a call on a gentleman. It was perfectly respectable.
Especially if he were a friend of the Woodwards and all the world
knew that Porter and Morvyn were friends.

‘Very well.’

‘Excellent,’ Hester said briskly. ‘We will
go after luncheon. If Porter has not returned.’

However, Porter continued to stay away and,
after luncheon, both ladies changed and prepared to pay a
visit.

The Marquis of Morvyn lived on Grosvenor
Square in a substantial townhouse of mellowed northern stone. They
took the carriage as it was quite a walk and it looked like
rain.

Hester gave Grace a wicked glance as they
drew up outside. ‘Just think. All of this could be yours.’

‘If you do not behave yourself I will make
you wait in the carriage.’

‘Good gracious, I could not do that. Who can
say what you will get up to in my absence?’

Unfortunately, Grace reflected, she had a
point.

As it turned out, the marquis was not home.
Having given their cards, they were shown to an elegant front
parlor of charming proportions and took a seat. Instead of the
marquis however, a tall, attractive girl and what must be her
mother, joined them.

‘My dear Lady Pemberton. And Lady Woodward.
How nice to see you again. The last time we spoke was at the
Lessingham rout, I believe. What a crush that night was.’ The older
woman said all in a rush, coming forward with a smile. Clearly she
was acquainted with Hester, which was only natural as Hester went
about town and knew almost everybody, but Grace did not spend much
time in London and was unfamiliar with the woman. ‘Unfortunately my
son is not at home. I don’t believe you have met my daughter,
Judith? This is her first Season.’

The girl dropped a curtsey, gray eyes so
like her brother's, curious as they swept over Grace. Hester and
Grace exchanged glances. They had not thought of this eventuality.
What to do now?

Hester smiled at Judith. ‘And are you
enjoying yourself?’

‘Very much,’ the girl replied demurely.

‘Please,’ Lady Morvyn said graciously,
‘won’t you have a seat? We were just going to have some tea and it
would be delightful if you could join us.’

‘How nice.’ Hester said immediately, sitting
down. Grace followed more slowly. For some reason she felt awkward.
She had not thought of Morvyn’s family. Indeed, she had not given a
thought to anything but the man himself. Things had been moving so
quickly and life had been so complicated that the usual
considerations had been entirely overlooked. She knew that he had a
sister, of course. He had mentioned as much at the masquerade when
he had danced with her for the first time, but that was the extent
of her knowledge.

Tea was ordered and the
ladies chatted about the inconsequential things people who were
virtually strangers to each other chatted about in such social
situations. The capricious weather, mutual acquaintances, the
appallingly bad behavior of Bonaparte and his infamous army, and
all the while, Grace was conscious of Judith Morvyn’s eyes resting
on her quizzically.
Does she not like
me?
But Miss Morvyn’s expression certainly
wasn’t hostile and when Grace caught her eye, the girl gave her a
particularly warm smile.

It was all a little peculiar, truth be
told.

A good twenty minutes had passed before Lady
Morvyn said anything that gave her two visitors an inkling that
something was in the wind. They had been talking vaguely, as they
knew only what was common knowledge about the situation in Europe,
about the iniquities of the ongoing war with France, Lady Morvyn
deploring the fact that some fabrics were becoming harder to obtain
as time went on.

‘Of course, Sherry says I am foolish
lamenting such trivial things, but then, he has been involved in
all this business with the new foreign regulations or some such
thing.’

‘They are drafting new bills to ensure
England remains secure,’ Judith explained.

‘Oh, yes. My husband has been working with
Lord Abercrombie.’ Hester nodded. ‘He has been so busy of late that
I have hardly seen him.’

‘That must be why Sherry did not return last
night,’ Lady Morvyn said comfortably. ‘For I know he intended to.
He was to take Judith and I to the theatre and he is usually very
good about such matters.’

Once again, Hester and Grace exchanged
glances. So Morvyn had not returned either. Perhaps Porter had not
been on his high horse after all, although usually he was good
about letting Hester know if he would not be back. Both women
wondered what it was that could have kept the men away overnight.
One thing seemed certain; they would not discover it sitting in
Lady Morvyn’s elegant front parlor.

‘Well,’ Hester said easily, after a decent
amount of time had elapsed. ‘That was most enjoyable.’ Both women
rose to their feet.

‘I am happy that you called. It quite
brightened our day.’ Lady Morvyn returned.

‘Thank you
so
much for such a
charming visit,’ Grace said, feeling something was expected of her.
‘It was most enjoyable.’

‘Thank you for calling on us, Lady
Pemberton. It was a pleasure to meet you.’ Lady Morvyn returned
warmly. ‘And Lady Woodward. We must do this again soon.’

‘Indeed,’ Miss Morvyn said enthusiastically,
‘perhaps Lady Pemberton – and Lady Woodward, of course – could come
with us to Kensington Gardens next week. We are arranging an outing
of friends.’ Judith explained.

‘Well, it is mostly your friends, my dear,
but I’m sure that both ladies would be very welcome.’

One could certainly not fault Judith
Morvyn’s friendly nature, Grace thought, and wondered if her
brother had said anything to have promoted such effusive
enthusiasm.

As if the very thought of Morvyn had made
him materialize, the door opened at that moment and both Morvyn and
Porter walked into the room, bringing the group to a stop.