Part 24 (1/2)
Daphne smiled at her. ”I know it works, Ceci, certainly it did the other day. And I've no doubt it will on Sat.u.r.day. Thank you. Thank you so much for all your hard work.”
Daphne had just returned to her bedroom when there was a light knock on the door. She went to open it, and saw Charlotte Swann standing there.
”I have something for you, Lady Daphne. May I come in for a moment?”
”Yes, please do, Miss Charlotte.” As she spoke, Daphne opened the door wider, and stepped to one side.
As was her way, Charlotte Swann went straight to the heart of the matter. ”I want to give you this, Lady Daphne. It's very old, and you must have something old as well as new, blue, and borrowed.” She handed Daphne the gift. It was wrapped in silver paper and tied with gray silk ribbon.
”Thank you, Miss Charlotte,” Daphne said, staring down at the package. ”I have something borrowed from Mama, her bow brooch. Cecily gave me something blue, a garter.” She laughed as she said this, shaking her head. ”And DeLacy gave me a lace wedding handkerchief that is brand new. Yours is the last gift to fulfill the ancient saying. Can I open it now?”
Charlotte smiled. ”Why not?”
Once the paper was removed, Daphne found she was holding a blue velvet box. When she lifted the lid she was surprised, and gasped. She was staring at a narrow strand of diamonds. ”Why, it's beautiful!” she exclaimed. She held the diamond bracelet in her hands, marveling at it. ”But this is too valuable. You can't possibly give me this, Miss Charlotte. And I certainly can't accept it.”
”Yes, you can. And you must.” Charlotte waved her hand in front of Daphne, as the young woman attempted to give the bracelet back to her. She said, ”Listen to me, Lady Daphne, this is meant for you. It is an Ingham family heirloom, and therefore rightfully yours. I want you to wear it, knowing that your grandfather, David, the fifth earl, gave it to me for my twenty-first birthday. I've treasured it all these years, and now it's yours to enjoy.”
Daphne stood holding the bracelet, knowing that to insist Charlotte take it back would be to insult her. That was the last thing she wanted to do to this woman who had been such a comfort, and a wise counselor.
Taking a deep breath, Daphne murmured, ”If it is an Ingham family heirloom, then who did it belong to originally? Do you know, Miss Charlotte?”
”Yes, it belonged to the fifth earl's mother, the fourth countess ... your great-grandmother.” Charlotte reached out for the bracelet. Daphne gave it to her, and Charlotte fastened it on Daphne's wrist. ”There. You see, it looks beautiful, and it's very simple, not at all ostentatious.”
”Thank you, Miss Charlotte. I shall treasure it always.”
Charles was ensconced in the library with his sister Lavinia, and he was having a hard time controlling himself. To say he was angry was an understatement.
The Earl of Mowbray was fuming inside, yet he did not dare let go of his self-control. There were already guests at Cavendon who had arrived for Daphne's wedding. Hugo's cousin, Mark Stanton, was here, having come up from London earlier, and so was his other sister, Vanessa, who had her own suite of rooms in the house.
Lavinia suddenly said, ”I know you're furious, Charles, but I'm not entirely to blame. Jack and I have problems.”
”Yes, you have been saying that for a while now. But that doesn't mean you can go off and find another man, get hopelessly involved with him, as you obviously are.”
”I didn't go off and look for another man. It just happened. That's the way of the world, Charles. Things just happen in life.”
”If you have to take a lover, why in G.o.d's name did you choose a famous politician, who's very much in the public eye? And married to boot.” Charles glared at her.
Lavinia let out a long sigh, and fell back against the cus.h.i.+ons on the sofa. ”I didn't; what I mean is, it was Alex who pursued me, not the other way around.”
Charles compressed his lips. ”I'd heard he was a bit of a bounder, and now you've just confirmed it.”
”Charles, please get down off your high horse, and tell me what you want me to do.”
”You must break off this relations.h.i.+p at once, Lavinia. Before you involve this family, your family as well as mine, in a scandal of no mean proportions. There's gossip about you floating around already. The next thing you know, it'll be in the b.l.o.o.d.y newspapers.”
Lavinia sat up straighter, pushed back her blond hair, her bright blue eyes flas.h.i.+ng angrily. Watching her closely, Charles couldn't help thinking that when Daphne was forty she would have a look of his sister at this moment. They had always had a strong resemblance to each other, physically at any rate. As for their characters, they were very different. Lavinia was imprudent and impulsive, whilst Daphne was cautious and thought things through.
Lavinia said, ”I don't know how there could be gossip. I haven't told anyone about Alex.”
Charles threw her a pointed look. ”Yet several people have told me. Friends I trust, and who seem to know all about your affair. Perhaps your lover has spoken out of turn. It wouldn't surprise me. He doesn't have an ounce of cla.s.s.”
Lavinia looked stricken, and she exclaimed, ”I can't believe he would talk about me, reveal we're involved. That's so dishonorable, and very dismaying.” There was a pause and she said, ”Are you sure?”
”I am. Absolutely. How would anyone know otherwise? You haven't told anyone, then he obviously did. You're quite a catch, you know. An earl's daughter with a t.i.tle in your own right, married to a notable business tyc.o.o.n, sister of one of the premier earls of England. Good G.o.d, Lavinia, don't you understand? He's boasted about you being his mistress.”
”Were you serious, when you said it might get into the newspapers?” She leaned forward. Her face was very pale.
”I was indeed. I don't want a scandal surrounding us, Lavinia. Especially not at this moment, when Daphne is marrying.”
”Neither do I. What shall I do?”
”I'd break it off immediately, and don't put a b.l.o.o.d.y thing in writing. Just be unavailable, and if you have to speak to him, do it on the telephone. I wouldn't see him ever again if I were you.”
”I won't, I promise, and I'll do as you say.”
”Look, I'm not making a moral judgment about you, Lavinia. I'm just being protective. Many women take lovers because of problems in their marriage. But usually both parties are discreet, and so protect each other from gossip. And trouble. You just picked the wrong chap, that's all.”
”He picked me.”
”And there you have your answer, don't you think?”
”I do.” She sighed. ”By the way, I meant to ask you before, why is there this rush to wed on Daphne's part?”
”Several reasons,” he answered in a confident voice. ”Firstly, Daphne is worried that she and Hugo might have to postpone their marriage, if Anne suddenly dies, which is very probable. That's why it's this Sat.u.r.day, and not planned for a Sat.u.r.day six months from now. And Felicity and I agreed with her about this matter. Then secondly, Hugo has a great deal of traveling to do. He has to be in Zurich and then New York. They didn't want to be separated for long stretches of time.”
”I understand. They fell in love very quickly. Was it a coupe de foudre, as the French say?”
”It was indeed. They took one look at each other, and that was it.”
”How lovely,” Lavinia murmured. ”She's a lucky girl. Hugo is a real charmer.”
”And very solid; he'll make a good husband. Now, I think we'd better go to the yellow sitting room for tea. I'm sure everyone is waiting for us.”
Forty.
As she walked toward Cavendon, Charlotte couldn't help wondering why Olive Wilson wanted to speak with her, and why she had suggested the late afternoon today. The kitchen was a busy place at that particular time. Cook and the maids were bustling around with plates of sandwiches, scones, cakes, and pots of tea, and Hanson was commanding the footmen, hustling them upstairs.
Then it struck her. Olive would not be busy at that hour. The countess would be presiding over afternoon tea with her guests and the staff serving them in the yellow sitting room. Olive had something serious on her mind. Obviously she wanted to speak in private, probably in the servants' hall, which would be empty, and only Cook would be in the kitchen.
”Cooee! Cooee!” a voice suddenly called, attracting her attention.
Charlotte paused, swung her head, and saw Lady Vanessa, the younger sister of Charles and Lavinia, running down the terrace steps. She was waving and her face was full of smiles.
Waving in return, she waited for Vanessa, who came to a stop in front of her a moment later, and threw her arms around Charlotte.