Claiming The Chaperon's Heart

‘Yes, it was Mama’s until she remarried,’ Jane said. ‘Now, of course, she has a dozen pretty rooms she may choose from, and if she wants anything different she has only to ask Porky.’

‘Is that what you call the duke?’ Melia’s eyes sparkled with mischief as Jane nodded and laughed. ‘Oh, it does suit him—but it is a terrible thing to call such a lovely man. He was so kind to me when I attended the wedding as one of your mama’s bridesmaids—and he gave me a beautiful gold bracelet as a gift.’

‘Roshithe is a lovely man, and so kind to us all,’ Jane said. ‘I assure you, the name was given him years ago and stuck. He does not regard it, because he knows it is used with affection. His enemies are more likely to call him Roshithe in a supercilious manner, and that he does resent—though you should probably address him as sir, unless he gives you permission to use the name.’

‘I would not dare. I shall probably address him as Your Grace...’

‘He cannot abide that sort of toad-eating, as he calls it, Miss Bellingham. Much better just to use the simple sir.’

‘I’ll try to remember,’ Melia promised and gave Jane a small shy smile. ‘Will you not call me Melia?’

‘Yes, of course, if you wish it—and you must reciprocate. I am Jane to my family and friends.’

‘Yes, I know. Viscount Salisbury always speaks of you that way. He is very fond of you, Jane.’

‘We have always been close,’ Jane said. ‘I shall leave you to change if you wish.’

She left the bedchamber, which was indeed the prettiest in the house, its curtains pink and white striped silk, which matched the décor of pinks, cream and a deep crimson. Jane had ordered some pink roses to be placed on the dressing stand to complete the welcome offered to a lady who might, if she chose, become the next mistress here.

It would mean a big change in Jane’s life, she thought as she made her way down to the sitting room she favoured. She would miss playing hostess for her brother and it would be an upheaval making the move to Bath, but she intended to make way for her brother’s wife, despite Melia’s hints that she would be welcome to stay on to run the house for her. No, that would eventually lead to resentment and perhaps unkind words between them; Melia might need help at first but once she found her own confidence she would not wish for another woman in her home.

Jane had already begun to make inquiries about a house in Bath. She was unsure whether she wished to rent a place while she looked about her or buy something immediately. If she bought she would need to furnish it, and she intended to look for suitable items while she was in town this time. Even if her brother Will was not successful in securing his bride immediately, it would happen, and Jane had no wish to live in the country house left to her by her husband.

‘It’s a bit dull and quite lonely,’ Harry had told her the day he took her to see his small country house. ‘I know we can make it nice, Jane—and with servants and children it will soon become a home. I dare say we’ll make friends soon enough. There’s plenty of time before we have to retire to a country life, because I want to rise in the Army. We can live in London when we’re home on leave—and in time you will find a way to make this place into a home.’

Jane had assured him gaily that she would enjoy it, but that future had seemed so far away as not to be of much interest. Before they settled down to living off the land, they had so much fun to have—travelling overseas, putting up at the most frightful billets had all seemed amusing to the young couple in love. Her friends were Harry’s friends, the ladies she met officers’ wives, all living their nomad existence with a smile on their faces and secret fear in their hearts. Yet, even so, Jane had not thought it could all end so abruptly. She’d thought of her life as being married to Harry for years and years, but in fact she’d had only a year of happiness.

She would not think of that! Jane told herself severely that she must begin to look to the future. She had already written to her cousin. Sarah’s reply had not arrived before they left for London, but Will’s servants would send on any letters and, if Sarah wished, Jane would invite her to join them in town.

She would make a few inquiries about whom to consult on the matter of furnishing a house, but perhaps it might be better to hire a furnished house for a start, though Jane had some of her personal things at her brother’s country house. She had intended to set up her own home long ago but living in Will’s home had proved so pleasant for them both that she’d let her own plans drift.

‘It is lovely to have you here again, ma’am,’ Mrs Yates, Will’s London housekeeper, came up to her as she reached the hall. ‘There are quite a few letters waiting for you in the parlour, Lady March. I dare say your ladyship’s friends knew of your intention and most of them look like invitations.’

‘Yes, I dare say,’ Jane replied with a faint twist of her lips. ‘Mama knew we were coming, of course, and I imagine she has informed most of her friends—and that includes everyone who gives decent parties...’

Jane laughed softly as she saw an answering gleam in the housekeeper’s eyes, because Mama was well known in this house. She picked up the large pile of letters and cards awaiting her and flicked through them. Three were in her mother’s hand, each of them speaking of some party she really must attend or an exhibition she must see. Her mother intended to visit her the day after she arrived and she was to come to dinner that evening and bring the delightful young woman she’d invited as her guest.

Laying aside her mother’s letters, Jane opened some of the others. Most, as her housekeeper had guessed, were invitations to dances, masques, picnics, dinner and a grand ball. If she tried to attend them all, and this was the tip of the iceberg because as soon as it was known she was in town the invitations would pour in, she would need to attend three affairs in an evening so as not to offend the eager hostesses.

Picking up a neat cream-coloured envelope addressed to Lady March in a hand she did not recognise, Jane slit the seal and took out the piece of paper inside. She frowned as she read the few lines written on the single sheet.

Madam, Lady March,

Forgive me for writing when you do not know me, but I have been informed that my ward, Miss Amelia Bellingham, is to stay with you in town. I would ask that you let me know when it is convenient to call on you both.

Yours sincerely,

Paul Frant.

Brief and to the point, not particularly friendly, Jane thought as she scanned the lines again. She had not been aware that there was any other guardian than Mrs Bellingham. As Melia’s father’s widowed sister-in-law, she would surely be the proper person to have charge of the girl, Jane thought, but obviously Lord Frant—whoever he might be—thought differently.

It was slightly concerning, because the tone of the letter was distinctly cool. In fact, she would say that he’d been annoyed when he wrote the letter—only yesterday. She wondered if Melia knew of the gentleman and decided to ask when she came down for tea. Meanwhile, she continued to open her letters, discovering two more invitations for balls and one to the theatre from a close friend of her mother’s.

Major Harte was some years older than Jane, but he had taken a fancy to her the last time she was in London and she’d received more than one proposal from him. As she knew he was a widower with two daughters under fifteen and needed a wife to keep them in order, Jane understood his persistence, but always gave him the same answer. She was not yet ready to remarry...

She had just finished sorting her letters into piles, those needing replies in one pile and the others in another, when the door opened to admit the housekeeper carrying a tray. Melia followed her in and tea was poured.

‘I thought we would dine at home this evening,’ Jane told her. ‘It is the only night we shall be at home, because we are invited out almost every night for our entire stay, and will go from one to the other like bees gathering pollen from flowers.’

Melia laughed and looked delighted. ‘Could we visit the duchess this afternoon? I do so like your mama, Jane.’

‘She informed me that she would be out but would visit us tomorrow afternoon and expected us to dine at night. What we might do is visit my dressmaker and milliner, Melia. I think you might like some new clothes. Your own are pretty, but not quite as stylish as the fashions in town.’

‘My aunt gave me fifty pounds, but I’m not sure how many clothes that will buy...’ she said doubtfully and Jane smiled.

‘Your aunt told me to have your dressmaking bills sent to her, my love. She would not expect you to spend your pin money on clothes. No, we shall have your measurements taken, and see if there is anything already made up that might fit you with some alteration.’

‘Do you think there will be?’ Melia looked anxious. ‘At home it takes ages to have dresses made up.’

‘Oh, I am sure Madame François will be able to accommodate us sooner than that,’ Jane assured her. ‘She has many girls working under her and takes no more than a day or so to complete a simple gown—and often there is a half-finished dress from a cancellation that we may have finished to your specification if you care for it.’

‘Oh, good,’ Melia said, excitement rising. ‘How soon may we go?’

‘We shall have our tea and some of these delightful sandwiches and biscuits Mrs Yates has brought us, and then we may fetch our bonnets. I shall have the carriage sent for in one hour...’ She got up to ring the bell, then remembered the annoying letter.

‘Do you know of a Paul Frant?’ she asked. ‘Is that the person who inherited your father’s estate?’

‘Lord Frant, yes...’ Melia looked wary, her hand suspended as she was about to eat a tiny cucumber sandwich. ‘He is in India I think...’

‘According to the letter I received this morning, he must be in England as he has learned that you were coming to stay with me here—he has asked to meet us both at our earliest convenience. Did you know he was returning?’

‘I didn’t know when,’ Melia said a little guiltily. ‘He sent a letter but it was vague. I did not see why it should interfere with my plans...’

‘No,’ Jane replied, but she wasn’t sure. Melia was underage and if her guardian had chosen to withhold permission for this visit he might have done so: Melia had clearly chosen to ignore his letter. ‘What did he ask you to do?’

‘Oh, he spoke of my returning to my father’s estate and said that he would provide a chaperon for me,’ Melia said with a shrug of her pretty shoulders. ‘However, his meaning was vague, and I had already arranged this visit. If he wishes me to live at Willow House with a chaperon he must arrange it with my aunt—that is the proper way, do you not agree? After all, I know nothing of Lord Frant—or this lady he wishes to foist on me.’

‘It would certainly be best for him to speak to both you and your aunt, to ascertain what your wishes are,’ Jane agreed, but she felt slightly anxious on her young friend’s behalf, for she surely did not wish to antagonise the man who might do something for her if he chose. Not that a dowry would signify if she took Will, because he could well afford to provide for his wife.

‘Oh, well, I shall write this evening,’ Jane said, dismissing the matter. ‘Finish your meal, Melia, and then we’ll change and visit my dressmaker. I wrote her that we might so she will be expecting us...’

* * *

‘Oh, what a pretty little thing it is that you bring me to dress...’ Madame Françoise cooed over Melia’s trim figure. ‘She ees perfection, no?’

‘Yes, I believe Melia will take very well,’ Jane said. ‘Particularly, I think, if she is seen first in Society wearing one of your creations, Madame. Do you have anything at all that she could wear almost immediately?’

‘Yes, I believe perhaps...there is the blue silk, Michelle—and the yellow net... Fetch them quickly!’ Madame Françoise clapped her hands and the seamstress hurried to obey.

In all, four half-finished gowns were produced. They were orders that had been cancelled or changed after the work had begun and Madame was delighted to do the small amount of work needed to finish them to Miss Bellingham’s liking. Melia was charmed with what she saw and easily pleased, agreeing to the four gowns and agonising over a wealth of materials, styles and trimmings until Jane declared it was enough for one day and assured Madame Françoise that she would receive more visits until an adequate wardrobe had been supplied.

Riding home in the carriage with Jane later that afternoon, Melia was excited and talked endlessly of the gowns they had ordered until at last she grew a little quiet, and then looked at her hostess anxiously.

‘You do not think I have been too extravagant?’ she asked in a small voice. ‘I have very little money of my own and my aunt has already been generous...’

‘Mrs Bellingham is not a poor woman,’ Jane said. ‘She assured me that she wanted you turned out in fine style, Melia. I should not worry if I were you. I shall pay for everything, and your aunt will reimburse me in good time.’

‘You are both very good to me,’ Melia said with the shy smile which Will’s sister thought was probably what had drawn him to her. She had taken to the young girl and thought that if he did marry Melia he would most likely be very happy, for she had a sunny nature—even if she did bend the truth a little now and then.

It was as they approached Will’s town house that they saw a man leaving it. He paused for a moment in the sunshine, looking about him in a manner that Jane could only describe as impatient, and then strode off in the opposite direction. She did not have long to wonder who it might have been for they encountered Will coming down the stairs as they entered and he exclaimed at once.

‘Ah, there you both are! Lord Frant called in the hope of seeing you, Melia. At first he was quite put out at finding you both out—and seemed surprised that you should be staying here in my house. I had to explain that Jane lives with me and that you were her very good friend...’

‘I do not see why he should be put out.’ Jane frowned at him. ‘I had his letter and intended writing to make an appointment for one morning this week. If he must call without one, he must not expect us to be sitting in waiting for him.’

Will looked a little surprised at her tone, for she did not often speak so sharply. ‘I wasn’t aware that you knew him, Jane?’

‘I do not,’ she replied and laughed. ‘His letter rubbed me up the wrong way. You had gone to your club, Will—and we decided to visit the dressmaker to have some new gowns made up for Melia. Had he said he would call this afternoon I would have put it off until tomorrow—though how Melia can be expected to appear in public without some decent clothes I do not know...’

‘I dare say you’ve already taken care of all that,’ Will said and grinned at her. ‘Besides, Melia looks very pretty in what she’s wearing.’

Since Melia was wearing a simple yellow gown of muslin over a thin petticoat with a charming bonnet of straw trimmed with matching ribbons, there was truth in his words, but only the silk shawl that Jane had lent her had given the ensemble a touch of town bronze. Since he saw his beloved through rose-tinted spectacles, he could not be expected to realise that—though, had his sister ever appeared in town in such a simple robe, he might have raised his eyebrows at her.

‘Well, I shall write to Lord Frant and explain,’ Jane said. ‘Will, please ring for some tea for us all while I see to my letter—Melia will keep you company. Unless she has something more urgent pressing?’

Melia dimpled prettily and shook her head. She and Will walked into the front parlour, talking together animatedly. Jane thought the very ease of their manner together boded well for the future, but she was not certain that her young guest’s mind was as firmly fixed on marriage as was her brother’s.

She went into the smaller parlour that was her own when in town and sat down to pen a polite letter, explaining that she had taken Melia out to order some of the wardrobe she would need for the season. She apologised for wasting his time; had she known of his intention to call she would have waited in but, since they had arrived only that morning, Melia had been anxious to see a little of the town.

Feeling pleased with a letter that matched his in coolness, but was far politer, she sealed it with her own wax, mauve in colour, and pressed Harry’s ring into it. Lord Frant should see that he was dealing with the widow of Lord March and not some little nobody he could order about as he pleased! She had informed him that she would be at home any morning that week from ten-thirty until twelve and he would be welcome to call in those hours, but at other times he might find them all out.

* * *

Paul frowned over the letter that had been brought to his house just as he was changing for the evening. He and Adam had been invited to dine at a gentleman’s house and to play cards in the evening. Since the gentleman was an officer they’d known when serving with Wellington, both were delighted to accept.

Paul was not sure what to make of the letter. The paper smelled delightfully of a perfume that pleased the senses, but which he could not have named for it was subtler than the heavy perfumes he’d been used to in India. The writing was beautifully formed, but the message seemed glacial to him. What could he have done to deserve such excessive politeness? He’d seen middle-aged ladies giving the cold shoulder to some junior officers before this, but he himself had never been on the receiving end.

Lady March was probably some old trout with an acid tongue, he thought and grimaced. It was regrettable that he must call on her during the hours she’d set, for he normally steered well clear of those very haughty dames. However, since his ward had chosen to ignore his invitation to take up residence in her own home and await her chaperon and his ideas for her future, he had no choice. Had he been married, he would have had no hesitation in commanding Miss Bellingham to do as he bid her, but, as a single man of no more than one and thirty, he must be circumspect in his dealings with the young lady—and therefore he must try to get on to terms with the old biddy who had brought her to London. He had never met the Viscount Salisbury or any member of his family, but he’d been told by Mrs Bellingham that they were respectable people and rich. He’d thought Lady March a younger woman, but the tone of this letter made him think he’d been mistaken.

Well, he would forget it for this evening. Paul had already set things in motion regarding the furnishing of his house. Lady Moira had returned to town after discovering that her charge was not in residence at Paul’s country house and, discovering that he was camping out in two rooms, promised to arrange for him to meet a very good man who would furnish his house in the latest style.

He’d thanked her, for although he had his own ideas on what he wanted, he really had no idea where to start. Lady Moira knew all the best shops and the silk merchants—because, she said, when she called, all the drapes in the house needed refurbishment too.

Adam had told him he needed a wife, and a certain unease at the back of Paul’s mind warned him that Lady Moira was thinking of herself as filling the position, which meant he would be reluctant to ask for her help furnishing his house. She was actually five years older, but because she dressed in the first style, was intelligent and up to date in her thinking, she seemed younger. Many men seemed to prefer a slightly older woman, and there was something very sensual about Lady Moira. Although Paul did not care for the perfume she wore; it was too heavy and reminded him of some that the ladies of easy virtue who pleasured the Army officers had a habit of wearing. Indeed, Lady Moira reminded him of a beautiful courtesan he’d been offered by the Indian Prince he’d saved from death.

‘I owe you my life, sahib,’ the young Prince told him. ‘Selima is of royal blood and she is yours for the taking. She is trained to please men and she will show you tricks you never dreamed of, my dear lord and saviour.’

Paul had held his laughter inside for he knew the young man believed he was bestowing a great honour by giving him the services of the beautiful concubine, but he’d refused as politely as he could. A certain gleam in the woman’s eyes had spoken of a sly nature and she’d held no appeal for him. However, to refuse point-blank would have been considered an insult, so Paul was forced to fabricate an excuse. He’d been preparing himself for marriage with his English bride, he’d said, and must forswear the pleasures of the flesh until his wedding so that he could do his bride justice.

This had found favour with the young Prince, who clapped his hands and said very seriously that he thought the sahib was wise not to waste his strength on a courtesan when he could have a sweet young bride. Selima would be waiting for him when he returned to India, his heir already born or on its way.

Everyone had felt certain that Paul would return. Why would he wish to live in a cold, wet climate when he could have a life of ease in the heat and splendour of palaces made cool by tinkling fountains and little pools, with lilies and beautiful courtesans to play in them and await the attentions of their master? A wife was necessary for sons, who could inherit his wealth, but after one had sons there was so much more to enjoy.

Paul did not truly know what he wished for. Since his return, almost two weeks since, he’d taken a trip into the country to look at various estates, hoping to find Miss Bellingham where he’d expected her to be. Failing that, he’d visited her aunt and finally returned to London in a less than contented mood. He was still not quite back to his full strength and felt the extra journey had been wasted. Finding that his ward was out when he’d called that afternoon had seemed the outside of enough, and now this letter... For two pins he would sell his estates here and return to India. There seemed little reason for him to stay and he had almost made up his mind to book a passage next month, leaving the winding up of his various estates to his agents and lawyers.

* * *

Jane had just come downstairs the next morning and was about to write some letters in her parlour when she heard the door knocker sound in a manner that was no less than imperious. She hesitated as the footman looked at her, inclined her head and said, ‘I’ll be in my parlour if it is for me, John.’

Going into her parlour, Jane sat at her desk and dipped her pen in the ink. She had just begun her first reply to an invitation when a tap at her door heralded the arrival of the impatient guest. She waited as the door opened and the man she was expecting was announced. Getting slowly to her feet, Jane looked at the man that entered, her heart suddenly beating faster. He was at least a head taller than she, and she was a tall woman. Harry had been slightly shorter but that had never mattered because they were so much in love, but this man could look down on her. Her first thought was that he had a harsh face, but was otherwise unremarkable, and then she looked at his eyes—fierce, and wild, she thought with a little shock, untamed.

‘I have come to speak with Lady March and my ward, Miss Amelia Bellingham. Would you have the goodness to ask them to come down, ma’am?’

‘I am Lady March, and I will certainly ask Melia to come down shortly, but perhaps it might be wise if we spoke first alone?’

‘You—but you’re far too young...’ he said, looking astonished.

‘What have you been told?’ Jane felt a laugh escape her, try as she might to control it. ‘Forgive me, sir, but I believe you are Lord Frant—and I am certainly Lady March. My brother, the Viscount Salisbury, will verify that if you wish.’

‘Of course not...forgive me,’ he said and his eyes glinted, though she was not sure whether it was anger or something else she saw in them. ‘I presumed from...but no matter. I hope I do not inconvenience you but you did say any morning at this hour?’