Proposals in Regency Society: Make-Believe Wife / The Homeless Heiress

‘You are safe now, dearest,’ Luke said and smiled across the table. ‘You have me to look after you—to say nothing of the earl’s household.’

‘Yes, of course. I am not anxious for myself, but I thought I should tell you what I saw.’

‘I am glad you did. What are your plans for this morning, Roxanne?’

‘I have been invited to visit the earl at eleven o’clock. Until then I think I shall try to make myself familiar with the house.’

Luke got to his feet, tossing his napkin on the table. ‘I would love to stay and show you round, but I have an appointment with Grandfather’s agent and bailiff. Perhaps we can spend the afternoon together? Do not let Grandfather bully you, Roxanne.’

‘I have no intention of it. He is a peppery gentleman, but I rather like him.’

‘You do?’ Luke arched his brow, a smile quirking at the corner of his mouth. ‘Well, I wish you luck. He is seldom at his best in the morning. Excuse me, I must go or I shall be late—finish your breakfast at your leisure. Had you wished, I am sure you could have had a tray in your room.’

‘I like to rise early. Please do not let me keep you from your appointment.’

After Luke had gone, Roxanne drank her coffee and then pushed back her chair. She examined the contents of the silver dishes and saw that most had not been touched. Leaving the room, she glanced at the maid hovering outside the door.

‘You may clear now, Maisie—it is Maisie, isn’t it?’

‘Yes, Miss Peters.’

‘Please call me Miss Roxanne. Everyone does and I prefer it, as I have told Mrs Arlet.’

‘Yes, Miss Roxanne. Mrs Arlet said she was at your service if you should care for a tour of the house.’

‘I think I should like that very much.’

‘I’ll tell her you’re ready, miss, before I clear.’

‘How kind of you, Maisie, but I think I know where her sitting room is; she told me where to find her yesterday.’

Maisie bobbed a curtsy and went into the breakfast room. Roxanne wandered through the hall to the back stairs and then went down to the area that was used exclusively by the servants. The housekeeper’s sitting room was on a small landing just above a short flight of stairs, which led to the servants’ hall and the kitchen. Pleased that she had remembered correctly, Roxanne knocked and was invited to enter.

‘Miss Roxanne,’ the housekeeper said and looked surprised. ‘I would have come to you if you’d sent for me.’

‘I wanted to see if I could find my way here,’ Roxanne said. ‘I should like to begin with the kitchen, if you please. I have no intention of interfering with the way you do things, Mrs Arlet, but I think I should know the layout and the way everyone works. It is a long trek for the servants to carry the food to the dining room. I find it hardly surprising that things get a little cool sometimes.’

‘Yes, miss, that is a fault. Cook has been asking if we couldn’t have a serving hatch somewhere. It would save Mr Marshall going up and down those stairs so much—and the food would keep hotter.’

‘Would you like me to speak to the earl for you?’

‘If you think he is up to it, miss. When he was down a year or so back, his lordship did mention having a modern range put in and a tap in the scullery to save us fetching water from the well, but nothing happened.’

‘I dare say he might have forgotten,’ Roxanne said. ‘Gentlemen have such a lot to think of, do they not? They tend to leave the house to us.’

‘Well, Miss Roxanne, it is a treat to have a sensible young woman in the house. We’ve servants enough, it’s true, but life could be a bit easier for us all and there’s no mistake. A house like this needs constant attention to keep it right.’

‘I am certain it does,’ Roxanne said. ‘We shall begin with a tour of the house this morning, then, when I know my way about, we shall discuss menus. Cook is providing a huge choice of food in the morning. That is as it should be when we have guests, but we hardly need so much for the family.’

‘The master eats like a bird, miss. I think Cook likes to show what she can do when his lordship is down.’

‘Yes, of course. Well, we are to have guests very soon now and she will have plenty of chance to show off her skills.’

Roxanne noticed a glimmer of respect in the housekeeper’s face. She suspected that too much waste had gone on for years with no one to keep a check on things and Cook probably sent leftovers to the village or the servants took it home with them. Since there was no need for strict economy, Roxanne would not interfere—providing the neglect was not actually abuse of the earl’s laxity. She felt it did no harm to let the servants see she intended to keep an eye on such things.

Where had she learned about these things? Roxanne frowned. She did not know why, but her instincts were guiding her.

‘Did you say something, miss?’ the housekeeper asked, looking at her curiously.

‘No, nothing at all,’ Roxanne said and smiled. The memory had been so clear for a moment but she did not wish to think of it now. ‘Shall we go down to the kitchen?’

‘So, Miss Roxanne, you have been inspecting the kitchens,’ the earl said when she bent to kiss his cheek. ‘Discovered they are cheating me, have you?’

‘I think too much waste has been going on,’ Roxanne said. ‘I am not sure you have been cheated, sir. Waste food is usually passed on to the poor or beggars, is it not?’

‘I can’t be bothered with that business,’ he said. ‘It will be your place to see we are not being abused now—and to sort out any problems. Do not bring them to me. There is an allowance for repairs and maintenance below stairs. Ask Clarendon if you must, but, otherwise, deal with it.’

‘In that case, I shall authorise a serving hatch, a new sink in the kitchen and taps, also a larger, more modern cooking range—but I shall not trouble you other than to ask who has charge of the allowance for repairs.’

‘Tonkins, of course. Clarendon is with him this morning.’

‘Your agent, I imagine. Very well, sir, this is the last you shall hear of it.’

‘Good.’ He glared at her. ‘What do you make of the rest of it—think it an old wreck of a place? Clarendon does. He’ll tear it down and build new when I’m gone, I dare say.’

‘Oh, I do not think it, sir. I have no idea what it costs to run a house like this, but I imagine it is a great deal. Perhaps if you were to pull down the tower and the wing you never use, you might build a more modern section there—and keep the rest of this lovely house as it is.’

‘Humph. Think you’re the first to come up with the idea? Clarendon’s mother wanted me to do it years ago. She always hated the tower—said it was haunted.’

‘Is it?’

‘Don’t believe in that rubbish, do you? The roof has gone in parts and rooks nest there. The sounds people hear are wind and birds or rats in the eaves.’

‘Yes, I expect you are right,’ Roxanne said. ‘At night it is easy to imagine all kinds of things.’

‘You are a woman of sense,’ the earl said, his gaze narrowing. ‘Is it all an act, Miss Roxanne? The ruby Clarendon showed me—it doesn’t fit with the rest. What are you keeping from me, miss—and does Clarendon know it all?’

‘The ruby is my inheritance. I wasn’t sure it was valuable, but Luke says it is and I believe him.’

‘He told me he has to return to London tomorrow. He will be gone for a few days and then he intends to stay until after the ball. What do you think of that, miss?’

‘I expect he has some business in town. There is little he can do here, really. I am sure he will have sorted any estate business this morning.’

‘Don’t mind him running out on you, then? What if he decides not to bother about coming back until the day before the ball?’

‘I should miss him, but I believe he will keep his word.’

‘You have a deal more faith than I, Miss Roxanne. He usually stays two days at the most and then I don’t see him for months.’

‘Things are different now, sir.’

‘Are they?’ The earl’s eyes seemed to pierce her with their intensity. ‘I thought this was just a masquerade to keep me sweet—are you telling me that you are really going to marry him?’

Roxanne looked at him in silence for a long moment, then smiled. ‘We have to wait for three months—but if you give your blessing and Luke still wants to marry me, yes, I shall.’

‘I haven’t made up my mind about you yet, miss. There’s something you’re both hiding—but I’ll get it out of you or him. Wait and see if I don’t.’

Roxanne hesitated, then, ‘Tell me, sir—what is it that you want most in the world?’

‘To see my great-grandson and know there will be someone to carry on here when I’ve gone. Clarendon will never settle here—but you might. Is that the idea? You’ll give me what I want and he gets to live in town as he pleases? You won’t like that much, girl, and you’re a fool if you settle for it.’

‘Please, do not think so ill of him, sir,’ Roxanne pleaded. ‘I know things have not always been right between you—but will you not give Luke a chance to make this work? He is genuine in his desire to mend fences.’

The earl’s gaze narrowed, his mouth pursed. ‘Hmmm, we shall see.’

‘I hope Grandfather did not bully you too much?’ Luke said when they met for nuncheon later. Roxanne shook her head and he nodded in satisfaction, looking so much like his grandfather that she had to hide her laughter. ‘Well, what would you like to do this afternoon? I know you can manage a horse—have you done much riding? Proper riding, I mean, not as part of a circus show.’

‘All kinds,’ Roxanne replied. ‘Barebacked, astride, but I have not much experience of riding sidesaddle. I can drive a caravan. I dare say I could learn to ride like a lady easily enough.’

‘I am sure you could and I will arrange a suitable mount for you when I return from town. For this afternoon I think perhaps we should drive round the estate, just to give you an idea of its size and where it is pleasant to walk when you are alone. When I was out with Tonkins this morning everyone was asking about you. Since it is a pleasant afternoon we can use the curricle and allow the curious to see my fiancée. It is only necessary to wave and smile at this juncture.’

‘I think that would be very pleasant. Did you have a good morning with your grandfather’s agent?’

‘Yes. Why do you ask?’

‘I understand the monies for minor repairs to the kitchens are lodged with him. Mrs Arlet has spoken to me about various needs and your grandfather has told me it is up to me to sort out domestic problems in future.’

‘Has he, indeed? Clearly he trusts you more than me, Roxanne. I spoke to him about a serving hatch some months back and he sent me about my business, told me he didn’t need help with arranging his household.’

‘Well, perhaps things have changed. I have been told not to bother him with trivial domestic affairs and I shan’t—but the hatch would improve the quality of the food for us and make less work for others. I think it would repay the cost many times over.’

‘I can see the future of this place is in safe hands, at least for the moment.’ Luke frowned and stood up. ‘I shall arrange for the curricle to be brought round. It is warm, but there may be a breeze so you will want your bonnet and a pelisse.’

‘I shall fetch them,’ Roxanne said.

She was thoughtful as she walked upstairs. Luke had not seemed particularly pleased with the news that the earl had placed domestic affairs in her hands. Perhaps he was beginning to regret bringing her here? His idea of a temporary engagement seemed to be getting out of hand.

Had Roxanne been able to read Luke’s mind she would have discovered that he had mixed feelings and was in something of a turmoil regarding the situation between them. It was surely a good thing that the earl should feel able to place his domestic affairs in Roxanne’s hands. He was uncertain of her true feelings regarding the situation. She had been quite adamant that there would be no wedding, just a fake engagement for a few months, but she seemed to have changed her mind since their arrival at Hartingdon.

She had been running from a man who was determined to make her his mistress when they met, her future dubious to say the least. It would be tempting for any woman in such difficulty to be seduced by the house and the obvious wealth here. Yet if the ruby truly belonged to Roxanne she had money of her own. Luke did not know exactly how much it would fetch, but he was sure it would be more than a few hundred—perhaps as much as two thousand pounds or more to the right person? With such a sum she could set up her own establishment and live comfortably for the rest of her life or until she found work or married. She did not need to live here at the mercy of a cantankerous old man—or to marry a man she did not love.

So why had she changed her mind? She was unsure if the ruby was legally hers, but she might have sold it and risked the consequences had she been less than the honest woman he believed her.

Having placed the ruby in his safe keeping, she had surrendered her independence and shown great trust in him. Luke could not recall anyone else placing that amount of faith in him and his reactions were a mixture of gratification and panic. At the start he had thought the sham engagement might eventually lead to a physical arrangement between them. Luke would have been very ready to become her protector had she chosen a life in the theatre. He had been aroused by Roxanne’s vibrant beauty from the beginning, but did he really wish for marriage? Luke had avoided being caught in what he thought of as a trap for so long, he could not help wondering just what he had got himself into.

It was to be merely a sham marriage, of course. That was the reason Roxanne had agreed to it when the earl insisted on the three-month engagement. She knew that he would keep his word to let her go once the earl had died.

Roxanne would give him his freedom once the earl was in his grave. He was certain that she would keep any bargain he made with her, but by the time he was able to ask for his freedom, would he still wish for it?

Damn the earl for interfering in his life! Hartingdon had no right to dictate terms to him and his threat to restrict his income could be overcome in a court. How could he think of destroying the man who was his only close family? Such a breach would surely kill the old man. Despite the anger and frustration inside him, Luke knew he would never deliberately harm his grandfather. It might be that he would have to make more than a sham marriage and actually give the earl his heir.

Roxanne would never agree to it—would she? He could not expect her to provide an heir and then simply disappear when the marriage ended. Yet need it necessarily end so finally? There was always the alternative of a marriage of convenience.

No, he had vowed he would never go down that road. His parents had been so desperately unhappy. He had witnessed his mother’s tears too many times. His father had been a heartless brute who cared only for his own pleasure and Luke suspected he might be the same. To marry under false pretences might cause too much pain in the future.

The Roxanne who had bound his leg and threatened an intruder at the inn was exciting and amazing, but if she settled into a life of domesticity to please the earl Luke might become bored and begin to stray.

He knew his own faults only too well and he liked Roxanne too much to want to hurt her. It might be as well to remind her that this relationship was a temporary affair. It would be best to stick to the business arrangement they had made at the start.

The earl’s estate was vast, much larger than Roxanne had imagined. She had no experience of land husbandry, but from what she could see as Luke drove her about the estate it was in good heart. The people looked prosperous and they smiled and waved, the labourers and farmers doffing their hats to her. Some children ran out of one of the farms and stood waving and giggling as Luke brought the curricle to a halt.

‘Mam said to wish you happy, sir,’ one of the boys said. ‘She wants to know if there’s to be a bit of a do for the tenants and all.’

‘Yes, I am sure we shall arrange something when the wedding happens, but it is not to be just yet.’ Luke thrust his hand in his pocket and brought out some silver coins, which he tossed to the children before driving away.

‘Your tenants seem pleased to see you, Luke.’

‘They will be disappointed if there is no wedding,’ Luke remarked. ‘Perhaps we should hold some sort of fête in the park this summer. Grandfather always had a late summer party in the gardens for the tenants and labourers. I suppose an engagement is as good an excuse as any other. I’ll speak to him later.’

‘Your grandfather suspects you of trying to fool him, did you know that?’ Roxanne said, keeping her gaze to the front. ‘If we were to break the engagement too soon, he would be certain that he had been right all along.’

‘We shall see whether his health improves. We might have to marry to satisfy him, but do not worry, Roxanne. I should give you your freedom afterwards. He can push us into marriage, but even he cannot hurry the arrival of an heir. It should content him to know that I am married—if you are still prepared to go so far?’

‘Yes, of course. I know that the last thing you want is a life of domesticity, Luke. You need not fear that I shall cling to you and beg you not to leave me. I will not ask for more than we agreed.’

‘No…’ A little pulse flicked at his temple. ‘Well, we shall see how things go, but you must tell me if the situation becomes too difficult for you here. I know Hartingdon is a past master at inflicting wounds.’

‘I think he is a lonely, unhappy man. He shut you out when you were younger, perhaps because he was grieving for your mother—but then, when he might have reached out to you, it was too late. You are very like him, you know.’

‘Like Hartingdon?’ Luke turned his head to look at her in astonishment. ‘What on earth makes you say that? I do not think I have given you cause to fear me?’

‘No, you have not—but neither has the earl. He may be grumpy and harsh at times, but I do not fear him. Indeed, I rather like him. I should not wish to be the source of pain to him.’

Luke made a face of disbelief. ‘If he appears to reciprocate, beware. He is probably trying to get beneath your guard to discover your secrets.’

‘You are unfair,’ Roxanne replied and gave him a look of reproach. ‘Why does neither of you trust the other? You say you wish to make his last months happy—yet you will not allow him to have a heart or a conscience.’

‘If he has a softer side, he has given no sign of it in my presence.’

‘You are so used to quarrelling with each other that neither of you can see how foolish it is. If you let down your guard, Luke, you might actually enjoy a pleasant relationship with him—become friends or at least respect one another.’

‘If I offered affection, he would throw it in my face. My advice to you is to be careful, Roxanne. Allow him to get inside your head and he will hurt you. Do not imagine that anything he has said of late means he is happy to accept you into the family. I have no doubt that from the moment I told him I was engaged, he instructed agents to discover who you are and where you came from.’

‘He is unlikely to do so.’ Roxanne kept her face turned from him as she said, ‘Since I am well aware that this is all a masquerade I am not likely to be hurt, whatever happens.’

‘That is as well,’ Luke said. ‘Neither of us is to be completely trusted, Roxanne, but you have my word that you will never want for money for the rest of your life. I intend to have the ruby valued when I am in town; I shall try to discover if it has a history—but regardless of what I discover, my promise to you holds true. When this is all over I shall set you up with a house and an income that will be more than adequate.’

Roxanne made no answer. He was merely reminding her of their arrangement. Luke Clarendon had never pretended to care for her. She ought not to feel disappointed or upset. Indeed, she would not allow herself to feel anything. She would simply make the most of her time here—and when it was over she would know what to do.

Chapter Six

After Luke left for London the next day, Roxanne set her mind to the tasks she had taken on in the house. A list of guests for the ball was drawn up and the invitations written carefully in her best copperplate hand. She spent an hour with Tonkins and set the work in hand for the improvements to the kitchen, and, after speaking to the head gardener, arranged for fresh flowers to be brought to the house each day.

When she carried a bowl of yellow roses into the earl’s sitting room that evening he stared at her as if she had run mad.

‘What is that for, miss?’

‘To brighten your room and bring some sunshine indoors to you. The weather is so delightful, sir, and the gardens are glorious. We have so many lovely blooms it would be a shame not to enjoy some of them indoors.’

‘Like flowers, do you?’ His thick brows knit as he stared at the offering.

‘Yes, I love them. I think I should like to improve some parts of the garden—if I stay here for long enough, of course.’

‘What would you do?’

‘There are some unused areas at the back of the house that are merely grass. I would like to make a wild garden, with your permission, sir. I have spoken to the gardener and he says there were plans to make a garden of box hedges and herbs there once, but it never happened. I thought something similar, but less formal. I should like plants that invite butterflies and birds to visit often, and perhaps some running water—a fountain of some kind.’

‘The herb garden was my wife’s intention, but she died.’ The earl glared at her, seeming angry or at the mercy of some deep emotion. ‘I suppose you can do as you please—if you stay long enough.’

‘Luke says you will have instructed agents to discover who I am and where I come from, sir.’

‘And what if I have? Worried about what they will find, miss?’

‘I believe I have done nothing of which I ought to be ashamed, sir.’

‘There’s something, though. I’ve sensed it since the beginning. You are a mystery, Miss Roxanne—but I don’t dislike having you visit me, and the roses can stay.’

Roxanne smiled. Impulsively she bent and kissed his cheek. ‘Perhaps there is a mystery, sir—perhaps even I do not know its answer, but believe me when I say I would not harm you or Luke. Indeed, I would rather go away, disappear altogether, than bring shame on either of you.’

The earl grunted, making no other reply, but his eyes looked very bright as she glanced back from the doorway. Walking down to the hall, Roxanne felt at a loss. She had become acquainted with all parts of the house, including the disused wing. The tower was out of bounds so she had not attempted it, but, walking up to the stairway to look at the curving stone steps, she’d heard a screech and some fluttering that she took to be the rooks the earl had spoken of once.

The tower had no appeal for her and she decided to walk in the garden for a while. Perhaps she would have a talk to the gardener or the bailiff about the new wilderness. It could not hurt to make plans for her wild-flower plot, even if her stay here was only temporary. Walking round past the tower to the back of the house, something made her glance up. For one moment she saw something at a window about halfway up, but in an instant it had gone. She frowned, because it had looked like a face—a man’s face, dark-complexioned and strange—and yet she was sure that the earl had given orders no one was to go up the tower because it was unstable.

It must surely have been a trick of the light? Why would anyone be in the tower? The earl’s servants were all aware of his orders—and yet there might be good reason for someone to visit surreptitiously. When he spoke of putting the ruby somewhere safe, Luke had told Roxanne that the earl’s strong room was somewhere either in the tower or beneath it.