They now shifted over to that end of the table and Viola took a sheaf of paper off a pile. “The bedroom arrangements will be tight. But I suppose your bachelor friends can double up, if necessary. So can the young ladies, two of them can share quarters. Or is this simply not done?”
“The men will share. I’m not sure how the diamonds will feel about sharing quarters with their competition. But I think there will be room enough for the ladies to each have their own bedchamber. Don’t fret too much about it. I’ll also need your help developing an itinerary for the day’s activities.”
“And the menu, don’t forget.”
“Yes, the menu is most important.”
“When will you speak to Mrs. Stringer? We ought to get her consent before–”
“Consent? Viola, she works for me. I shall speak to her kindly, but you will be put in charge of the kitchen. She shall have the choice of remaining to work under you or taking the few days off to visit her family. I have every expectation she will choose to visit her family, especially since I will pay her for those days.”
“You will?” She smiled in approval.
He smiled back. “You would be up in arms if I offered anything less.”
Was he being kind to Mrs. Stringer for her sake?
Warmth flooded through her, even though she knew it could not be so. She was not special to him, merely assisting him. He admired her intelligence and probably thought her pretty, but nothing more.
She wrote down the names of those to be invited since her penmanship was better than his. “I count twenty-one guests in all. It will be a tight fit.”
“Cross out my parents,” he said with a grin, no doubt aiming to get a rise out of her.
She laughed. “I will do no such thing. Everyone in your immediate family is on this list, including your grandmother, and shall remain on here. I am adamant about this.”
“I will be made to feel like a dancing bear, all eyes on me while I perform.”
She ignored his comment and began to rattle off those named on the list. “Your parents, Lord and Lady Trent.”
“I know who my parents are.” He was leaning back and grinning, so he obviously was not put out by her insistence.
“Your grandmother, Lady Eloise Dayne and–”
“I know my grandmother’s name.”
She sighed. “Your brother and his wife, both of whom shall remain nameless.”
He chuckled, but his mirth soon faded. “The nursery is available if they choose to bring their children with them. It is time to see those little beds and the playroom occupied again.”
“I think that is an excellent idea, my lord.” She cleared her throat and continued before tears clouded her eyes and upset him further. That he would even suggest making the nursery available was an exceptional step forward.
She wanted to hug him and congratulate him for it, but the gesture would draw too much attention onto him, and he might change his mind. “The three diamonds,” she said, staring down at her paper again. “Their parents. Each diamond has a brother who will be invited. Your cousin, Lord Graelem Dayne and his wife, Laurel. She was a Farthingale before her marriage to your cousin. She is Daisy’s sister, is that not so?”
He nodded.
“Is there perhaps an unmarried Farthingale we can add to this list? Your brother and cousin fell in love with girls from that family, so–”
“No, they are all taken.”
Goodness, he wasted no time in dismissing the notion. Well, it was none of her business if he wished to be a snob about it and attach himself to an aristocrat’s daughter instead of a clever and beautiful commoner. These Farthingale women were obviously a cut above the other debutantes, even if their blood was not blue. “Do Lord Graelem and Lady Laurel have children?”
“Yes. Again, the nursery is available if they decide to bring them.”
She felt a tug to her heart.
This house was made to be filled with little ones.
She returned to the list. “Last are two of your bachelor friends, Lord Chesterfield and Lord Hythe. If they agree to share a room, then everyone will be comfortably settled, the young ladies having their own rooms. Of course, this assumes the parents of each young lady will agree to share marital quarters. Do you think they would be amenable? It would only be for a few days.”
