“You know I’ve the utmost respect for you,” he said before stepping away.They’d been apart from the others for too long, and it was best if he rejoined his siblings.
The Christmas tree was coming along nicely.Strings of beads and strands of garland swirled around the branches, which drooped beneath the weight of painted ornaments and pretty baubles, gilded walnuts on ribbons, and peppermint candy canes.
All that remained was for someone to place an angel atop the pinnacle.
“You’re the tallest, Selly,” said Margie, looping her arm through his.“Anybody else would require the fetching of a ladder to reach the top.”
He smiled at his sister.“You or Fannie could climb on my shoulders like in the old days.”
“We might make a pyramid of bodies, Perry said, laughing, “for Fannie to ascend.”
Their younger sister hitched up her skirts, ready to scramble upon her brothers’ sturdy backs.“Oh, yes, let’s do that!”
Miss Goldsworthy produced the angel and held it while Selwyn and Perry lifted Fannie into the air.It was undignified in the worst way, but heaps of fun.
“I warned you that we did not stand on ceremony here at Brantingham House,” he called to their guest over the sound of their mirth.When the tree was safely topped, they placed Fannie back onto the carpet.“You’ve thrown your lot in with a clan of wild ruffians, I’m afraid.”
Miss Goldsworthy laughed.“I’m delighted to have done so!”
Fannie collapsed onto the sofa, breathless from so many belly-laughs.“No one has asked me what I wish to do in town,” she reminded them, “yet I have the most novel suggestion.”
He snagged a candy cane from off a branch—he doubted the sweets would last until Christmas—and cracked it in half.He offered his little sister one piece while nibbling on the other.“By all means, Fannie, tell us what you have in mind.”
She grinned as if she were imparting a great secret.“Victoria Embankment has been electrified!Every night for a week now, the lamps have been illuminated by the flick of a switch.Oh, please, Selly!Maud Abarough went on the very first night, and she said they were too magnificent.I don’t want to miss the spectacle.Don’t be a spoilsport!It’s Christmas!”
His brother and sisters looked to him with wide, hopeful eyes.Only Miss Goldsworthy’s gaze remained inscrutable.Did she want to see the switching on?
“They’re lights,” Selwyn argued.“I don’t understand what all the fuss is about.We have lights here…” He gestured to the fixtures overhead and to the candle-sconces on the silk-paneled walls.The lamps at Brantingham House and in Yorkshire had been installed at a great expense.
“Ours are gas,” declared Fannie as though he were a Luddite or some pitiable relic from the past.“Mere caveman’s fire!The lamps at the Embankment are powered by electricity—lightning bolts from Zeus’ hand!”
He could never resist his sister’s enthusiasm, and it had been such a long time since the Charlton siblings had enjoyed a jaunt.Nothing was out of reach at Christmas time.
“Very well, Fannie.If no one has any objections for tomorrow evening, we shall go and see the switching on of the lights.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Aurelia settled in happily at Brantingham House.She took supper with the duke and his siblings, and helped the ladies arrange Christmas hampers and charity boxes for their tenants and staff.They went shopping as a group in some of the most fashionable districts of London, and then took tea in a smart restaurant.
She’d been harsh toward His Grace that first afternoon, but they were soon friends once again.He had not meant to be unkind when he’d told her that she was free of him.He did not look upon their betrothal—false though it was—as any great boon.Yet for her, becoming the Duchess of Brantingham would’ve been a fine start in life.The chance of a home, family, and position in the world.
Aurelia had nursed an affection for him over the last five years and had been determined to learn everything necessary to take her place by his side.She had worked hard to learn French, German, and some Italian to discuss music and art with him.She’d studied Latin and Greek in order to appreciate the ancient literature he’d been exposed to at Eton and Oxford.She’d excelled at history, geography, and mathematics, and even tried her hand at sports because His Grace was a strong, stout-hearted Yorkshireman.
Now, she wanted the life she’d expected.Returning home to Cheltenham with her tail between her legs would be a step down indeed.Aurelia wasn’t certain she’d be satisfied with anyone less than the Duke of Brantingham.She adored his house and her bedroom overlooking the park.She’d grown to love his sisters especially, and imagined her future would be very dull without the Ladies Margery and Fanetta Charlton.
The girls gravitated toward her bedchamber, converging on the feminine space to laugh and chat with her.Lady Margery—who insisted on being called ‘Margie’—perched upon Aurelia’s bed with her copy of‘Belgravia’featuring the final installment of Thomas Hardy’s ‘Return of the Native’.
Lady Fanetta—or ‘Fannie’ to her intimates—snooped through Aurelia’s wardrobe, delighting in the silks, velvets, and brocades that she’d brought with her as something of an unofficial trousseau.
“It’s everything I own,” Aurelia explained, lest they think her a walking fashion plate.“I wanted to make a good showing when I met His Grace.”
Fascinated, Fannie draped her arms with iridescent silk.“But if you had married Selly sight unseen, you would’ve denied yourself a Season,” she said.“A debutante Season, at least.You’d miss out on all the fun.”
Margie frowned as she flipped a page.“You’re only upset that you didn’t have your come-out, Fannie, but you’ll get your turn this year.”To Aurelia, she explained, “Fannie missed her debut because of Mama’s death.”
“I am sorry,” Aurelia said.“I imagine the Duchess’s passing must have affected you all.”
“None so much as Selly,” said the eldest sister.“He had to carry on exactly as before, never faltering for the sake of the family and the estate.Truthfully, I wish he would marry you, if only to have someone to share in the burden of the dukedom.”
