“What can I do for you, milady?” the girl asked.
“I am quite unwell,” Diana declared. “I shall not be able to come downstairs today. Please, can you let my sister know, and the earl too, of course?”
She wondered, as the maid bobbed a curtsy and left the room, whether Tristan would even notice her absence. She was a fool to imagine that he would care, she thought. He had simply been playing with her yesterday. He could mean nothing by his attention. A man of his reputation would have no interest in her at all, other than to tease her to amuse himself.
But at least now she was excused from the social activities of the day. She knew that she simply could not face it, the thought of seeing Tristan again, of those electrifying yet forbidden glances. It made her stomach churn with anxiety, and other feelings too which she found harder to give a name to.
Time passed, and Diana lay in silence in her bed. Her thoughts were in turmoil as she went over and over in her mind the events of the previous day. But eventually, the silence of her room was broken by a soft knock at the door.
“Diana, may I come in?” Her sister's voice floated through the door. It was a soft tone that felt both comforting and unsettling at the same time. Diana had anticipated that she was not going to get through the whole day without her sister trying to speak to her, but even so, she was still not ready to face her.
“Please, Grace, I am not feeling well. I think I shall remain in bed today,” Diana replied. She attempted to keep her tone weak,so that Grace would think she was really ill and would leave her alone.
The door creaked open, and Grace entered, concern on her pale face. “I know that you are trying to hide from me, Diana. I know you too well. But please, let me in. I am worried about you.”
With a reluctant sigh, Diana propped herself up on her elbows, meeting Grace’s earnest gaze. “I assure you, I am quite unwell. I do not wish to drag you down with me, or worse still, for you to catch something if I have got some illness.”
“Oh, Diana,” Grace said, crossing the room and perching on the edge of the bed. “You have been avoiding me, and I cannot bear it. I have been feeling dreadful about how I have treated you lately.”
“The way that you have treated me?” Diana said, a little surprised. “I cannot imagine what you mean?”
If anything, Diana thought, she should be the one apologizing to her sister for her behavior. But she was determined to say nothing. She could hardly even imagine the shame of admitting to Grace what had happened, let alone some of the thoughts that had entered her head yesterday. It would do no good at all to tell her even a fragment of the truth.
“No, Diana, I do owe you an apology,” Grace said, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “I know that you have been trying to help me to find the perfect husband. I know you have been doing your best. And I have not been as grateful as I should have been.” Shepaused and looked at Diana rather sorrowfully. “In fact, I have not been very nice to you at all. I am sorry for it.”
Diana closed her eyes and leaned back on the pillows. She did not know what to say. She had promised herself all those years ago, when their mother died, that she would do her best to guide Grace through the trials and tribulations of society, and help her to find a good husband who would look after her and make her happy. And until Tristan came into their lives, she had felt that she was doing a good job of it. But now, she hardly knew what to think or how to manage her own feelings. And Grace was saying that she was grateful! She could scarcely bring herself to look at her sister.
“Diana, you are exhausted!” Grace said, moving a little closer and taking her sister’s hand. “I am so sorry that I have caused you so much worry. I know that you want what’s best for me and I have not always reacted to your concerns as I should have done. I promise that I will do better.”
“I must confess that I am very tired,” Diana said softly. She was not sure what else to say, the guilty feelings washing over her were so strong. But perhaps if she asked Grace how she was feeling about the party, her chatter might distract her, and steer the conversation away from Grace’s insistence on apologizing to her, when she had done nothing wrong.
“Tell me, have I missed anything this morning?” Diana asked, trying to gather her thoughts. It was probably too much to hope for that Grace had developed an interest in any of theother gentlemen present at the party, when Tristan was such a compelling presence.
“Well, Tristan was very attentive this morning at breakfast,” Grace said, with a smile.
Diana felt a pang of something in her chest; was it jealousy? No, it could not be such a base feeling as that. And anyway, it was her own fault for hiding away in bed all morning. How could she be resentful of Grace getting Diana’s attention, when she was by far the more deserving of it?
“And you are enjoying his company?” Diana said, though she felt a lump in her throat as she spoke.
“He has been nothing short of a perfect gentleman so far,” Grace said. “I know that you think I ignored you, but I did listen to your warnings, and I have been paying close attention, and on my guard for any sign of inappropriate behavior. But the truth of it is that he has not put a foot wrong.”
Diana suppressed a sigh. He was determined, then, it seemed, to marry Grace, and for Diana to become his future sister-in-law, just as he had said.
Grace’s eyes took on a sparkle of excitement as she continued. “He is fascinating, and you should give him a chance. There’s something intriguing about him.”
Diana could not help but agree, as she remembered the tales Tristan had told her the previous day of his travels abroad. She was not at all surprised that her sister was enjoying his company.
“You must stay on your guard, though, Grace,” Diana said. “I know I have said it before, but we cannot overlook his reputation. It follows him around like a shadow.”
Grace nodded. “I do know that,” she conceded. “And I have noticed that some of the other young ladies seem to avoid him, or at least, their mothers try to persuade them to.”
Diana raised an eyebrow. Her sister was more observant than she had imagined. “I had not noticed that myself,” she remarked. She felt sure that Tristan would be annoyed if he realized what was going on, even under his nose in his own home.
“Perhaps, though,” Grace ventured, her voice barely above a whisper even though there was no one else present in the room to overhear them, “those tales are just that—tales. I cannot judge a man solely by rumors, especially when he has been nothing but courteous to me.”
Diana crossed her arms, feeling her posture starting to stiffen. “But it could all be a façade, Grace,” she warned. “You know as well as I do that the whole world of the ton is filled with masks and pretenses. We must remember that many of the people we mix with in society have ulterior motives.”
As Diana uttered her warning words, though, she realized that she was not convinced. Tristan was such a mystery to her still,such a mass of contradictions. His behavior at times was wildly inappropriate, and yet more than once now he had come to her aid when she was in trouble. And Grace was telling her that he was behaving impeccably towards her. Diana found that she did not know what to believe when it came to the earl.
