“Completely,” he replied. “It was my courtship that was interrupted by this trip.”
Chapter Three
Katherine placed another cool compress on her forehead and leaned her head back on the chaise. She had retired to her room after her morning meeting with the servants to assign their tasks. And this dreadful headache just wasn’t letting up. But she supposed she had drunk too much champagne at her ball last night. That wasn’t like her at all. She rarely drank spirits at parties, and never when she was the hostess.
Her maid, Lucy, moved about in the bedroom, putting it to rights. The morning tray she had brought remained untouched. She couldn’t stomach even the thought of food just yet.
Katherine sighed long and loudly. Fortunately, the ball last night had been a success, despite her slight intoxication. Even Warren had managed to make an appearance. The evening itself had nothing to do with her present headache. It had been caused by Elisabeth and the message her maid had delivered just as the first guests began to arrive: that because William hadn’t been invited to the ball, she would not attend either.
It was incredible. Not a word out of Beth all week since their talk, not a sigh, not a tear. Katherine had truly thought Beth had accepted the situation, and she had been so proud of her, of how well she was handling this broken-heart business. And then, out of the blue, this about-face, this message that proved only too well that Beth hadn’t forgotten about William at all—which made her wonder now why there hadn’t been any more tears if thatwasthe case.
What the devil was she to think? Oh, she couldn’t think at all right now, not with this throbbing head.
A loud knock at the door made her grimace. Elisabeth came in, dressed in a lovely watered-silk gown of moss green, a going-out dress. She held a silk bonnet in her hand by the ties, and a lacy parasol was tucked under her arm.
“Martha said you weren’t feeling well, Kit.”
No mention of her absence last night, not even a guilty look. And after all the trouble Katherine had gone to for the ball, selecting only the most eligible bachelors in the hope that one might catch Beth’s interest. Well, the ball hadn’t really been any bother. Entertaining two hundred people was a trifling thing when you knew how to make things run smoothly.
“I’m afraid I imbibed a little too freely last night, love,” Katherine said truthfully. “Nothing that won’t right itself by the afternoon.”
“That’s nice.”
Beth was distracted. Why? Katherine wondered. And where was she going?
She wasn’t prepared to mention Lord Seymour again just yet, but she had to know Beth’s destination. An uncomfortable premonition raised its head.
“You’re going out?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll have to ask John to drive you then. Henry took sick yesterday.”
“That—that won’t be necessary, Kit. I’m just going for a—a walk.”
“A walk?” Katherine said stupidly.
“Yes. If you’ve noticed, it’s an absolutely lovely day, just perfect for a walk.”
“I hadn’t noticed. You know I rarely take note of the weather.” Good Lord, a walk? Beth never walked. She had such high arches that walking any distance gave her sore feet. And what was all this uncertainty, this stammering? “How long will you be, love?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Beth said evasively. “I might venture over to Regent Street and do a little shopping before the afternoon crowds arrive. You know how dreadful it can be there between two and four.”
Katherine was speechless, and before she could recover, Beth had waved and closed the door. And then Katherine’s eyes flared and her headache was momentarily forgotten as the most astounding thought occurred to her.My God, she wouldn’t be that foolish, would she?But her unusual behavior, that ridiculous statement about going for a walk, the even more absurd suggestion that she might shop—without a carriage to carry her parcels. She was meeting William! And if she had to be so sneaky about it, they had to be going to elope! There had been ample time for him to obtain a license. And the city abounded in churches.
“Lucy!”
The red-haired maid appeared almost instantly in the bedroom doorway. “Lady Katherine?”
“Quickly, call my sister back here!”
The maid fairly flew out of the room, alarmed by the harried note in her mistress’s voice. She caught Lady Elisabeth descending the stairs, and they both returned to Katherine’s sitting room.
“Yes, Kit?”
A definitely guilty look this time, Katherine thought wildly, her mind already racing ahead. “Be a dear, Beth, and confer with Cook over tonight’s menu for me. I really don’t feel up to making any decisions just now.”
Obvious relief. “Of course. Kit.”
