“Well, it’s my wish you do so one day, Miss Birdwhistle. Pompeii is truly an amazing place.”
He saw a flash of longing, and then it was gone.
“Thank you, Dudley,” he said as his toast and preserves were placed before him.
He applied himself to his breakfast while the cousins chatted beside him. Miss Birdwhistle had a nice voice. Low and even, not high and shrill like some he knew.
Her name was familiar to him, which suggested he’d met her four years ago during the season.
“I think your cousin should participate in the archery competition, Lady Dorothea,” Bram said, loud enough that she could hear, after he’d consumed every morsel on his plate.
He heard the sharp inhale from Mrs. Birdwhistle.
“I agree. Do participate, Ivy. You have cracking accuracy.”
“No.” The eggs must now be cold, but she pushed more on her fork.
“They’ll settle like a lump in your belly.” Her name was Ivy. Ivy Birdwhistle. Bram liked it. Ivy suited her. “Eat the pastry; at least it will still be palatable.”
“I beg your pardon?” Gray eyes glared at him.
“The eggs must be cold by now.”
“I like cold eggs.” She put a forkful into her mouth and swallowed. She then smiled. It didn’t reach anywhere but her lips.
Bram laughed. The last few days knowing what awaited him had made him tense, so finding a reason to laugh while seated at the table of the family he hadn’t seen for many years was something of a surprise.
Looking at the other guests, he caught Pansy’s eyes. She had a small smile of satisfaction on her lips. Bram wondered who had said what to put it there.
CHAPTER6
“Father, I told Ivy that she should participate in the archery competition,” Thea said on the third day of the house party. They had caught up with her aunt and uncle in the hallway when they left their rooms.
Ivy tugged her cousin’s skirts hard.
“Excellent idea, Thea.” Lord Beacon smiled at his eldest child.
He was a good man, if a little vague upon occasion. Usually when his wife wanted him to do something for her, or his children were misbehaving. Her aunt and uncle had treated Ivy as one of their children from the day she arrived on their doorstep, aged ten, brokenhearted after the death of her parents.
“I have no wish to compete, thank you, Uncle.” She forced a smile onto her face. “I am here to support Thea only.”
“But you would likely beat everyone with your aim, Ivy.”
“I will watch, thank you, Uncle.”
“Are you enjoying the house party?”
No.
“Yes, it’s lovely, thank you, Aunt Mary.”
Thea was the exact replica of her mother. Pretty, smart, and she too wore clothes with ease. Ivy always felt like a seam was digging into her, which it probably was considering the styles she chose to wear.
She and her aunt had been butting heads about her clothing choices since she’d had her first season. Her father had left her a small income. Her uncle had told her she could do whatever she wished with it, as he was providing her dowry, which was extremely generous of him. She asked if she could use it for her clothes. He’d agreed.
She’d completely changed her wardrobe before returning to society for her second season.
“Ivy, did you bring anything other than brown or gray to wear?”
