“But what of you?”
“If you are the duchess of the wealthiest man in London, you can take very good care of Sarah... and me.” Lady Baldwin lifted the glass to the thought. “Why, you would be so rich, you could pay to have Sarah’s plays produced. Baynton could even buy the theater. Or build his own!” She was quite taken with the idea.
“We will have to buy you a suitable dress, perhaps some other new clothes as well,” Sarah said. She adored to plan. “We have the money now.” She indicated the coins in her lap.
“Several new dresses are a must,” Lady Baldwin said, giving Char a critical eye. “We will also need to hire a vehicle. And have you thought of taking on a servant? If the duke comes to call, the house is passable but a servant is a must.”
“I can be the servant,” Sarah said. “I’ll wear a costume from the theater. We will let Baynton believe Char lives with you.”
“That will do.”
“Wait,” Char said. She set down her glass. “The duke has never laid eyes on me and the two of you are already planning what to do when he comes calling.”
“Because he will come calling, Char,” Sarah said. “Even if every woman at that ball is as lovely as you, he will single you out. There is something about you. You aren’t jaded like so many young ladies of your class. Or as wool-headed. Baynton will meet you and he won’t be able to help falling in love.”
“Especially if Dame Imogen has anything to do with it,” Lady Baldwin said. “She doesn’t like young women today. She calls them too modern but you struck her fancy.”
“My bloodlines struck her fancy,” Char corrected.
“Same difference in her eyes.”
Sarah leaned forward. “Will you do it, Char? Will you take the risk?”
How could Char say no? She didn’t believe for one moment that the duke would choose her, but it was obvious the idea of her going to this ball meant a great deal to Sarah. “Of course I will.”
Lady Baldwin clapped her hands while Sarah put aside the money purse to jump out of her chair and give Char a hug.
“We have a great deal to do,” Sarah warned. “To save money may I suggest we design the dress ourselves. The wardrobe mistress at the Haymarket will help.”
“Yes, that will save a bit,” Lady Baldwin said, and they put their heads together on what style of dress would look best on Char.
For her part, Char hadn’t quite grasped what all this meant. Unbidden, a face rose in her mind. A handsome-in-his-own-way face. A memory that might stay with her, even though he was the last man she should find attractive. The face of the angry American—Whitridge.
She had to put him out of her mind. “Is the duke young?” she asked, hoping the answer was yes. Right now, he might be as ugly as a Sunday pig and she would feel obligated to consider him.
“Baynton?” Lady Baldwin said. “He is thirtyish, the right age to marry.”
Char nodded, and then had to ask, “Is he handsome?”
“I have never seen him,” Sarah said. “He doesn’t go to the theater, or at least not the Haymarket.”
“I have never met him, either,” Lady Baldwin said. “But I have heard that he is considered very handsome. They say he is tall and well-spoken.”
Whitridge had been tall but Char hadn’t liked a word he said. Still, Lady Baldwin’s description set her at ease.
“Do you know anything else about him, anything personal?” Char wanted to know. “Is he kind?”
“I’m certain,” Lady Baldwin said. “I’ve heard no complaints about him. He took the title several years ago when his father died. His mother is still alive. He has a brother, Lord Ben, whom I’ve been told works in the government. Oh yes, and the duke had a twin but he disappeared.”
“Disappeared?” Char repeated. Even Sarah’s eyes widened at the description.
“Terrible case,” Lady Baldwin said, the plumes on her hat waving as she shook her head. “The boy vanished from his bed at Eton.”
“How did he vanish?” Char asked, intrigued.
“That is the mystery,” Lady Baldwin said. “Some whispered he’d involved himself with rough characters. Other said he ran away, and still there is some speculation that he could have been a suicide and they just haven’t found the body yet.”
Her words put a chill into Char, and yet they also gave her something in common with the duke. He’d known a family tragedy. He might understand hers.
