“And you must live on the fringe of that madness for a time, but don’t fret, Your Grace. I believe in the end you will convince Lord Raceworth to do the right thing by your family and return the pearls.”
Susannah remained quiet and thoughtful, letting her companion’s words sink in.
“Does your silence mean I should tell the marquis you are unavailable and ask him to make an appointment to come back at another time?”
Those fluttery butterfly feelings started in her chest again. Why did just the possibility of seeing him thrill her so?
Susannah looked at her companion and smiled. “Absolutely not. I’m going to look at this as an opportunity to have Lord Raceworth examine the documents I have. I shall take them with me.”
She walked over to one of the windows flanking the bed and looked out. From the second floor window, she could see the entire back of the marquis’s house and his expertly tended lawn. She must have stared at his house a hundred times since she had moved in a week ago. Occasionally, she had been tempted to sneak over in the late afternoon and smell the delicate petals of the fabulous pink roses that were the masterpiece of his exceptional garden, but of course she hadn’t dared invade his privacy.
The grounds of her leased house were in great need of care, with weeds, flowers, and shrubs growing haphazardly wild. Perhaps she would hire someone to make them lovely for her, and yes, she would get a pianoforte, even if she had to buy one. Playing music at the end of the day had always soothed her, even during her most difficult times. Since it appeared she could be in London for quite some time, she might as well make the house and grounds as pleasing as possible.
Lord Raceworth had asked her for a ride in the park, and she would go, but only because her mother was ill and wanting to reclaim the Talbot pearls for the family before she died. Susannah must keep that uppermost in her mind and forget that thrill of anticipation that curled low in her abdomen.
Feeling more confident, she turned back to Mrs. Princeton. “I realize now that I was naive to think the marquis would simply look at the documents, authenticate them, and give me the pearls so I can be on my way.”
Mrs. Princeton agreed with a nod and said, “So what are you going to do, Your Grace?”
“Whatever I have to,” Susannah answered. “I realize now that mother asked me to do this, I should have insisted that our solicitor handle it. No doubt the marquis wouldn’t be playing games with a man. He would have accepted the documents to read, examined them carefully, and made an intelligent decision.”
“You can still turn this over to a solicitor, can’t you?”
Could she?
No matter her frustration, Susannah had found pleasure in sparring with the marquis. He was charming and challenging, and for the first time since she was eighteen, she was drawn to a man. She had enjoyed matching wits with him. She hadn’t wanted to be captivated by him, but she was. She hated like Hades to admit that to herself, and she would never admit it to anyone else.
“He would probably respect a man more than a woman,” she said to Mrs. Princeton.
“That is probable.”
“But no one can argue our rightful claim to the pearls as efficiently as I can because I’m more passionate about having them returned to my family.”
Mrs. Princeton nodded. “You are your best ally.”
“I will accept his invitation and go for a ride in the park with him.”
Mrs. Princeton folded her hands together in front of her. Looking quite satisfied, she said, “I suppose you will, but there is one other good thing about this, Your Grace.”
“I can’t think what that might be.”
“Lord Raceworth is a handsome man and not an old or ugly one.”
Susannah laughed. “You are right about that, Mrs. Princeton, but I’m not so sure that is a good thing for me.”
“Of course it is. You are still a young and beautiful woman. You need to be interested in a dashing young man like the marquis. You need to remarry and have children.”
“This is not a conversation I want to have with you today, Mrs. Princeton.”
She took a step back and said, “My apologies, Your Grace.”
“Accepted. Now go tell Lord Raceworth that I will be down in an hour. Make sure you give him a cup of tea with a sprig of mint in it, and whatever kind of tart or sweet cake you have in the kitchen.”
“An hour, Your Grace?” her companion questioned.
“Yes. He will understand that it’s the same amount of time he kept me waiting when I was at his house and in far less generous surroundings. If he’s going to play my game, he is going to find out that he must use my rules.”
Four
