Page 36 of Her Summer Duke

“Lady Phoebe, Lady Margaret, I am so glad that I have found you!”

Margaret was so shocked that she almost dropped her reticule.

“Whatever is going on Lord Percy?”

She suspected that she knew, but she was not going to admit it. It seemed that the trouble she had expected from Lady Mantrell had come seeking her, in the form of Lord Percy.

Lord Percy put his arm through both of theirs and held on tightly.

“I must get you back to the Hotel. Lady Mantrell is quite worried about you, quite distraught.”

“She knew that we wanted to go to the Theatre Royal. She forbade it,” Margaret had the grace to look rather ashamed, but spoke on – there was nothing for it, but to brazen it out now. “But I so wanted to go, that I could not resist sneaking out to do so. Lady Phoebe came with me, so that we might be each other’s chaperone.”

Lord Percy clicked his tongue, apparently attempting to look wise and serious, but really just looking annoyed.

“It is not a good thing to have young women walking unescorted on the streets of Brighton. There are rowdy sailors and pickpockets and…” He shook his head. “Lady Mantrell should give you a sharp talking to, this was most irresponsible of you. What would we all have done, should something terrible have happened?”

There was nothing more that Margaret could say, in response to that, so they walked the rest of the way in silence.

When they reached the Old Ship Hotel, and Lord Percy escorted them into the private parlour, Lady Mantrell at first looked relieved, then anger overtook her countenance. She frowned a most stern frown – an expression which neither young woman had ever seen on her face before.

“Whatever shall I do with you? Impertinence, blatant impertinence! To so completely disobey my directive!”

She glared at them as if lost for words to describe their crime.

At that moment, Margaret and Phoebe noticed Lord Montpelier standing behind Lady Mantrell. He was smiling! Phoebe’s cheeks began to burn. Margaret, noting her cousin’s reaction, spoke tentatively, hoping to save her further embarrassment.

“May we go to our room, Lady Mantrell?”

It was obvious that Lord Montpelier was the last person that Phoebe wanted to have to speak to now.

The woman huffed.

“Yes. I insist that you do, and stay there this time!”

Lord Montpelier put his hand on Lady Mantrell’s shoulder.

“Pardon me, Lady Mantrell, but I came a long way to have some time with Lady Phoebe, even though I agree that her behaviour was beyond the pale. May I at least sit with her and take tea, before she retires for the night?”

Phoebe hung her head. Margaret knew, of a certainty, that the last thing she wanted to do at this moment was have tea with Lord Montpelier.

“If you must, my Lord! Tea then. But do not be long.”

Margaret stood behind her cousin, hoping that Lady Mantrell would leave her alone, but when Phoebe walked over to join Lord Montpelier for tea, she was totally exposed. Lady Mantrell focussed her chastisement on Margaret.

“I will not stand for this insubordination! Your father, God rest his soul, would be livid with anger if he were alive. I dare say he would have locked you in your chambers for months. I would never have imagined that his daughter would traipse off into the night to attend the theatre without an escort.”

Margaret could hear the tiredness in her own voice.

“Lady Mantrell, I am sorry that you were worried. Now I would like to retire.”

She turned and went towards the hall. Lady Mantrell did not rebuke her further, and she was grateful, for she had been quaking inside as she turned, sure that she would not be let off so lightly.

~~~~~

Adam woke early, to the sound of a storm lashing the Inn, and the loud crashing of the waves on the shore. He lay there, savouring the fact that he need not rise rapidly, that he had nothing that he need do until the appointed time for him to wait near the pier for Lady Margaret.

For a moment, he worried about the ship, for the tide had been high well before dawn, and Captain Morwood had intended to be gone with it, for Shoreham Harbour was easiest to navigate out of, when the tide was at its full. He pushed the worry away – the ship was not his responsibility any more.