“A house party at this time of the year is a bit odd, don’t you think? The weather up north will be getting rather chilly. There won’t be a lot of opportunity for outdoor party games for a start. Could you imagine trying to play bowls and nine pins in the snow? I for one am glad I will not be attending.”
Caroline glanced at her mother and Aunt Mary, who were seated on a nearby sofa in the Saunders’s family sitting room, before answering her cousin. “You are not coming?”
“No. My friend Leah’s wedding is in a few weeks, and she has asked that I spend time with her while she makes the last of her wedding preparations. A trip to Derbyshire is simply out of the question,” replied Claire.
Caroline had spent the better part of the past day mulling over the Countess of Lienz’s visit and invitation. Lord Newhall could invite all of the unwed young misses from London to his party, but she, for one, would be spending as much time as she could away from him.
His pathetic behavior in sending his mother to apologize for the incident at the Serpentine filled her with rage. He had stepped back and deliberately made sure she fell into the mud. Her one regret from the afternoon by the lake was that she had not got to her feet fast enough to lob a large lump of wet mud in his direction. The next time she encountered Lord Newhall, she would give him a piece of her mind. He could take his apology and give it to someone gullible enough to believe it.
Rude, pompous, horrible man.
“Mama says I have to go. Apparently, I have to do something about my own marital status, and she thinks Newhall presents a perfect opportunity. She and Papa are worried that I am getting a certain reputation. She says I need to make some new friends. She wants me to try and be nice to Newhall, can you believe it? After what he did to me at the lake, he would stand a better chance of making friends with the devil,” she replied.
Claire leaned in close so their mothers could not overhear. “Could you possibly take James with you? That brother of mine has inexplicably fallen into a funk of late. He mopes about the house all day, and only grumbles at you if he speaks at all. The most animated he has been was when you fell out of the boat.”
Caroline’s ears pricked up. She and James were close. Her cousin shared many of her tastes in music, dance and theatre. A week spent with him in the country was appealing. Misery did love company, and if she was going to have to go to Newhall Castle under protest, having James alongside would make it closer to bearable.
“Yes, of course. I shall speak to Francis and get his agreement. The three of us shall make our own little band of travelers,” she replied.
The addition of her favorite male cousin to the group would be a most welcome bonus. Caroline could then share the entertainments with Francis and James, while watching with amusement as the other young unmarried misses vied for the hand of the devilishly handsome, but thoroughly unsuitable, earl. They would make their own fun at the house party.
Word of the party had spread fast throughout the drawing rooms of London society. Unattached dukes and marquises were thin on the ground after the end of the official season, so the prospect of an earl actively searching for a wife was a sudden and welcome distraction to the matrons of the ton.
“Did the Countess of Lienz invite you? I hear she is a fearsome creature,” said Claire.
Caroline snorted. The countess was a consummate actress when it suited her, but Caroline saw her as having all the charm of a snake. “Yes, though it is somewhat of a relief to know that the Countess of Lienz won’t be attending the party. She is simply dictating who should go before she sails for home. All a bit odd, don’t you think?”
Claire’s eyebrows were raised. “Well, you have been spared the company of the countess at least. And you shall be doing all of my family a great favor by getting misery guts James out of the house for a week or so.”
Caroline smiled. “Derbyshire it is then.”