She felt quite at home with his mother and sister as they chatted the first half of the morning away and was almost sad when Catherine announced that she had letters she needed to write.
“Juliette, why do you not show Lily around the house while I finish my letters? I am sure she would like to get to know the house a little better. After all, Redding Hall will not be ready for some time yet.” Julian’s mother suggested, making Juliette perk up considerably.
“I would love that very much! Would you like a tour, Lily?” Juliette turned to her, her eyes overflowing with excitement.
Placing her empty cup of tea back on the tray, Lily smiled at her. “I would adore a tour. I could not think of a better way to spend my morning.”
“Wonderful, it is settled then. I shall see the two of you for lunch.” Catherine stood and left them.
Coming to her feet, Juliette gestured toward the door. “Shall we begin?”
Obliging her new sister-in-law, Lily stood and hooked her arm through Juliette’s as they set off on a tour of the house.
Juliette chatted away with each room, speaking of her many hopes and dreams for her very first season while showing her everything there was to see. “Julian is a good man, you know. I know it can be hard to see at times because he can be awfullygrumpy, but he has a good heart. He would never do anything to hurt someone on purpose.”
Laughing at the apt description of his grumpiness, smiled. “He can be rather grumpy, but I do see how good he can be. It was very thoughtful of him to let me sleep in this morning.”
“Do you think you are falling in love?” Juliette blurted.
Taken aback by the question, Lily hesitated. “I… I am not certain. I thought I was in love before, but it was nothing like I had imagined it to be. Sometimes I think that love is what you make of it, and not something that just happens to a person out of the blue.”
“Do you mean the man that you were engaged to before in America?” Juliette asked innocently.
Stiffening a little, Lily sucked in a sharp breath.
How much do they know?
Her pulse began to race as she thought of the letter hidden in her belongings upstairs. She would have to tell them the full story sooner or later, but she had hoped that she would have more time.
“Oh, please do not take offense, I did not mean anything by the question. I have not heard much about the man you were engaged to before, but I did hear that there was a man,” Juliette began to explain as quickly as she could.
“It is quite all right, but if you do not mind. I wish to leave that part of my past behind me. I was very hurt, you see…” Her words trailed off when Juliette stopped and turned to her, taking her hands in her own.
“Please forgive me, Lily. I did not mean to bring up your past. It is perfectly understandable that you would not wish to talk about such matters. I am ever so glad that you have joined our family. Please say that you are not angry with me. Mama always says that my tongue will get me into a great deal of trouble one of these days.”
She sighed heavily and looked at the floor before lifting her gaze to Lily’s once again. “Of course, Mama does also say that I will be hard-pressed to find a man who will deal with me.”
Stifling a chuckle, Lily relaxed. “There is no need to apologize; your curiosity is understandable. Perhaps I shall tell you everything one day, but not right now.” She offered a reassuring smile.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Juliette turned forward again and continued to chatter. “Of course, I do not truly wish to marry so soon. Mama says it will be better if I do, but I wish to have fun and enjoy my Season without the hassle of looking for a husband. Do you think I should marry?”
“That is up to you…” Lily felt a little flustered at the sudden change of topic. To her credit, Juliette was a skilled conversationalist and knew exactly how to put people at ease.Lily, on the other hand, had never quite mastered the art of moving on from one topic to the next with such ease.
It was one of the things that Oliver had remarked on while they had been courting.
You never say much, do you, honey? It is refreshing to find a woman who speaks her mind but never says too much.
She had taken the comment as a compliment at the time, yet she now wondered if he had not been finding flaws in her character from the start.
What else could have driven him into the arms of another woman?
The thought stung her heart again, yet it hurt a little less than it had before she had met Julian.
They both paused at the same time as the butler suddenly appeared in front of them.
“Begging your pardon, my lady, but your mother, Mrs. Prescott, is here to see you,” he announced in his solemn manner before disappearing again. The man was quite brisk in his dealings, and Lily found herself hoping that the butler at Redding Hall would be much friendlier.
Turning to Juliette, she offered a warm smile. “Will you go and tell your mother that my mama is here?”