Mia chuckled and playfully squeezed his arm while looking deep into his eyes. “You know exactly what I want—more childhood stories. You tell the best ones, and I’ve never laughed so hard before. Please?”
“My lady, your wish is my command,” Berkeley said, leaning over to whisper in her ear, and as expected, Mia couldn’t contain her laughter.
What she didn’t notice was that Easton and Chandler were walking on the opposite side of the street. Nor did she see the frown on Easton’s face as he stared at her.
Chapter8
Audrey had been reluctant tolet her sister stroll in Hyde Park with Lord Berkeley, but she knew that if she’d said no, Mia would have pouted for the rest of the day. With Kathryn and Lady Devon coming for nuncheon, she didn’t want to deal with a surly sister while trying to enjoy their company.
She trusted Lord Berkeley with Mia, so that wasn’t the problem—it was Mia’s exuberance for all things new. Not exactly the prim-and-proper behavior expected from a young woman on the marriage mart. Most debutantes were taught proper decorum almost as soon as they could walk. It hadn’t been like that in the Parker household after her mother died in childbirth bringing Mia into the world. That had been a devastating blow to the family, and her father had never been the same. There had been a series of nannies, but soon even that stopped when her father began drinking and gambling. Life was hard, and there was no money for a governess to teach the girls proper decorum. They were lucky to have enough coin for food and fuel.
After their father passed, life had become even more difficult for the Parker sisters. Audrey had to seek work, scandalous for a member of the aristocracy. She’d been fortunate to be secretly hired by Mrs. Beaumont, her mother’s modiste. That had helped keep food in their bellies. After she married Fletcher, their living conditions had improved drastically. Fletcher had been generous to a fault. Everyone had spoiled Mia, especially Audreyand Grace, perhaps a bit too much, but who could have known at the time that Mia’s zest for all things fun would escalate to such a degree? All Audrey had wanted was to see her youngest sister smile. Was that too much to ask for? Evidently yes, because Mia was not very good at self-control now.
What was done was done, and there was no sense in wishing for it to be different now. All Audrey could hope for was that Mia didn’t do anything that would bring scandal on the family name. Sometimes she wondered if her sister would ever understand the consequences of not conforming to what Society thought young ladies should be like. She hoped that, with time, Mia would understand, or her chances of making a good match could diminish.
Mia’s Season had almost ended at the Thompson ball. Audrey hoped that scare had taught Mia to control her impulsive nature because she’d never seen Fletcher so angry, and rightly so. If anyone else had seen, they would be hosting a wedding instead of a Season. That was the last thing she wanted for her sister. She would hate to see Mia forced to marry someone they didn’t know. There was no sense worrying about things she couldn’t control, but she planned on shadowing her sister’s every move from now on attonevents from now on.
Setting her embroidery aside, she went to the kitchen to check in with Mrs. Culbert about the nuncheon menu. The kitchen was a beehive of activity, with both of the housemaids helping the cook with the preparations.
“Mrs. Culbert, I trust you have everything in hand,” Audrey said.
Mrs. Culbert looked up from stirring the sauce on the stove. “Indeed, Lady Fletcher. Everything is under control.”
“Excellent. I’m sure it will be as delicious as always. Our guests should be arriving shortly,” she said, leaving the cook to finish the preparations.
Within the hour, Beckwith was announcing Lady Clifford and Lady Devon.
Audrey bussed both women’s cheeks. “I’m so pleased you both could visit today.”
Lady Devon looked around the room, which was no longer dark and dreary. The walls had been painted a pale yellow, with navy-blue velvet drapes framing the large windows. The furniture had been recovered in a blue floral pattern that almost made it feel like a lovely garden. “My dear, you’ve done a magnificent job with the renovations,” Lady Devon said. “What a difference from a year ago, when Fletcher first purchased the townhouse.”
“Thank you, Lady Devon,” Audrey said. “We’re quite pleased with the renovations. There are still more things to do, but for now, this will suffice.”
“My dear, there is always something that needs renovation. Take your time and don’t despair.”
“Thank you, Lady Devon. That’s sound advice.”
Audrey had been cognizant of every penny they spent on the renovations. All she wanted was a bright and cheery household instead of the uninviting place they’d purchased. Her practical self wouldn’t allow for any extravagant purchases. Fletcher had told her she could do what she wanted, but she knew that money wasn’t in endless supply, especially since there were still renovations to be made at Dandridge Manor. Luckily, last year’s harvest had been exceptionally good, and with an influx of coin from Fletcher’s stake in his New York City newspaper, it had helped with many of the expenses.
“My dear, isn’t it about time you called me Julia?”
Audrey smiled. “Of course, Julia, although I must confess, I’ll always think of you as Lady Devon. Will you please call me Audrey?”
“Of course, and I understand your hesitation, but in private, I’d like us to be less formal. I feel we’re more like family. Is that agreeable?”
Audrey nodded. “Yes. I’d be honored.” She turned to her friend. “Kathryn, how are the twins settling in?”
“They’re doing well. The new nannies are a godsend. I must ask them if they’d like to stay on and move to Faulkner Manor when we return home.”
“Oh, do you think they’ll agree?”
Kathryn looked at her mother. “Mama, how much do you know of their circumstances?”
“They’re the daughters of a very good friend of mine. I’ve known them for years and watched them grow into very responsible young ladies. I trust them implicitly, and they may very well be open to living in the country. I do know they’d like to stay together, so your offer of employment might be just the solution for them.”
“I’m relieved to hear that. I’ll speak to them when we return home,” Kathryn said. “But first, where is sweet William?”
Audrey walked over and tugged on the bell pull.