A Lesson in Forgiveness (6 page)

“That is a good question. I would not want to be the lady to make such a decision.”

“Well, it seems that the stable earl has decided to put off marriage in lieu of a trip to the Continent. So that only leaves the future duke. Have your sources determined if any of the other eligible gentlemen are worth this particular lady's attention?”

“The gossip is quite interesting concerning the other gentlemen. Mr. Frederick's likes to gamble and drink. Lord Huntington frequents loose women. And I haven't heard anything about the others, but I will keep my ears open for you.”

“Thank you, Tabby. You are proving quite resourceful.” Tabby beamed with pride. Apparently acknowledging someone's contribution can make all the difference to that person's self-esteem.

“So, Bethany, you divide your time between a man known by his bad reputation and the one who has no interest in getting married. How do you plan to make a good match when you will not speak to any of the other delightful gentlemen here?” After only thirty seconds in her parent's company and she was being raked across the coals.

“That young Mr. Thompson seems quite nice. I am told he is in trade, being only a cousin to an earl and having to make his own way in the world, but he has done quite well in doing so. I shall request to Lord Whitmore that he be your dinner partner this evening.”

Nothing amazed Ginny more than the fact that she said absolutely nothing and yet everything was decided for her. In her great wisdom, she choose to remain quiet. If everything was decided, she couldn't be blamed for the outcome. If only real life were so simple.

Her mother did get her wish. That young Mr. Thompson did escort her to dinner. He was handsome, but short, only barely the same height as Bethany. Not that it mattered, as it was obvious nothing would come of it. If Ginny wasn't sure of that before dinner, his incessant talk of the beautiful and talented Miss Jennings certainly eliminated any doubts. When not speaking of her many attributes, he would stare quietly across the table at her. Ginny turned to her other dinner partner, Mr. Bradbury, and spoke to him about his duties as the regional squire. Not a topic of great interest to her, just better than listening to the lovesick Mr. Thompson talk about the superior Miss Jennings.

After dinner, Bethany's mother pushed her to join the other young ladies to get to know them better. So, not wanting to be harangued any longer, Ginny did as she was told and wandered over to the group. The current topic was who would be the first to become betrothed. Seeing her chance to speak, Ginny remarked, “I believe that Miss Jennings may be receiving an offer soon enough.”

Not having been noticed until she spoke, the girls all turned and stared at Ginny. The girl introduced to her as Miss Alvinia Slowden-Plough looked her square in the eye and asked, “What makes you think that?”

Every girl stared at Ginny with rapt attention. Obviously they were too busy gossiping about her to consider that she might be a woman of information. “Mr. Thompson spent the better part of dinner describing Miss Jennings's many attributes. Your talent and beauty surpass us all.”

Miss Jennings blushed and Miss Slowden-Plough snorted in derision. “Really, Miss Hamilton. I would say you have not been paying much attention to the rest of us and our dealings with the other gentlemen. Why, Lord Huntington complimented me before dinner on my selection of gown. He said it brought out the color of my eyes.”

Smiling the fake smile of pretending you care, Ginny replied, “How nice for you. I have not yet spoken to him, but he seems a very astute fellow.” Ginny wondered for a moment if any of the girls picked up on her sarcasm.

Alvinia, who was just warming up, continued to regale the troop with all the compliments she'd received over the past two days. Rolling her eyes and praying for patience, Ginny stood still and waited to be saved. Alvinia was that girl in high school who absolutely knew she was better than everyone else and had no qualms about letting you know exactly what was wrong with you, in the hopes of masking her own insecurity.

“Really, Trinity, you need to stand up straighter. No man likes a slouch.” Turning an eye to Ginny, she said, “Miss Hamilton, Bethany, isn't it?” Ginny nodded. “I believe you should discuss with your maid your hairstyle. It seems a bit old fashioned to me.” This caused a round of nervous giggles from the group.

Ginny smiled and said, “Thank you, Alvinia. I shall consider doing just that. I should tell you that you have something in your teeth. I believe it may be parsley.”

Gasping, Alvinia quickly left the room in search of a mirror. All the girls looked at Ginny with something close to awe. Ginny guessed that up until that point, they were too afraid to speak a word against Miss Slowden-Plough. There was only one way to handle a bullies: humiliate them.

The men began to rejoin the group, so the giggle fest was about to begin. Putting on a face of blank contentment, Ginny wandered to the other side of the room, once again taking her position at the window.
Who will approach me tonight
, she thought, not really caring if anyone did. One of the best things about living someone else's life was that you could totally screw it up and not care otherwise.

Tonight it would be Lord Huntington's turn. He was older, probably into his forties, with attractive eyes and graying hair. He was soft spoken, but as Ginny had sarcastically stated earlier, quite astute. Luckily for Ginny, he wasn't prone to flattery or hyperbole like some of  the other gentlemen. All in all, they had a very satisfying conversation about his country home in Suffolk.

Later when readying for bed, Tabby asked how the evening went. Putting on her nightgown, Ginny sat to have her hair let down and said, “I am beginning to realize that none of these men care about me.” Tabby snorted as if to say no kidding.

Laughing, Ginny continued, “I mean, none of them ask questions about me. I know all about Lord Clarendon's childhood and Mr. Thompson's love of Miss Jennings and Lord Huntington's country home in Suffolk. But I can't remember a single one of them asking me what I like to do or where I live most of the year. Do men not want to know anything about the woman they might marry?”

“I think not, miss. I believe they are more interested in knowing that you can make polite conversation and not embarrass them. They may want to know if you plan to spend all their money.”

“What a shame. How about you, Tabby? Do you have anyone special in your life?” It pained Ginny to have to ask. After having Tabby as a maid for over two years, she realized that Bethany knew absolutely nothing about her. As far as she was concerned, Tabby was a non-person.

Blushing, Tabby kept brushing Ginny's hair. Finally, when Ginny thought she wouldn't fess up, Tabby said quietly, “The head groomsman at your parent's estate and I are familiar. He had brought me flowers on my birthday.”

“Well, Tabby, if I have the good grace to get married, I will promise you this. I will hire my parent's groomsman and bring him with us. You certainly deserve love in your life as well.”

Blinking back the tears, she bowed and left the room for the night. Ginny stood for a moment beside her open window and looked out at the garden below. Smelling the jasmine and roses, she enjoyed the gentle breeze that cooled down the room. Smiling, she went to bed.

Outside her room, down in the garden, Lord Whitmore wandered his domain, keeping to the shadows as he smoked his cigar. Catching a glimpse of Miss Hamilton at her bedroom window, he stopped and stared. With the light behind her, he could clearly see the outline of her body through the thin cotton of her night gown. He noticed her long legs, her curved hips and especially, her large breasts.

He found himself looking forward to tomorrow's outing with her. Now that he knew that she knew he was unavailable, it seemed safe enough. If only he could get over this feeling like he was missing out on something. At least if she married Clarendon, he could still talk to her on occasion. Frowning slightly, he just didn't know if that would be enough.

Chapter 6

Tabby entered the room less reticent that morning, now that Ginny had forged a new relationship between them. Setting down the hot water, Tabby went about choosing clothing for the day.

“I am thinking you should wear the yellow dress today, miss.”

“Oh, Tabby, I forgot to tell you. I'm going riding with Lord Whitmore today.”

“Really?” It wasn't so much the word she used as how she said it. Like there was more to Ginny and the dull earl than she let on the day before.

“Yes, really. I told you he has no interest in marrying.”

“Then why does he have such an interest in spending time with you?” Ginny realized at the moment how much Tabby reminded her of Lisa, her best friend from her own time period. Not so subtle sarcasm, mixed with genuine friendship. It made her sad for a moment realizing it.

“Are you saying I have nothing to offer a man but marriage?” Two could play at that game.

Silent for moment, clearly considering her words carefully, she said, “You have a lot to offer. I doubt any gentlemen within fifty miles could see it though.” Smiling, Ginny thought that she met Lisa's former self, if she had believed in reincarnation.

“Thank you for the compliment. Now, what am I wearing?”

“You have a lovely red riding habit. Who will be chaperoning you this early in the morning?”

“No one. Lord Whitmore feels that if we stick to open spaces, it should not be a problem being unchaperoned.”

“Really.” There was that word again. Ginny decided to continue getting washed up and ignore all the implications of that one word.

Entering the breakfast room, Ginny found Lord Whitmore already sitting down, waiting for his breakfast. As soon as he saw her enter, he jumped up and pulled out the chair across from his. He felt ridiculous. He woke up early in anticipation of their ride today.

“Thank you, my lord.” Ginny noticed he seemed more animated today. Pearce entered with his breakfast and quickly turned to her.

“Would you care for some eggs and toast again this morning, miss?”

“Yes, thank you, Pearce.”

“Cook has made up kidneys this morning.”

Yikes, did he say kidneys? As in the bodily organ?
“No thank you, Pearce. Not this morning. I would, however, like some coffee please.”

“Very good, miss.” And with that, he disappeared behind the corner door.

Ginny observed that Whitmore was watching her carefully, not eating his breakfast.

“Please don't wait for me, my lord. I wouldn't want your breakfast to get cold.” It seemed more fun to flirt with him now that she knew nothing would come of it. He was safe and they could be friends. She didn't have to worry about doing exactly the right thing. She could almost be herself.

He regarded her for another moment and went about buttering his toast. “Are you enjoying yourself, Miss Hamilton?”

“Yes, I am. I have been fortunate enough to receive not only your attention, but the attention of a few of your guests.”

“Lord Clarendon speaks quite highly of you.”

“Does he? I'm glad. He regaled me with stories of his youth yesterday. Quite the scamp.”

“Did he tell you that we went to school together?” Whitmore now worried about what Clarendon may have told her of his childhood. He hadn't been nearly as reserved as he was now.

“Yes. He said that he spent most of his time trying to get you into trouble and you spent most of your time trying to keep him out of it. He didn't mention, however, who was more successful.”

Quirking his lip into a smirk, he replied, “Unfortunately, Miss Hamilton, Lord Clarendon was more successful.”

“Really. I should hope you will have some stories to tell me while we ride this morning.” Ginny found she was very interested in hearing how this staunch earl got into trouble.

Pearce returned with her breakfast and they ate in companionable silence. When finished, Whitmore pulled her chair out for her and provided his arm. As they walked out the door, Pearce handed Whitmore his riding crop and hat. Ginny took the time to attach her hat as well while gazing in the hallway mirror.

On their way to the stables, Ginny began to feel anxious about their ride. She could feel her steps slowing as they made their way across the cobblestones of the courtyard. The huge butterflies in her stomach were now making her nauseous. Fine beads of sweat broke out across her forehead and her breathing became unsteady. Ginny didn't know if she could do it.

Ginny had ridden horses before, but never sidesaddle. The thought of one of her legs dangling uselessly made her stomach do all new flips. She hadn't really cared to ride astride either, but at least she felt a little more in control. Whitmore noticed her hesitation.

“Are you alright, Miss Hamilton?”

Stopping him, Ginny turned to him and begged, “Please tell me we won't gallop or go very fast or jump over anything.”

Staring into her eyes, seeing her fear, Whitmore felt awful, like he was throwing her to the wolves. “I promise we shall take only a leisurely ride, no fences and no hard riding. I merely want to show you around the estate. If you would prefer, we could take my curricle.”

Curricle? What's a curricle?
she thought to herself frantically. It had to be better, but something stopped her from agreeing. Ginny liked a challenge and as long as they went slow, she figured it was better than chickening out.

“No. I think we should ride. I appreciate you being willing to take it slow. I'm sorry if it will ruin the ride for you.”

His face was unreadable, but he seemed to be stifling a smile. Clearing his throat, he looked at her with all due seriousness. “The pleasure of the ride is spending time with an intelligent lady of information. Not charging the hills as if in battle.”

Letting out a sigh of relief, Ginny smiled. Her breathing calmed down and she wasn't as sweaty. “Thank you, my lord, for being so understanding and not making fun of me.”

As they continued on their way to the stables he said, “I would not make fun of you, Miss Hamilton. That would be very ungentlemanly, would it not?”