The Christmas Wager (7 page)

―And of course I should never have said… what I did,‖

Thomas pushed, desperately hoping to find the right words.

What did Andrew want him to say? He would say or do

anything to make it better. If he only knew what was needed.

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50

Apparently, he had failed again. For Andrew looked even

more put out now than he had a moment ago. ―Perhaps we

should simply not speak of it.‖

―Of course. I‘m very sorry.‖

He considered leaving while Andrew dressed, but his friend

seemed to shrug off his foul mood after splashing some water

on his face. ―Hand me a towel, please.‖

Thomas did so, and was rewarded with one of Andrew‘s

sardonic smiles. Perhaps he was forgiven. It surprised Thomas

to realize how much that mattered to him.

―Will we be bringing Susan along?‖ Andrew asked him.

Thomas raised his eyebrows. ―I‘m ashamed to admit I

hadn‘t thought of it.‖

―You‘re a terrible uncle.‖

It was intended as teasing, Thomas knew, and he took it

as such. ―I am. Simply horrid. But I‘m the only uncle the girl

has, so she shall have to make do.‖

―Then we‘ll take her along?‖

―Of course. If she wants to go.‖

Andrew ran a comb through his golden curls. ―Of course

she will. Especially with the twins along.‖

Yes, Thomas thought. Somehow, after only a day together,

the thought of it was beginning to feel natural—him and

Andrew, the twins and Susan. Almost like a family. Much more

so than his parents and Edward ever had been.

―This is turning into quite an expedition,‖ Thomas

commented. ―Finish dressing, then. I‘ll go fetch the little

moppet and meet you downstairs.‖

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ANDREW had hoped to avoid Duchess Barrington this morning,

but the duchess was already having her tea in the dining room,

and she called to him as he passed by.

―Mr. Nash. Won‘t you join me?‖

―Good morning, Duchess Barrington. I would love to, but

your son has got it into his head to go into town this morning.‖

The woman waved this aside as of no consequence. ―He

can wait. You simply must have your morning tea. Running off

without it is positively uncivilized.‖

Not in the mood to argue, Andrew sat down at the table

and allowed her to pour for him. Once the aromatic steam hit

his nostrils, he realized he did in fact want tea.

―Now,‖ Duchess Barrington said, passing him the sugar,

―What are you and Thomas up to?‖

―Thomas wants to deliver the invitations to the dance, in

person.‖

Duchess Barrington‘s eyebrows went up in surprise.

―Really? That‘s unusually industrious of him, isn‘t it?‖

―Oh yes, Your Grace,‖ Andrew replied, laughing, ―It‘s very

unusual.‖

―Well, you shall have to speak to Henrietta before you leave.

She‘s been making up the invitations. And you and Thomas

need to see what can be done about hiring musicians. I haven‘t

the faintest idea how one goes about hiring local musicians.

We‘ve always brought them in from London, but there simply

isn‘t time to do so for this dance.‖

Between retrieving the invitations, rousing the twins, and

making certain that Susan was properly bundled up for a day

out in the cold, it was nearly an hour before the expedition to

Barrington was properly on its way.

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―Lud!‖ Thomas complained, sitting beside Andrew in the

carriage. ―Why is it that nothing can ever be done quickly

around here?‖

Andrew shrugged good-naturedly, then noticed Susan

practically standing in her seat beside Hew and Duncan to look

out the window. ―Sit down, please, Susan. Hew, please make

sure she stays seated.‖

They were sitting in a proper carriage this time, protected

from the elements. But that didn‘t mean the little girl couldn‘t

get bounced around if they hit a rut in the dirt road.

―I‘m trying, sir. Here now,‖ Hew told Susan, ―sit in my lap

if you want to see out the window.‖

Susan did as she was told.

―Duncan is sleeping,‖ she said, a moment later.

Hew made a rude noise. ―That‘s ‘cause he‘s a lazy sod.‖

―I‘ll thank you not to use such language around my niece,‖

Thomas said, though Andrew could hear the humorous

undertone in his voice.

―Begging your pardon, Your Lordship. I meant no

disrespect.‖

Susan looked back and forth between the two of them for a

moment, a puzzled expression on her face, then asked her

uncle, ―What‘s a sod?‖

―Never you mind. Duncan may sleep until we reach

Barrington, then we‘ll wake him.‖

It was no longer very early by most people‘s standards—

though Thomas still felt he should be in bed—by the time they

reached the town. Andrew had been reading the names off the

invitations to Hew so that the boy could help him sort them by

which houses were next to each other. As in most villages, the

streets of Barrington were crowded with dwellings and shops. It

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would have been ludicrous to use the carriage while visiting. It

would have done them little good, and probably blocked the

streets. So they had the coachman wait for them on the

comparatively wide main street, while they walked, taking

turns carrying Susan when she tired.

The townspeople looked genuinely shocked when they

opened their doors to find Lord Barrington standing there. But

Thomas surprised Andrew by being charming. It wasn‘t that

Thomas couldn‘t be charming—indeed, Andrew often found

him very much so. But Thomas was generally disinclined to be

social. In the five years he‘d lived at the University Club, he‘d

made only a few casual acquaintances. And Andrew was his

only true friend.

Yet here the young lord was, doffing his hat and putting on

a dazzling white smile as he handed over one of the invitations.

―I do hope I‘m not disturbing you,‖ he was saying, ―but we‘re

throwing a dance at the hall tomorrow evening—Christmas Eve.

Very informal. I realize you may have already made plans—I do

apologize for the short notice. But if you possibly have the time,

I would consider it an honor if you and your lovely wife could

join us.‖

He must sincerely want the dance to be a success
, Andrew

thought. Was it all for Susan? Or love of Christmas? He

suspected not. For all of his apparent contempt of his father,

Thomas seemed to be struggling with a need to please the man.

If the dance wasn‘t a success, Andrew had an unpleasant

feeling that the two would never be able to reconcile. The duke

would continue to regard his youngest son as lazy and good for

nothing. And Thomas might give up trying to please the old

goat.

House after house; shop after shop, they went. Most of the

townspeople seemed to be shocked that someone from the

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manor would bother to visit them in person. And this was

paying off. Thomas‘s friendliness and lack of arrogance soon

had people smiling and chatting amicably about what to wear

and would children be welcome? Thomas assured them that

children would certainly be welcome, and Susan was becoming

visibly excited at the prospect of other children to play with.

The pretty little girl did her own share of charming, as well.

Andrew hadn‘t wanted to bring her for that reason—he‘d

genuinely thought Susan needed more time with her uncle,

and an adventure, as well. But he‘d also known she would lend

an air of respectability to the proceedings.

And what they lacked in respectability, the twins more

than made up for in joviality and trustworthiness. They were

familiar faces to nearly everyone in town, and their presence no

doubt helped a great deal. As much as a lord from the manor

might make everyone feel they had to be on their best behavior,

Hew and Duncan put them all at ease.

It was a pleasant day, with a brief stop at the local pub for

luncheon and to allow Susan to warm herself by the fire. This

ended up dragging on, as Thomas and the boys discussed the

dance with the patrons and found some musicians willing to

play at the dance.

―Here now!‖ the owner of the pub, a burly man with

whiskers to rival Father Christmas himself, exclaimed. ―Joe,

you‘re promised to play here on Christmas Eve!‖

―I‘m sorry about that, Ned,‖ the fiddler replied, looking

sheepish, ―I really am. But His Lordship here is offering to pay

me four times what I‘d be able to make playin‘ here.‖

His friend, a piper by the name of Derrick, nodded in

agreement.

―Well, that‘s loyalty for you,‖ Ned said, disgusted. ―Leaving

me high and dry! I should call in your tab for that. Both of you!‖

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―Gentlemen,‖ Thomas intervened before things got ugly.

―I‘m distressed to be the cause of trouble, when I‘m merely

attempting to arrange a good time for all of us. My good man,

please, I‘d very much like it if you could attend the dance, as

well. Isn‘t there some kind of amicable arrangement we could

come to?‖

There was, though it cost Thomas a great deal to get Ned

to agree to close the pub for the night. But no matter—they

now had their musicians.

Late in the afternoon, they left town in the carriage and

rode around to some of the nearby farms. The estate was quite

large, and there simply wasn‘t time to stop at every out-of-the-

way farmhouse. But they visited as many as they could,

encouraging all to extend the invitation to their neighbors,

before the sun began to sink in the sky.

Susan had fallen asleep in Andrew‘s lap by that point. ―I

would suggest we head back, so Susan can nap properly,‖ he

told Thomas.

―Very well,‖ his friend replied. ―Then we can have dinner.

I‘m famished.‖

When they arrived at the hall, Hew and Duncan ran off to

find their own dinner, and Andrew carried Susan up the steps

into the hall. Thomas had stopped just inside the main door,

which forced Andrew to step around him. Then he saw what

Thomas was gaping at.

―Father!‖ Susan cried, suddenly wriggling to be set down,

all trace of sleepiness gone. Andrew lowered the little girl to the

floor, and she ran across the great hall, weaving in and out of

the servants bustling throughout the room, to throw her arms

around the legs of a tall, chestnut-haired man.

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This, then, must be Edward, Andrew thought. The

resemblance to Thomas was unmistakable. A bit taller, perhaps,

handsome, but with features much more severe than Thomas‘s.

Edward took little notice of his daughter, barely patting

her head with one hand, as he glared at his younger brother.

―Father told me you‘d come.‖

Thomas merely nodded without saying anything.

Edward glanced down at Susan and said, ―Go up to the

nursery, Susan. I shall come up to see you after I‘ve spoken

with your Uncle Thomas.‖

The girl‘s expression turned solemn, and for that alone

Andrew wished he might knock her father silly. But he had no

say here.

When his daughter had gone upstairs, Edward said,

―Thomas, I wish to speak to you in my study. Alone.‖

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Chapter 10

―YOU are in
no
position to criticize the way I raise my daughter!‖

―No,‖ Thomas replied coolly, ―I‘m not. What I
am
in a

position to do is ask you what in blazes you‘ve done to

Barrington Hall? When I lived here, Christmas was a time of

celebration and music. The Barrington Ball was one of the

annual highlights of the county!‖

Edward gave him a smoldering look. ―I think the county

can survive with one less ball.‖

―No doubt. But why?‖ Thomas poured himself another

splash of wine. He preferred brandy, but he needed his head

clear, if he was going to deal with Edward‘s pigheadedness. His

older brother was far too much like their father.

―I don‘t see any reason why we
must
throw a ball,‖ Edward

said.

―Because Barrington Hall has thrown a Christmas ball for