Page 15 of An Earl Most Inconvenient (Regency Mishaps #2)
CHAPTER 15
T he early morning sun filtered through the lace curtains of Diana's chamber, casting delicate patterns on the floorboards. But as Diana lay in her bed, she reflected that the sunlight that usual brought her such cheer in the mornings felt like an unwelcome intruder that day.
The rest of the treasure hunt had been a blur and Diana could hardly remember what had happened, apart from the torturous sense of guilt that she had felt deep inside, the whole time that Tristan was holding her hand. And yet, the warmth of his hand remained seared in her memory, and she had lain in bed awake for most of the night, turning things over in her mind again and again.
“I’ll have to tell them I’m ill,” Diana murmured to herself, as she lay in bed. She stared at the ceiling, her heart heavy.
All night, she had grappled with her emotions, a tempest of guilt swirling within her. The chemistry she had felt with Tristan during the course of the treasure hunt was undeniable, yet it gnawed at her conscience. What on earth would Grace think if she knew what had happened between them in the maze? She should not have allowed him to hold her hand, but she had felt quite unable to let go.
They had come at last to the end of the hunt, and found the final clue, but it seemed that they had spent so long talking that they had not even realized that they had been far too slow to be in with any chance of winning the game. The other teams had all overtaken them, and they finished in last place.
But in that moment, Diana had not cared a jot, and she did not think that Tristan had minded either, even though the other gentlemen had ribbed him for not being able to answer questions about his own estate. She had enjoyed the time spent with Tristan; in fact, she knew that she had enjoyed it far too much. All the time, she should have been thinking about her sister and trying to find out more about Tristan, to enable her to decide once and for all whether he was a suitable match for her. But instead, she had been laughing and smiling with him herself.
With a sigh, she pulled the covers tighter around her, hoping that the world outside would forget her existence for a day.
She rang the bell for a maid. Shortly afterwards, the girl came into the room.
“What can I do for you, milady?” the girl asked.
“I am quite unwell,” Diana declared. “I shall not be able to come downstairs today. Please, can you let my sister know, and the earl too, of course?”
She wondered, as the maid bobbed a curtsy and left the room, whether Tristan would even notice her absence. She was a fool to imagine that he would care, she thought. He had simply been playing with her yesterday. He could mean nothing by his attention. A man of his reputation would have no interest in her at all, other than to tease her to amuse himself.
But at least now she was excused from the social activities of the day. She knew that she simply could not face it, the thought of seeing Tristan again, of those electrifying yet forbidden glances. It made her stomach churn with anxiety, and other feelings too which she found harder to give a name to.
Time passed, and Diana lay in silence in her bed. Her thoughts were in turmoil as she went over and over in her mind the events of the previous day. But eventually, the silence of her room was broken by a soft knock at the door.
“Diana, may I come in?” Her sister's voice floated through the door. It was a soft tone that felt both comforting and unsettling at the same time. Diana had anticipated that she was not going to get through the whole day without her sister trying to speak to her, but even so, she was still not ready to face her.
“Please, Grace, I am not feeling well. I think I shall remain in bed today,” Diana replied. She attempted to keep her tone weak, so that Grace would think she was really ill and would leave her alone.
The door creaked open, and Grace entered, concern on her pale face. “I know that you are trying to hide from me, Diana. I know you too well. But please, let me in. I am worried about you.”
With a reluctant sigh, Diana propped herself up on her elbows, meeting Grace’s earnest gaze. “I assure you, I am quite unwell. I do not wish to drag you down with me, or worse still, for you to catch something if I have got some illness.”
“Oh, Diana,” Grace said, crossing the room and perching on the edge of the bed. “You have been avoiding me, and I cannot bear it. I have been feeling dreadful about how I have treated you lately.”
“The way that you have treated me?” Diana said, a little surprised. “I cannot imagine what you mean?”
If anything, Diana thought, she should be the one apologizing to her sister for her behavior. But she was determined to say nothing. She could hardly even imagine the shame of admitting to Grace what had happened, let alone some of the thoughts that had entered her head yesterday. It would do no good at all to tell her even a fragment of the truth.
“No, Diana, I do owe you an apology,” Grace said, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “I know that you have been trying to help me to find the perfect husband. I know you have been doing your best. And I have not been as grateful as I should have been.” She paused and looked at Diana rather sorrowfully. “In fact, I have not been very nice to you at all. I am sorry for it.”
Diana closed her eyes and leaned back on the pillows. She did not know what to say. She had promised herself all those years ago, when their mother died, that she would do her best to guide Grace through the trials and tribulations of society, and help her to find a good husband who would look after her and make her happy. And until Tristan came into their lives, she had felt that she was doing a good job of it. But now, she hardly knew what to think or how to manage her own feelings. And Grace was saying that she was grateful! She could scarcely bring herself to look at her sister.
“Diana, you are exhausted!” Grace said, moving a little closer and taking her sister’s hand. “I am so sorry that I have caused you so much worry. I know that you want what’s best for me and I have not always reacted to your concerns as I should have done. I promise that I will do better.”
“I must confess that I am very tired,” Diana said softly. She was not sure what else to say, the guilty feelings washing over her were so strong. But perhaps if she asked Grace how she was feeling about the party, her chatter might distract her, and steer the conversation away from Grace’s insistence on apologizing to her, when she had done nothing wrong.
“Tell me, have I missed anything this morning?” Diana asked, trying to gather her thoughts. It was probably too much to hope for that Grace had developed an interest in any of the other gentlemen present at the party, when Tristan was such a compelling presence.
“Well, Tristan was very attentive this morning at breakfast,” Grace said, with a smile.
Diana felt a pang of something in her chest; was it jealousy? No, it could not be such a base feeling as that. And anyway, it was her own fault for hiding away in bed all morning. How could she be resentful of Grace getting Diana’s attention, when she was by far the more deserving of it?
“And you are enjoying his company?” Diana said, though she felt a lump in her throat as she spoke.
“He has been nothing short of a perfect gentleman so far,” Grace said. “I know that you think I ignored you, but I did listen to your warnings, and I have been paying close attention, and on my guard for any sign of inappropriate behavior. But the truth of it is that he has not put a foot wrong.”
Diana suppressed a sigh. He was determined, then, it seemed, to marry Grace, and for Diana to become his future sister-in-law, just as he had said.
Grace’s eyes took on a sparkle of excitement as she continued. “He is fascinating, and you should give him a chance. There’s something intriguing about him.”
Diana could not help but agree, as she remembered the tales Tristan had told her the previous day of his travels abroad. She was not at all surprised that her sister was enjoying his company.
“You must stay on your guard, though, Grace,” Diana said. “I know I have said it before, but we cannot overlook his reputation. It follows him around like a shadow.”
Grace nodded. “I do know that,” she conceded. “And I have noticed that some of the other young ladies seem to avoid him, or at least, their mothers try to persuade them to.”
Diana raised an eyebrow. Her sister was more observant than she had imagined. “I had not noticed that myself,” she remarked. She felt sure that Tristan would be annoyed if he realized what was going on, even under his nose in his own home.
“Perhaps, though,” Grace ventured, her voice barely above a whisper even though there was no one else present in the room to overhear them, “those tales are just that—tales. I cannot judge a man solely by rumors, especially when he has been nothing but courteous to me.”
Diana crossed her arms, feeling her posture starting to stiffen. “But it could all be a facade, Grace,” she warned. “You know as well as I do that the whole world of the ton is filled with masks and pretenses. We must remember that many of the people we mix with in society have ulterior motives.”
As Diana uttered her warning words, though, she realized that she was not convinced. Tristan was such a mystery to her still, such a mass of contradictions. His behavior at times was wildly inappropriate, and yet more than once now he had come to her aid when she was in trouble. And Grace was telling her that he was behaving impeccably towards her. Diana found that she did not know what to believe when it came to the earl.
Grace sighed. “Yet, you cannot deny that he is captivating. And I do think there is a depth to him, that he mostly keeps hidden, but it shines through sometimes when he is talking about things that matter to him.”
Diana had to admit to herself that she agreed with Grace’s words. They matched her own experience of Tristan only too well.
She must remain cautious, though. There was still much at stake. “Or perhaps he is merely skilled at charming the ladies,” Diana replied, a hint of challenge in her tone. “We must be careful not to fall under his spell.”
“I just wish that you would try to engage him a little in conversation,” Grace suggested earnestly. “I think if you got to know him a little better, you would see that there is more to him than meets the eye.”
Diana let out a small huff. She still could not decipher her sister’s true feelings when it came to the earl. “I do not know what to make of it all,” she said, leaning back on the pillows of her bed. “And I will not come downstairs today, no matter what you say. I am unwell, and I need a day to recover.”
“Well, you must do what you think is right,” Grace said, getting to her feet. “But I must take my leave. There is a plan for some of the ladies to take a walk around the gardens before luncheon, while the gentlemen go out on a hunt. I do not want to hold the others up by making them wait for me.”
“Very well,” Diana said. “I will do as you ask, Grace, and I will try to be nicer to him, and more open to the idea that he is more than simply a rake. But I am yet to be convinced.”
Grace smiled. “I do not think that you will regret it, Diana.” She turned towards the door. “I hope that you feel better, and perhaps you might be able to rejoin the party later on today, when the gentlemen have returned from their hunting expedition.”
“We shall see,” Diana said. Her sister left the room and Diana listened as her footsteps echoed along the corridor as she made her way back to the party. She would try to join the party later, she resolved, even if it was the last thing she felt like doing.
Would she regret trying to get to know Tristan better? Diana wondered. She resolved to be stronger when it came to him, and to stay on her guard. She should, as the older sister, be able to follow her own advice, at the very least, when it came to resisting the charms of the earl.