Page 30 of Entertaining the Earl (Vows in Vauxhall Gardens #2)

S he was reading in the parlor when her mother came in with a determined look on her face.

“Susannah, please put the book down. I wish to speak with you.”

Susannah placed the silk ribbon she always used as a bookmark in the novel, and closed it carefully.

“Yes, Mama?”

“We have three events left this Season. You have been more successful than in previous Seasons, but you still have no offers of marriage.”

“I am sorry, Mama.” Susannah looked down at the floor. She didn’t need her failings drawn to her attention; she was well aware of them.

“Do you wish to get married?” her mother asked.

Susannah paused before answering. Before this Season, her honest answer would probably have been no.

She hadn’t had any wish to move, to have to conform to someone else’s expectations of how she ought to behave.

But now, since Colin… Something had awoken in her that she hadn’t known existed.

Something sinful—but something she wanted to feel again, some day.

And as it obviously was not going to be with Colin, she needed to find another man who could inspire similar feelings.

If she wanted to live her life as she wished, she needed a husband—one who wouldn’t try to change the person she was.

But she thought that he would probably be quite difficult to find.

“Yes,” she said quietly.

“Well, that’s something,” Mama said. “Papa has arranged for some gentlemen to come to dinner on Friday. I need you to be at your very best—for any one of them would make a fine husband. I do not want you to regret not making an effort and ending up as a spinster, Susannah.”

She reached out and patted Susannah’s hand, and Susannah knew she was trying to be kind, even though it was painful to know that these prospective men surely knew why they were being invited to dinner, and quite probably had only been persuaded to attend by her dowry.

She couldn’t do anything about their motivation, but she could change her own attitude, she told herself once her mother had gone. They might be interested in her dowry initially, but she could surely win them over.

She just needed to see which of the gentlemen attending seemed the most likely to let her spend her days as she pleased, and then ensure he asked her to marry him.

It couldn’t be so difficult…could it?

*

Colin’s heart was lighter on the journey back to London than it had been leaving it. He had thought that leaving felt wrong because he had no wish to return to his childhood home, and while there was some truth in that, he now realized it hadn’t been the main reason for his despair.

It had felt wrong to leave Susannah—and now that he was returning, everything seemed better.

He had decided to take a horse, rather than slowing the journey down with a carriage.

He was quite happy to spend two days in the saddle, and he didn’t need to bring much with him.

He would have to stop at an inn for night, to allow his horse to rest, although he doubted he would manage to sleep himself.

He even told his valet to stay behind. This was a journey he wanted to make quickly, and alone.

If all went well, his life would have an entirely different course by the time he was ready to leave.

And if it did not…well, he would return to Kent and deal with his emotions there.

The story he had written was tucked carefully in his saddlebag, and he hoped it would help him explain how he felt when he actually came face to face with her.

He did not think these words should be delivered by a messenger—and he didn’t think he’d have the patience to wait for her response, anyway.

It needed to be in person, and it needed to be as soon as possible.

He rode hard and fast, the wind rushing through his hair, probably tangling his accursed curls, and tried to ignore the nerves churning in his stomach. She had been the one to tell him to go…what if she did not wish to see him?

But, he reasoned with himself, he had not told her then how he felt. That he wanted to marry her. That he had lost his head, and his heart, to her, and he could not think of anyone else.

Surely that had to make a difference?

*

“Lord Pendleton, a pleasure to see you again,” Susannah’s father said, as the third and final gentleman of the evening arrived. Mr. Gregor had been first, a full fifteen minutes early, followed by Mr. Jefferson, and now the most distinguished guest—Baron Pendleton—was nearly twenty minutes late.

“Thank you for the invitation,” Susannah heard Lord Pendleton say, as her father showed him into the dining room.

It was a rather awkwardly numbered table, with so many gentlemen, but her mother had made it clear that she didn’t want there to be any other female vying with Susannah for the men’s attention.

“May I introduce my wife and my daughter, Miss Susannah Lyttleton,” Papa said, and Lord Pendleton gave a stiff bow.

He was definitely older than Susannah, with thinning gray hair and a bushy mustache.

The seat beside Susannah had been especially saved for him, with the other two gentlemen sitting opposite, and as he sat, Susannah reminded herself that she needed to choose one of these men and look for the positives.

She’d start with Lord Pendleton’s kind eyes.

She wasn’t going to go into the next Season still searching for a husband.

“Have you enjoyed the Season, Miss Lyttleton?” Mr. Jefferson asked. He was probably the youngest of the three, although still several years older than Susannah, she was fairly sure. He had reddish hair and a habit of clearing his throat regularly.

“Yes, thank you,” Susannah said, because it seemed like the right answer, even if it wasn’t wholly true. There had certainly been parts of the Season she had enjoyed…and parts she had hated.

“Have you found it pleasant?” she asked, trying to keep the conversation flowing. She saw her mother smile out of the corner of her eye and was pleased that she seemed to be doing the right thing, for once.

“I must admit, I prefer the countryside. I like to hunt and fish—and I miss both while in the city.”

“But London has so much to offer!” Mr. Gregor said. He had sandy hair tied back in a queue, and the buttons of his waistcoat were straining slightly. “There is so much society has to offer. It is London I miss when everyone returns to the countryside.”

“And do you enjoy the countryside or the city better, Lord Pendleton?” Susannah asked.

She wished she found making conversation easier with these men, but she could not think of anything else to say.

It felt like such an effort, and she only hoped it would get easier with time.

So far, she was not sure which of the gentlemen seemed like the best candidate to pursue.

“I find the city more stimulating,” Lord Pendleton said. “In fact, I may remain in the city once the Season has ended.”

Her father took over the topic of the conversation, and Susannah took the opportunity to consider each of the men.

She wondered why Lord Pendleton planned to remain in the city, for it was not the normal course of events.

She wondered if his country home was not in a good state—although, of course, he wouldn’t mention that.

She did not like knowing that these gentlemen were quite probably only here because of the size of her dowry.

They were probably in desperate need of funds—and so her only appeal was the money attached to her.

They knew so much more about her than she was likely to be able to find out about them, and it seemed rather unfair that she needed to choose a husband with so little information.

The footman entered with the next course, followed by the butler, who went straight to Papa and indicated that he needed to speak with him. Susannah saw her father frown at whatever this new information was, and then he stood.

“Please excuse me a moment,” he said, following the butler from the room.

Susannah tried to catch her mother’s eye to see if she knew what was happening, but her mother smoothly carried on the conversation.

“We have fantastic grounds for hunting,” Mama said. “Perhaps you can join us sometime, Mr. Jefferson. And Lord Pendleton and Mr. Gregor, too, if you are also interested in the hunt.”

“That sounds delightful,” Mr. Gregor said with a grin. “Do you like to ride, Miss Lyttleton?”

Susannah struggled with whether to be honest or not. On one hand, she was supposed to be making a good impression. But on the other, it did not seem like a particularly auspicious way to start a potential courtship if she was completely lying about who she was and what she enjoyed.

“It is not my favorite pastime,” she admitted and noticed her mother frowning.

“But you are a very accomplished rider, dear,” her mother said, her tone a little forced.

“And what is it you enjoy doing?” Mr. Jefferson asked.

She felt she had to be honest and so replied, “I really enjoy reading.”

“How charming,” Mr. Gregor said. “Although I must say, reading has never greatly appealed to me. There are so many other things to spend one’s time on, don’t you agree?”

“Indeed,” Susannah said, although she clearly did not agree. Why would she have said she loved to read if she thought there were so many better options available? The man seemed a fool.

The door to the dining room reopened, and her father came back in. “Apologies for disturbing the meal, but Susannah, I must speak with you for a moment, please.”

Susannah put down her knife and fork, wondering what she had done wrong. She could not imagine a reason her father would call her out of a meal with such important guests—especially when the point of the meal was to find her a husband.

The gentlemen around the table rose as she did, and she hurried to follow her father, her mind racing.

“Is aught amiss, Papa?” she asked once the heavy dining room door had closed behind them.

Her father shook his head.

“Not exactly amiss. But there is someone here to see you, and I think it only right that you see him immediately.”

Now she was even more confused. Unless the king had awoken from his madness and decided to pay a call upon her, she could not imagine whom her father would deem important enough to interrupt dinner.

But her father was simply hurrying ahead, and so she followed, keen to find out who this mystery man was and what made him so important.