Page 19 of Marrying a Marquess (Widows of Mayfair #3)

“A re you feeling all right?” Emmeline inquired the following morning when Priscilla took the seat opposite her in a nondescript, black carriage she’d never seen before.

Her head spun after she met the driver and guard, both in disguise.

They were brothers, apparently, and Emmeline did not know their real identities.

“I had trouble sleeping last night. But I’m fine. I’ll nap before the Greenville Ball tonight. I can’t wait for my gown to be delivered today.”

“Nor I,” Emmeline replied. “Was your troubled sleep because you were anxious for today?”

“No. It had something to do with Hollingsworth, but I can’t share.”

“You are too good to him, and he doesn’t deserve it.”

She started to do what Nick said she did when annoyed and relaxed her face and body.

“I probably know him better than anyone, and he is a good man. Misunderstood at times, I think. He internalizes his emotions and appears cold or cynical, but truthfully, he is not. I realize when he briefly courted Lilly, he spoke unkindly of me and not wanting to be stuck in a marriage with me, but I don’t think he meant it. ”

“You are right. I see the way he looks and smiles at you. He doesn’t do that with anyone else.

Now let me tell you about today. When we arrive, Flynn will open the door, and we will get out to a crowd lined up on the side of the street.

He will hand us the donations, and we will give them out.

It’s as simple as that. The hard part is when we run out, and people are still lined up waiting and we send them away empty-handed.

I tell them to come back earlier next time.

We deliver on Mondays and Thursdays. On another note, has the duchess told you about Amelia House?

It’s a home that she runs in her sister’s name for mothers and children with nowhere to live or who were abused.

Those who live there are trained in a profession so they can eventually support themselves and have a better life. ”

“I have heard about Amelia House but not about the training. The duchess is the most kind and generous person.”

“She is. It all came about because her sister became with child, and the man refused to marry her. She ran away, and both she and the baby died from disease in a rickety tenement in St. Giles.”

“That is so sad.” Priscilla refused to compare the duchess’s sister with Nick’s mistress. Nick would take care of her and the child. Unfortunately, not all men did.

“We are here,” Emmeline said as the coach stopped. “Do not wander off under any circumstances. I did that once and was almost run down by a coach. If it weren’t for Blackstone, I would be dead. As it was, both of us nearly died.” She shivered. “I still have nightmares about that day.”

“I do remember hearing something about that. How dreadful. And thankfully, Blackstone was there to save you. He is truly your hero.”

“Some days, yes, he is.”

When Flynn handed Priscilla the fourth basket to disperse, she was positive she knew him from somewhere but couldn’t pinpoint it. “Have we met before?” she finally asked him.

He smiled, his teeth slightly crooked, and said, “Not that I know of.”

Emmeline chimed in with a smile at Flynn. “Even if you have met, he will never admit it. He and Mitchel are mysterious to the core.”

“I see,” Priscilla said, eyeing the two brothers. She was confident she would figure it out eventually. She never forgot a face or name. It was a talent if you wanted to remember and a curse if you didn’t.

It didn’t take long to finish distributing the baskets, and Mitchel helped them back into the coach. As they began to move Emmeline said, “Thank you for accompanying me today. Will you consider going again?”

Not that it took up much of her time or was as frightening as she thought it might be, but she needed to think on it.

She disliked keeping things from her parents, and she knew they’d be worried for her safety if they discovered it.

Emmeline’s tale of nearly being hit by a carriage flashed in her mind.

She wanted to help, but perhaps donating more funds and packing the baskets with goods and clothing would be a better route for her.

“Perhaps. Would you be disappointed if I preferred not to?”

Emmeline reached forward and patted her hands, which were entwined and resting on her lap. “Not at all. The Ladies’ Society of Mayfair is appreciative of any help you can give.”

Priscilla relaxed against the squabs, feeling relieved. She hadn’t wanted to disappoint her friend and was glad to know she wasn’t. “Thank you for understanding.”

The carriage stopped in front of Avery Manor, and Mitchel helped her down. She gave him a second look and shook her head. She still couldn’t place him.

Before she made it to the top of the granite stairs, the butler opened the door. “Thank you, Berkley.”

She hurried upstairs to her bedchamber and, with Eugenia’s help, washed up quickly and changed into a pink day dress.

Once presentable, she made her way to the family parlor, where she knew her mother would be embroidering or needlepointing something or other.

She also expected lunch to be served at any moment, and Priscilla was ready for it.

Her stomach had growled for most of the morning.

“Mother,” she said as she swept into the room.

“Where were you off to so early this morning?”

“The Duchess of Blackstone picked me up, and we rode through the park. Then we visited Lady Langford.” Snowball snuck into the room, climbed onto her lap, curled up into a ball, and purred contentedly.

“I’m glad you have new friends, especially as they’re widows who went on to make advantageous second matches. If dear Nicholas would come up to snuff, you could join them.”

“Mother. I can’t make Nick do something he doesn’t want to do, nor can you or Lady Hollingsworth. You have tried for years, and it has caused nothing but friction between us.”

“But you love him—do not deny it. I see it in your eyes every time you are together.”

“You could be witnessing feelings left over from my girlhood infatuation.” She would not admit that which she did not know herself completely. “I know Nick cares for me, but Baron Latham does, too. And there would be nothing wrong if I married him.”

Her mother frowned. “By the way, I forgot to tell you that he came by yesterday and was disappointed that he’d missed you. He said he would see you tonight at the Greenville Ball.”

“Good. I thought perhaps he was giving up on courting me.”

“You know how your father and I feel. A joining of our family with Hollingsworth’s would please us. That being said, if you choose Latham, we will welcome him into the family graciously.”

“Thank you. It’s good to know—if it comes to that. Then again, perhaps I will meet someone new tonight and be swept off my feet, and I will forget all about Latham and Nick.”

“I highly doubt it. Your heart is invested in Nicholas.”

She could tell her mother all about girlhood infatuations and lie to herself about not knowing whether she loved or didn’t love Nick, when the truth was she did love him.

Always had. But time and circumstances had changed the way she perceived things.

Whether she loved Nick or not, marriage was not a forgone conclusion.

It if were, she would have married him at eighteen.

Her feelings for him didn’t sway his feelings, and she would not marry him without his love.

But she would marry someone else without theirs.

After luncheon, Priscilla went to her chambers and, with Eugenia’s help again, undressed down to her chemise and crawled beneath the counterpane to rest. It took some time for her mind to settle down.

Too many faces flashed in her mind. Finally, she had had enough and forced them away as she drifted into a much-needed nap to the sound of her cat purring.

*

David arrived via his carriage at Norton Hall half an hour after receiving the message from the viscountess informing him about her husband’s death. She received him in the library.

“Please have a seat, Latham.”

He sat in a wingback chair—one of two in the room. The new widow occupied the other. “Thank you for coming.”

He hadn’t believed he’d had a choice. “Please accept my condolences on the passing of your husband.”

She dabbed at a tear with her lace handkerchief. “Thank you. It was quite shocking when he didn’t awake this morning.”

“I imagine.”

“I understand you met with my husband recently. He left me with the details. Have you made a decision?”

“I have.”

“And?”

“I’ll do it.”

The viscountess broke out into a smile. “Wonderful.” She handed over a thick packet of papers. “This is a copy of everything you need to know. Study it, memorize it. We never swindle the same person twice. Come back in two days.”

Knowing he was dismissed, he exited her townhouse, climbed in his carriage, and signaled the driver to take him home.

Once back home, David locked himself inside his study and shuffled through the numerous pages, picking the ones he wanted to read carefully first. Two men would report to him directly.

Gieves and Fergus. Presumably not their real names.

According to Norton’s notes, they were men who had been working for Norton from the outset and were reliable and trustworthy.

Norton, under many false names, rented properties throughout London.

For the swindles to work, they needed to move constantly, and they needed the swindles to change in nature.

David worried that Gieves and Fergus would want to strike out on their own now that Norton was dead.

Except it seemed they hadn’t the connections to do so.

That was the one thing Norton expressed during their initial meeting, which had David considering taking over for the viscount.

His death only accelerated the timeline.