Page 5 of The Truth about the Lady (Whispers of the Ton #6)
CHAPTER FOUR
H yacinth sent a sidelong look towards her friend as Lady Eve finished her ice. Thus far, Lady Eve had said nothing about the riddle and The London Chronicle but Hyacinth was quite certain that she was the reason behind it all.
“I do love Gunters,” Lady Eve sighed, smacking her lips and then smiling at Hyacinth. “Thank you for joining me.”
“Thank you for the invitation.” Hyacinth sighed and sat back in her chair. “My mother has been berating me near incessantly these last few days, telling me that I am not doing as she has asked.”
“Though you have tried not to be a wallflower,” Lady Eve protested, defending Hyacinth even though her mother was not present. “ And you are often in my company.”
Hyacinth sighed. “That is true but it is not enough. She wants me to be dancing every dance, just as Rose does. She wants gentlemen to be calling upon me though none have as yet.”
Lady Eve smiled sympathetically. “I am sorry for the struggle you are having. That must be difficult.”
“It can be. Though,” Hyacinth continued, speaking carefully now, “there has been some respite to our conversation at times, for my mother has been speaking about the riddle that has everyone in the ton so excited.” She arched one eyebrow as a blush rose in Lady Eve’s cheeks. “I recognized the riddle when Lord Thorne told me of it, for it was one that I myself had written.”
“Is that so?” Lady Eve smiled but her gaze darted away from Hyacinth. “How very interesting.”
Hyacinth laughed despite her attempts to have her friend tell her the truth. “Eve, I know very well that you must have been the one who sent in that riddle, for I wrote it to you.”
“Very well!” Sounding exasperated, Lady Eve threw up both hands, though her lips curved at the very same time. “I know I ought not to have done so without your consent but I wanted to encourage you.” Her smile softened. “After what you said about your sister and your mother and the way that they speak both to you and of you, I could not help it. I wanted you to see that you do have some marvelous qualities and that yes, though you may be different from Rose, that does not make you any lesser.”
A growing appreciation settled in Hyacinth’s heart. “I am not in the least bit upset, I assure you,” she said, quietly. “Though I did not know that that was your motivation. Truth be told, that has truly touched my heart.”
“I am your friend!” Lady Eve exclaimed, reaching forward to touch Hyacinth’s hand for a moment. “And I will do all that I can to defend you, of course.” The color in her cheeks heightened. “Even if it does mean sending in your riddle to The London Chronicle in the hope that it will be published!”
Hyacinth chuckled, shaking her head. “I did not think that my riddles would ever be in the minds of the beau monde ! I am even more astonished that someone such as Lord Thorne did not have the answer.”
“Lord Thorne?” Lady Eve frowned. “He is an arrogant gentleman and if I am to speak truthfully, I would state that I have very little kindness in my heart towards him. Indeed, I think him almost the very worst sort of gentleman and would advise you to stay far from him. He is not a fellow who is in any way inclined towards matrimony but still pursues the young ladies of London so that he might get their attention fixed upon him .” She sighed and shook her head. “I do not like gentlemen who only think of their own importance.”
“Thankfully, your betrothed is not that sort of fellow.” Hyacinth, having already been introduced to Lord Wiltshire previously, had thought him a very kind, amiable sort who, given his long looks towards Lady Eve, did indeed seem to be quite taken with her. “He seems to give a great deal of thought to your every need!”
Lady Eve smiled and tilted her head just a little. “No, he is not egotistical in the least,” she said, a touch wistfully. “He is quite the opposite in fact.” Perhaps seeing Hyacinth’s small smile, Lady Eve gave herself a small shake. “Though we were speaking of Lord Thorne, were we not? What is it that he said to you?”
Quickly, Hyacinth recounted the conversation, telling her friend just how she had been able to discern that Lord Thorne had not known the answer to the riddle but that he had pretended that he had done. “It was quite foolish of him, for had he simply admitted that he did not know the answer then I would have had a good deal more respect for that.”
“He tried to have you give him the answer so that he would know it and then be able to tell others.” Lady Eve rolled her eyes. “No doubt he would not have been pleased that you had it before he did!”
Recalling the frustration that had leaped into Lord Thorne’s eyes when she had made it clear to him that she knew what the correct answer was, Hyacinth chuckled softly. “Indeed, though he did attempt to hide that from me as well – though he could not. His every emotion is written into his expression, though I do not think that he realizes that.”
“Most gentlemen do not.” Lady Eve giggled, clearly fully aware that she was making a sweeping gesture. “It is clear to me that Lord Throne was displeased that you discovered the answer before him, though mayhap that ought to take the strength of his pride down just a little.”
With a small smile, Hyacinth shrugged. “I do not know whether it will or not.”
“But if he does not get the answer to the next one, then – ”
“The next one?” Hyacinth repeated, as Lady Eve quickly nodded, her eyes alight with all manner of thoughts. “What do you mean?”
Lady Eve blinked in surprise, perhaps having not expected Hyacinth’s response. “You cannot think only to write one riddle, Hyacinth!”
“I only wrote those riddles for you ,” Hyacinth answered, her stomach turning over on itself as she realized what Lady Eve meant. “You cannot think that I would write more simply for The London Chronicle?”
“But why not?” Lady Eve protested. “It is the first time in a long while that something like this has captured the beau monde in such a way. While they are normally thinking only of gossip and rumors, they are now discussing this riddle, trying to ascertain which of their friends worked out the answer before them and, so I have heard, eagerly hoping for another so they might pit friends against each other once more!”
This was not at all what Hyacinth had suggested. Having heard her mother and sister speaking of the riddle as well as Lord Thorne, she had realized that it had interested some, but she had never expected it to be to this extent!
“I will not tell anyone that it is you who writes them,” Lady Eve continued, clearly trying to reassure Hyacinth. “I will send them to The London Chronicle on your behalf, if you wish. Why, I think if you were to send two or even three riddles at one time, they would all be printed!”
“Three?” Hyacinth gasped, a small shock panicking her heart. “Eve, I do not know if I can come up with even one!”
Her friend chuckled, giving Hyacinth a smile. “My dear friend, I have all the riddles that you have ever written to me! I keep them in a particular box and have brought that box to London. I am sure that, if you wish, we can look through them together and decide which ones to send in. What say you to that?”
There was no reason for her not to agree, Hyacinth could see that, but all the same, reluctance held her back. What if someone discovered that it was her who had been writing these riddles? What if her mother found out? She was already failing in her mother’s eyes and the dread that she might be flung in the direction of her disgraced second cousin was already a burden.
“Your mother and father will not discover it.” Lady Eve, evidently able to read Hyacinth’s mind again, leaned forward and pressed her hand to Hyacinth’s arm. “I promise you that.”
Hyacinth licked her lips and then slowly nodded. “So long as it is kept quite secret.” Her eyes closed tightly as an unexpected tear pressed against her lashes. “I have not told you as yet but my mother has threatened to marry me to Geoffrey.” When she opened her eyes, Lady Eve’s face had gone very pale indeed.
“The baron?”
Nodding, Hyacinth’s throat began to ache. “Baron Goodrich. The one who divorced his wife simply because he became bored with her.”
Her friend blinked rapidly, only to then toss her head. “I do not believe it.”
“Believe what?”
Lady Eve lifted her chin a notch. “That your mother would ever marry you to that lout! Do you not see that the disgrace it would bring the family were you to be connected to him?”
Hyacinth shook her head. “You do not understand my mother, I think. She has told me that the disgrace of having an unmarried daughter would be worse than the disgrace such a connection would bring.”
“And you believe that?” Lady Eve sounded astonished and Hyacinth quickly frowned. “I do not think that your father would ever permit that.” Her head tilted just a little. “Tell me, did she say such a thing in front of your father?”
Trying to recall, Hyacinth slowly began to shake her head no.
“Then I would consider that nothing more than an empty threat, Hyacinth.” Curling her hand into a fist, Lady Eve thumped it lightly on the table. “Put it from your mind and do not let it concern you. And, if it should come to it, I swear to you that I shall protest at the wedding itself, stating that I have heard rumors that the baron’s divorce has not truly been completed and thus, you shall be free of him.”
Hyacinth could not help but laugh at this and, as they both rose from the table, she took Lady Eve’s hands in her own. “Thank you for your encouragement, my friend.”
“But of course.”
With a smile, Hyacinth turned to make her way from Gunters. “Another riddle then, yes?”
“Two, I think!” came the exclamation behind her. “If not three, as I have said.”
Considering for a moment, Hyacinth smiled. “Two, then. And I shall look forward to seeing if Lord Thorne can decipher these especially.”