Adrian directed my attention to his other daughter, a chestnut-headed young lady who was waiting rather impatiently beside her sister, bouncing up onto her toes. Now here was the true beauty of the family. Phoebe possessed a happy openness to her nature, and when she responded with an enthusiastic grin, I thought it a genuine one. At least one of the girls seemed pleased by my arrival.
Juliana arched her eyebrows. “We were quite surprised to receive the letter recounting your, uh, attachment.” Standing like an adder waiting to strike, she was the natural leader of the two siblings. And if her welcome was to be believed, she did not regard my arrival with the easy equanimity Adrian had thought likely.
On instinct, my own bristles popped to the surface, and I willed them away. “As I am certain your father related, it was a hasty decision, yet one I am quite pleased we made.”
Adrian was quick to echo my sentiment. “Yes, it was rather brash . . .” He flashed that smile of his—perfection. Heavens, he could win anyone to his way of thinking with that look. He shrugged. “But you know me.”
His hand came to rest on the small of my back, and I tried again with his daughters. “I do look forward to knowing each of you better in the coming days.”
Juliana snapped a sideways look at her sister. “We were just discussing something similar about you, weren’t we, Phoebe?”
Phoebe jumped as if she had been pinched, her eyes widening. “Why, yes.”
Juliana ran her finger along the arm of the sofa, the bend of her lip contrary to her conciliatory tone. “I daresay you shall be equally pleased to meet my fiancé. The gentlemen are due to return from a short hunting expedition at any moment. And then, naturally, you will need to be introduced to everyone else who has come for the wedding. It is curious that none of my friends knew who you were. At least, they had never seen you at Almack’s during the season.”
I cringed. I hadn’t received vouchers to Almack’s in years. Of course, Juliana probably already knew that. I clasped my hands at my waist. Perhaps it was a good thing that Adrian’s eldest daughter would be departing at the close of the week. She was shrewd, yes, quite shrewd. Yet she had probably seen very little of the world. In many ways, she reminded me of a younger version of myself. The thought rankled, but I measured my response as my cousin Sybil would have done in the same situation. “I shall look forward to meeting all of your guests.”
Adrian touched my arm. “Yes, thank you, Juliana. I shall be pleased to introduce your new mama to the party tomorrow, but as I stated in my letter, she has been in a terrible accident and must not be kept up for much longer.”
Adrian helped me to a seat by the fire to await the preparation of my room as Phoebe hurried to bring me a hot cup of tea. My shoulders relaxed as the warm, floral aroma filled my nose, and I looked about. Middlecrest’s drawing room was a pleasant one with muted purple hues and thick brocade curtains. Juliana’s selections? Possibly.
The girls found adjoining seats on the long sofa and watched me with a mix of interest and caution until Phoebe sprang to life, agog with questions about our courtship.
“Won’t you please tell us where you met?” and “How long did you know one another?” was followed by Adrian’s lively version of our “love story.” Apparently we met by accident at an inn, and he was immediately smitten—not far from the truth, at least the inn part, but there was no mention of our recent highway robbery.
Phoebe’s curls bounced as she spoke. “Is that why you have been sneaking out of the house at all hours, Papa? How romantic.”
I looked up at Adrian only to be silenced with a diverting glance. He’d cleverly leaned against the fireplace mantel where he could watch me out of the corner of his eye, his arms folded neatly across his chest. Goodness, he was handsome. I was forced to steady my heart once again. He was amused, that was certain, but I wouldn’t allow it.
I raised my voice. “It was not clandestine if that is what you imply.”
Adrian coughed back a laugh. “Not at all.” Then he sobered all too quickly. “I simply knew how irretrievably lost I was the moment I saw her. Elizabeth and I decided it would be senseless to wait any longer. I knew I couldn’t wait any longer.”
Juliana raised her chin, her next words layered in ice. “Yet the scheduling of this liaison was a bit odd, would you not agree, Papa?” No one could have missed the glance she tossed at my stomach, and I shrank back against the cold chair.
Adrian lowered his arms, the undertone of his voice suddenly callous. “You surprise me, Juliana—”
Footsteps reverberated in the hall, followed by the music of voices and laughter, which saved Adrian from completing his sentence. Juliana’s face brightened, and she pushed to her feet. “Never mind, Papa. The gentlemen have returned.”
Within seconds, a tall, lanky man strolled through the door, his skin flush from the spring air, his jacket a bit dusty. Before he ever bothered to assess the rest of us, his eyes focused in on Juliana and a bright smile overtook his features. Yet, when he peered over at me, the astonishment in his face echoed my own. “Why, Miss Cantrell! What a surprise to find you here.”
He strode across the room, and I rose to greet him. “Giles.”
Adrian drew up behind me. “You are already acquainted with my wife?”
“Indeed, I am.” Giles’s eyes widened, his smile doing likewise. “Your wife? Well, that’s famous. Famous, indeed. Miss Cant—er, I suppose I mean Lady Torrington. We know each other quite well. We spent several fine summers together as children. Well, not exactly children, I suppose.”
I couldn’t stop the heat that stormed into my cheeks. He’d made our innocent play sound as if the two of us were involved somehow. And after what Juliana had implied, I could have hit him. Goodness, it was my cousin Evie he had always cared for, not me. I stole a glance at Adrian, hoping the comment had gone unnoticed, but he had cleverly turned away. Considering Isaac did not have a father publicly, I certainly did not want anyone to think—
Giles took my hand, clearly missing the awkward exchange. “I assume you’ve heard the news about Miss Radcliff’s and my betrothal, but I know nothing of you. Tell me everything. How is Lucius? I’ve not seen him around town in months.”
Great, another person unaware of my brother’s absolute betrayal and his arrest for smuggling. My favorite topic of conversation.
I took a deep breath. “Lucius is in Newgate at present.”
His mouth fell open. “You don’t say.”
My shoulders felt heavy. “He was caught smuggling goods to France.”
Adrian was no doubt aware of Lucius’s misdeeds, or perhaps he noticed my discomfiture, for he routed the conversation at once. Thankfully the discussion turned to Giles and Juliana’s wedding, and I was spared the uncomfortable conversation of explaining my brother’s fall from grace. It wasn’t long until Mrs. Coombs arrived to announce the readiness of my room.
Astute to my headache or more than likely ready for an escape, Adrian begged our leave at once and headed to the door. Giles, however, delayed me near the fireplace. It was almost as if he had been waiting for just the right moment to speak with me without being heard by the others. Juliana had moved to the far side of the room, but I could feel her eyes bearing down on us.