Paton slipped a coin into the man’s hand as he left.
When this performance was over, Lady DeGrue drew her shawls more tightly around her and picked up her reticule. “Well, that helped to pass a very dull stop,” she said. This oblique comment on our company was no doubt unintentional. “A pity he smelled like a barn. I hope he buys himself a bath with that coin you gave him, Paton. You don’t want to encourage such creatures as that. Take a look out the window, Waxon, and see if the rain has stopped.”
Waxon duly reported that it was nearly let up.
“Still spitting, is it?” Lady DeGrue said, and strode to the window, where a weak and watery sun was trying to fight through the clouds. “There is nothing else for it, Miss Nesbitt. You will have to come home in my closed carriage.”
Paton glanced at the window and said, “The rain has stopped.”
“It will start again e’er long,” Lady DeGrue informed him. “You will not want to expose Miss Nesbitt to such weather. Next time take your closed carriage, and you should have worn a pelisse, Miss Nesbitt. There is no point defying the weather. Miss Potter would never forgive me, nor would I forgive myself, if you took a chill. No need to thank me, Paton,” she said, turning to my escort. “I know you will insist on paying for tea. You bucks are all alike, so thoughtful. Come along, Isabel. Miss Nesbitt, do you want a corner of my shawl?”
I declined the shawl, but was not ungrateful for the drive in the closed carriage.
Lady DeGrue looked closely from Paton to myself and said, “You two will want a moment’s privacy to arrange your next meeting. We shall be in the lobby. Do not keep us waiting long, Miss Nesbitt. My niece has weak lungs.”
The party swept out with a fine flurry of shawls and I turned to Paton. “Nosy old biddybody,” he scowled.
“I shall go with her all the same. I should have worn a pelisse. Thank you for the outing. It was— interesting.”
He bowed gracefully. “It was my pleasure. Thank you for obliging me.”
No attempt was made to arrange our next meeting. I joined Lady DeGrue at a speed that not even that high stickler found fault with. We went to the carriage. It was soon clear that the ladies had compared notes during the moment I was absent. As soon as the door was closed, Lady DeGrue began a quizzing.
“Isabel tells me Paton is a fairly new acquaintance, Miss Nesbitt. You have known him only since arriving in Bath?”
“Yes, for a few weeks now.”
“He is an excellent parti, of course, very high in the stirrups, and comes from good stock. I congratulate you. I dare say you never expected to nab a duke’s son.”
“I do not expect to nab Paton,” I said.
“Very proper. Till he asks you, you must not express the notion that he is caught in Parson’s mousetrap. Nothing is likelier to make a man turn tail and run.”
“No, truly! We are just friends.”
“Ho, sly minx! As if a well-bred young lady like yourself would go jauntering around the countryside on no more surety than that.” Her calculating glance turned to Isabel. “That is how a lady nabs a gentleman, Isabel. You are too backward. You scarcely said boo to Paton at dinner last week, and here he was ripe for the plucking. We must make a harder push to find you a parti. I cannot go rattling about to balls and routs forever.”
Isabel cast a shy smile at me.
I wanted to dispel the idea that Paton and I were close friends and said, “It happened Lord Paton had to look into a small property nearby that he has inherited. He invited me to accompany him on the drive.”
“That would be Angelina’s lovenest.” Lady DeGrue nodded blandly. “The little Tudor cottage with roses at the door?”
Apparently Lady DeGrue found nothing amiss with this outing. I was shocked, and did not bother to conceal it.
“Did you not know?” she asked, nose quivering for news.
“The subject did not arise.”
“He has turned her off, never fear. We were
When this performance was over, Lady DeGrue drew her shawls more tightly around her and picked up her reticule. “Well, that helped to pass a very dull stop,” she said. This oblique comment on our company was no doubt unintentional. “A pity he smelled like a barn. I hope he buys himself a bath with that coin you gave him, Paton. You don’t want to encourage such creatures as that. Take a look out the window, Waxon, and see if the rain has stopped.”
Waxon duly reported that it was nearly let up.
“Still spitting, is it?” Lady DeGrue said, and strode to the window, where a weak and watery sun was trying to fight through the clouds. “There is nothing else for it, Miss Nesbitt. You will have to come home in my closed carriage.”
Paton glanced at the window and said, “The rain has stopped.”
“It will start again e’er long,” Lady DeGrue informed him. “You will not want to expose Miss Nesbitt to such weather. Next time take your closed carriage, and you should have worn a pelisse, Miss Nesbitt. There is no point defying the weather. Miss Potter would never forgive me, nor would I forgive myself, if you took a chill. No need to thank me, Paton,” she said, turning to my escort. “I know you will insist on paying for tea. You bucks are all alike, so thoughtful. Come along, Isabel. Miss Nesbitt, do you want a corner of my shawl?”
I declined the shawl, but was not ungrateful for the drive in the closed carriage.
Lady DeGrue looked closely from Paton to myself and said, “You two will want a moment’s privacy to arrange your next meeting. We shall be in the lobby. Do not keep us waiting long, Miss Nesbitt. My niece has weak lungs.”
The party swept out with a fine flurry of shawls and I turned to Paton. “Nosy old biddybody,” he scowled.
“I shall go with her all the same. I should have worn a pelisse. Thank you for the outing. It was— interesting.”
He bowed gracefully. “It was my pleasure. Thank you for obliging me.”
No attempt was made to arrange our next meeting. I joined Lady DeGrue at a speed that not even that high stickler found fault with. We went to the carriage. It was soon clear that the ladies had compared notes during the moment I was absent. As soon as the door was closed, Lady DeGrue began a quizzing.
“Isabel tells me Paton is a fairly new acquaintance, Miss Nesbitt. You have known him only since arriving in Bath?”
“Yes, for a few weeks now.”
“He is an excellent parti, of course, very high in the stirrups, and comes from good stock. I congratulate you. I dare say you never expected to nab a duke’s son.”
“I do not expect to nab Paton,” I said.
“Very proper. Till he asks you, you must not express the notion that he is caught in Parson’s mousetrap. Nothing is likelier to make a man turn tail and run.”
“No, truly! We are just friends.”
“Ho, sly minx! As if a well-bred young lady like yourself would go jauntering around the countryside on no more surety than that.” Her calculating glance turned to Isabel. “That is how a lady nabs a gentleman, Isabel. You are too backward. You scarcely said boo to Paton at dinner last week, and here he was ripe for the plucking. We must make a harder push to find you a parti. I cannot go rattling about to balls and routs forever.”
Isabel cast a shy smile at me.
I wanted to dispel the idea that Paton and I were close friends and said, “It happened Lord Paton had to look into a small property nearby that he has inherited. He invited me to accompany him on the drive.”
“That would be Angelina’s lovenest.” Lady DeGrue nodded blandly. “The little Tudor cottage with roses at the door?”
Apparently Lady DeGrue found nothing amiss with this outing. I was shocked, and did not bother to conceal it.
“Did you not know?” she asked, nose quivering for news.
“The subject did not arise.”
“He has turned her off, never fear. We were
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