Romancing an Alluring Lady: A Historical Regency Romance Book Page 9

  There was no doubt what Hugh had to do as he returned to his piece of paper that included his next set of plans. He not only had to prove himself to Kitty, but show her how much he cared about her. And Hugh had to do it within the next few days. Feeling frantic about the passing of time, Hugh made himself focus and start thinking of creative ways to show his feelings to Kitty.

  ~*~

  Kitty stood in the foyer with her aunt as they prepared to leave the house. The carriage was coming around the front of the townhouse when the butler opened the door as they went to leave the house. But when he opened the door, Kitty was surprised to see a young boy standing at the top of the stairs with his hand posed to pull the house bell while his other arm balanced a large amount of flowers.

  “What is it, boy?” the butler quickly asked, seeming to be upset that someone was in the way of his mistress.

  “I’ve come to deliver these flowers,” the boy quickly explained. He looked unsure of whether he was in trouble as he looked from the butler to Kitty. She gave him a kind smile as she stepped forward and accepted the flowers, making sure to give the boy a coin. He thanked her and then scurried back down the stairs.

  “Oh, what lovely flowers,” Aunt Matilda remarked. “Who are they from?” Kitty couldn’t help smiling as she found the note and opened it, going still as she read the words.

  My dearest Kitty. Even if you don’t believe me right now, know that you are what matters most to me. – Hugh

  Kitty quickly folded up the note and slipped it into her purse, not wanting her aunt to see it as she handed the flowers to the butler. She was so shocked by the sign of real affections that she was completely caught off guard.

  “Have those flowers placed inside a vase and set in the sitting room,” Kitty instructed the butler before turning her attention back on her aunt. “The flowers are from Hugh, Aunt Matilda.”

  “Oh, how lovely,” Aunt Matilda remarked as she watched the butler take them away and hand them to a footman with Kitty’s instructions. “The springtime always brings with it such lovely blooms.”

  “Indeed. Shall we be off?” Kitty said, wanting to pull her aunt’s attention back to the fact that they were about to leave the house.

  “Yes, I’m certain we should,” Aunt Matilda agreed as she held onto Kitty’s arm as they descended the stairs. Kitty could tell that her aunt was relying on her cane more and it only added to her fears of her aunt’s progressing age.

  In the carriage, Aunt Matilda chatted away about all the flowers she used to enjoy in her youth. She talked about making flower arrangements for the house or the flowers she’d received when gentlemen came to court her. Kitty found it all rather amusing, but her thoughts were only on the flowers Hugh had sent her and the message it had contained. Why hadn’t he said those words to her earlier? Was that the reason he’d kissed her? Because he actually had real feelings for her?

  Kitty blushed at the idea, thinking this all to be rather strange. Though Hugh had been her oldest friend, she’d never really considered marrying him. After all, her challenge had merely been a joke that she was certain he wouldn’t accept. And now, it seemed that Hugh’s feelings for her, his real feelings, were all of a sudden coming through to her.

  As the carriage came to a stop in front of the home of Lord and Lady Silvester, Kitty reminded herself that soon she’d be performing at this dinner party. She needed to remember the words to the song she’d practiced all day and for the moment put all thoughts surrounding Hugh out of her mind. She wanted to give another stunning performance and would need to focus to do that.

  “Welcome, Lady Winthrop. Miss Worthington,” greeted Lady Silvester as they came into the house. Kitty could hear all sorts of chattering coming from the sitting room and was certain that it would be a rather large dinner party.

  “Good evening, Lady Silvester,” Aunt Matilda said with a dip of her head. Though they were of the same status, Kitty’s aunt had always been a very respectful woman.

  “Feel free to join the others in the sitting room,” Lady Silvester said as she gestured towards the way they should go. “I’m sure you’ll find many reputable families in attendance.” Kitty curtsied before following her aunt into the room. That word ‘reputable’ hung in Kitty’s head. It seemed that the Bon Ton was more worried about reputation than anything else. And since Kitty was also part of that higher society, perhaps she should be more concerned about it as well.

  “Ah, Lord Harding,” Aunt Matilda said, drawing Kitty’s attention back to the present reality. “I had not known you’d be in attendance this evening.” Lord Harding smiled keenly at Kitty as she looked at him with equal surprise as her aunt.

  “It was a last-minute decision,” Lord Harding said in a pleasing voice. “Once I heard that Miss Worthington was going to be in attendance, then I knew I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to spend time with her.” Kitty forced a small smile onto her face as she listened to Lord Harding. She was trying to reason with herself that the gesture was supposed to be enduring and decided for now she would entertain Lord Harding until her performance.

  “How kind of you, Lord Harding,” Kitty replied. “Would you care to sit with us while we wait for the dinner to begin?” She wasn’t really keen on the idea of entertaining yet another suitor today, but she also didn’t want to be rude.

  “Yes, I’d be happy to,” Lord Harding replied. He offered his arm to Kitty, but she simply moved on, taking the time to say hello to the other families that were in attendance. Lord Harding hovered near her, but she didn’t place her full focus on him. Eventually, she settled into a chair next to her aunt, finding that she had no one else to greet.

  “So, tell me, Miss Worthington. How have you been since we last spoke?” Lord Harding asked as he smiled between Kitty and Aunt Matilda.

  “Fine, thank you,” Kitty replied. “And you?”

  “Just counting the hours till we were able to meet again,” Lord Harding said with a chuckle. Kitty folded her hands in her lap and kept a smile on her lips, unsure of how to reply to that. She’d already denied him, so it puzzled her why he seemed to be so friendly with her. Perhaps he was eager to propose to her again so soon.

  “I see my old friend Lady Tanner. I think I shall pay her a visit,” Aunt Matilda said. Kitty looked to her, pleading with her eyes that her aunt wouldn’t leave her alone with Lord Harding even though they were sitting in a room amongst familiar faces. But no matter what Kitty was trying to tell her aunt silently as she got up, it didn’t seem to help as she watched her aunt slowly make her way to the opposite side of the room.

  “It looks like Lady Winthrop is in good spirits this evening,” Lord Harding observed. Kitty nodded her head, glad that at least her aunt had found a friend to visit. Kitty wasn’t certain how many friends in Town her aunt had left due to her age.

  “I’m sure she was pleased to hear about our engagement,” Lord Harding then said, catching Kitty even further off guard. She thought for a moment she had misheard him, but the longer he smiled at her, the more she started to feel like this conversation wasn’t going to go well.

  “Lord Harding, no real engagement was made between us,” Kitty calmly said. “As I said before, I do not know you well enough to accept your proposal. Therefore, I hope you haven’t been telling people we’re engaged.” The smile on Lord Harding’s face started to fall away and instead an expression of cold stone replaced it.

  “You know, I was really hoping we could talk about the details of our wedding this evening,” Lord Harding said as he rubbed his hands together, looking away from Kitty for a moment. “And I don’t like the idea of you trying to break off our engagement.” Kitty was completely confused by his words and even starting to become worried as Lord Harding almost glared at her.

  “Again, Lord Harding, there was no official engagement,” Kitty said as she straightened her posture. She would be damned before she allowed this man to pressure her.

  “You know, if you don’t agree to my proposal, I cou
ld very easily tarnish your name,” Lord Harding said as he leaned forward, his voice growing very soft. “After all, there are all sorts of reasons why a young lady would refuse a proposal from a gentleman such as myself. I could have discovered you having an affair with another man, for instance.” Kitty’s eyes grew large as she looked at the earl, never having expected him to turn out to be such a narcissist. Kitty knew that she had to think on her feet and speak carefully to find a way out of this mess.

  “Lord Harding, I am sure that there are many other young ladies that would benefit from your proposal. Surely you cannot be intent on marrying me when we currently don’t know one another very well,” Kitty reasoned.

  “But in time I am confident that we would grow very fond of one another once we’ve been married and had the chance to live together,” Lord Harding said sweetly, a shadow of a smile returning to his face.

  “You are too kind, Lord Harding. But I am the type of woman who wants to be certain before making a hasty decision. Therefore, if you are still intent, then you must give me time,” Kitty said, her voice still stern in the hopes of making herself clear to the earl. She didn’t want her words to be assumed or misinterpreted. But as she watched Lord Harding’s face turn red with anger, she understood then that it wouldn’t have mattered what she said unless she’d been willing to accept his proposal.

  Kitty watched as Lord Harding got to his feet and promptly made his way out of the sitting room. Many watched him go, and when he did not return shortly afterwards, those faces started to look at Kitty for answers. She had never been more embarrassed in her life, and she felt foolish for ever entertaining the idea that Lord Harding had been a reputable man that she saw herself marrying one day.

  Eventually, Aunt Matilda returned to her side and asked what had transpired. Kitty didn’t hide anything from her aunt as she quietly detailed their entire conversation. Her aunt was as shocked as she had been to hear Lord Harding’s threat.

  “What do you think I should do, Aunt Matilda?” Kitty asked in a fearful voice. The last thing she wanted was a possible scandal on her hands.

  “Threats are often empty words,” Aunt Matilda said. “But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be prepared for such a situation.” Kitty sighed as she found her aunt’s words to be of little comfort.

  For the rest of the evening, Kitty did her best to enjoy the rest of the dinner party. She talked to everyone and thought at one point she was actually starting to enjoy herself. And after her performance that was applauded upon finishing, she was starting to feel like her old self. She knew she should be proud of tonight and tried to keep that pride in her heart as she travelled home with her aunt after the dinner.

  “Well, I think that was an absolutely splendid evening, save for the beginning part,” Aunt Matilda commented once they had returned to their townhouse. Kitty chuckled, knowing that it was true.

  “Yes, I would have to agree with you on that one,” Kitty said as she led her aunt inside the house. After hearing from the butler that the evening had been quiet at the house, she led her aunt up the stairs to her bedchamber.

  Kitty felt like she could finally breathe again behind the closed door as she allowed her lady-in-waiting to help her prepare for bed. It felt good to be out of the confining clothes and in her flowing nightgown. As she thought about her day as she got into bed, she found that it had been one of the most bizarre days of her life.

  After calling upon Hugh to comfort him in finding that his country estate had caught fire, she hadn’t expected to see him again that day. But he surprised her once more by visiting her after being reminded of their childhood and the promise she had made him. She certainly hadn’t expected such a passionate kiss from him, and as she thought about how Lord Harding had treated her that evening, she was glad to have been kissed by Hugh.

  It was two suitors now that had manipulated Kitty into thinking they were someone they weren’t. She wasn’t sure how she’d been so foolish to believe in their reputation when in fact they were unsightly people. It made Kitty worry what Lord Harding might do to her for not accepting his proposal, and she hoped that whatever he tried to do, she’d be able to undo it somehow.

  With all of this thinking, Kitty’s thoughts turned back to Hugh. She hadn’t considered him to be a possible suitor for her because of his tarnished reputation. It was part of the reason why Kitty had challenged him to begin with because she had thought it an impossible task. But had she misjudged him simply because she listened to the rumours? After all, society had already been wrong about two gentlemen she’d previously considered. It was all very confusing to Kitty, and she hoped to make progress with her thoughts as the night continued.

  Chapter 9

  No matter how hard Kitty tried, she was unable to fall asleep. Her mind kept wandering in circles till she couldn’t stand to be lying down any longer. She tossed back the covers and sat up as she used her fingers to comb back her blonde hair. She knew she needed something to do that would distract her from her thoughts and perhaps help her to sleep.

  Kitty got up from the bed after putting on her slippers. She took her robe and pulled it on before tightening it around her. Feeling covered, Kitty lit a candle and held it before her as she made her way from her bedchamber and slowly down the stairs.

  When she made it to the foyer, she read the grandfather clock to see that it was 2 o’clock in the morning. She was surprised to see that it was so late, yet she hardly felt tired at all. After the day she’d had, she had expected to feel exhausted. But here she was, wandering her house at such a late hour.

  Spotting a pair of boots at the front door with the other coats, Kitty figured they were the gardener’s since he was to be expected in the morning. And idea came into her mind then as she set her candle aside and pulled on the boots over her slippers. Then, she took a coat down from the hook by the door and pulled it over her robe.

  Kitty knew that it was very unladylike to be out of the house by herself, but she reasoned that her aunt wouldn’t want to accompany her at such a late hour. She opened the door and stepped out into the cool night air, making sure to pull the door closed behind her. Then, with her arms wrapped around her body, Kitty made her way down the stairs and to the street.

  There was a time in her life when she wouldn’t have worried so much about what other people thought of her. Kitty started walking towards the park, thinking that no one would be out at such an hour. And since the park reminded her so much of her childhood growing up in the country, she was looking forward to surrounding herself with things that used to comfort her so.

  Kitty stepped into the park, finding it beautiful and quiet as the moon hung overhead, shedding plenty of light so she could see where she was going. She remembered rising so early as a child that the moon would still be in the sky.

  She’d dress into her play clothes with her high-ankle boots and shorter gowns so she could run and play at her desire. Kitty would spend every waking moment outdoors while the weather was still nice. On rainy days, she’d jump in puddles. On days that it snowed, she’d make snow angels and snowmen.

  Her childhood had only been enhanced when she was introduced to Hugh. It was nice to meet another person around her age since she was an only child. And not too many other young girls in their neighbourhood wanted to play like she did. They were too concerned with dressing up and pretending when Kitty just wanted to be outside in nature.

  Unafraid of being spotted, Kitty let her hands glide over the different flowers of the park, her hands running over the harshness of tree bark while she listened to the sound of leaves crumble underneath her feet. She’d long abandoned the common walking paths, deciding she could create her own path.

  This was how she’d been as a child, carefree and unconcerned with the proper way of doing things. Hugh had always supported her in those ideas, joining her in their silly play. It had been nice since Hugh hadn’t treated her like a little girl. He’d only treated her like another human being. Therefore, they�
�d always had lots of fun together on their outings. No matter where they had decided to play, or what dares Hugh would give her, they’d always had fun and been together.