Page 26 of Pining for Lord Lockhart
“But not the kinds of situations that might truly damage. You do need to be careful about those things, about men, going into seedy parts of London alone.” He winced inside, hoping she would take his meaning well.
“And this visit is akin to going into the seedier parts of London alone?” Her eyebrow rose in challenge.
“Certainly not. I’m bringing it up in hopes that it too will be remembered.”
She laughed. “I’m not one bit bothered, and besides, my sisters are coming to join us.”
“They are?”
“Yes, we have come to help you decorate the place.”
Nothing could have surprised him more.
“For you see, I’m not as uncouth and uneducated as you seem to believe. We all come at the invitation of your aunt.”
He followed her out of the door thankfully and into a more appropriate part of the house, one where servants would join them. And perhaps his aunt if she’d truly invited them. “Why would she do such a thing?”
“She mentioned that you’d expressed a thought about decorating and that she was old enough to have done so ten times over. She thought that we might enjoy it more.” Charity shrugged like this wasn’t the oddest thing that had ever happened to the two of them. And they’d experienced odd things.
“I suppose.” He indicated she precede him into the front parlor where his aunt was already seated.
She stood. “I’m so pleased you have come.”
“Thank you for inviting me. My sisters will join us shortly.”
“Excellent. I’ve asked the servants to bring in the swatches I have already, and we can of course get more. I will ask Francois Renault to join us.”
“Francois Renault?” The name did not sound familiar.
“Yes, He’s a wonderful decorator that will aid us in ordering the correct fabrics and finding furniture and fitting rugs.” She nodded decisively and patted a chair near her. “Please, come sit, Miss Charity. I will have a luncheon brought in when it’s time. This will take a good many hours.”
Andrew wasn’t certain what to say. He sat beside Charity, uncomfortably on the edge of his seat.
She turned to him and her smile glowed with happiness, the kind that usually reassured whatever was amiss in his world, but those kinds of smiles would not reassure when he had another woman claiming an obligation from him.
The very presence of unfinished business of such a grave nature weighed on him. What was he to say? What should he do? How did one respectfully decline the existence of a romantic understanding?
The largest problem with his predicament being that he had become accustomed to approaching Charity with his life dilemmas, or at least, solving other people’s injustices and problems. His natural inclination was to talk to her.
And yet, he couldn’t.
How could he let her know Penny was pushing things this far? He couldn’t. Not when he hoped to…
He couldn’t finish the thought, not with her sitting beside him, not when she and her sisters had come to help decorate his home. He was already having the devil of a time holding his tongue where she was involved. And entangling what he would like to say with the guilt of his past would not help his case.
She placed a hand on his shoulder. “Are you certain you’re well?” The care he saw in her eyes could well-nigh be his undoing.
He opened his mouth and then closed it.
Voices sounded in the hall and he stood, turning toward the Standish sisters as they were announced. “Lady Morley, Lady Dennison, Mrs. Sullivan.”
The three lowered in immaculate curtseys. And Andrew was reminded what he always thought when with them—the sisters had class.
He could only be grateful for the help of so many.
Charity hurried forward. “My sisters.” They kissed cheeks and chattered away for what probably felt like the briefest of moments together, then turned as one to greet him: four beautiful ladies, with full smiles, excited to come and help him and his aunt.
“I don’t know what to say.” He bowed over each hand, placing a kiss, then straightened. “My aunt has us started.”
