Page 11 of The Duke's Carriage Window
“Yes. I worked here before I married my Kit.” She lifted her face up to accept a kiss upon her cheek from the intimidating Lord Kentwell. A flash of envy shot through Meredith. She wanted to have what Suzannah and her husband had.
“You worked here?” asked Meredith.
“I still do.” Suzannah grinned at her.
Meredith was shocked and realized her expression might come across as rude, so she added, “I mean, you are very talented, Lady Kentwell. I’m simply surprised.”
“Well, I enjoy it, and I see no reason to change who I am simply because of my marriage. Even if it isn’t expected societal behavior.”
“Not that we care one wit what others think,” Lord Kentwell added with a scowl.
Meredith did not expect to hear such things in London and found it surprisingly comforting. “You are very talented, Lady Kentwell,” said Meredith. “The paintings seem to come alive on the stage. It is truly the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
Suzannah laughed. “I hope you are not embarrassed to be sitting with a clerk’s daughter who paints sets for plays. I know my marriage to Kit caused quite a stir for many of London’s elite.”
Suzannah laughed at Lord Kentwell’s deepening scowl and patted her husband’s hand which rested on her shoulder. Lord Kentwell’s face softened a little.
“I do not mind at all,” said Meredith. “Actually, I think it’s rather splendid. You have a beautiful talent, and it is being put to use. Besides, I do not have any social standing,” Meredith added. “I come from…less than auspicious circumstances as well, Lady Kentwell.”
Meredith hoped she hadn’t spoken too honestly, too earnestly, but she wanted Suzannah to understand that she would never sit in judgment on anyone.
“Then I shall see we shall be fast friends.” She reached out and squeezed Meredith’s arm with a smile. “Please call me Suzannah.”
“Pardon us, ladies. We shall be back in a moment,” Lord Kentwell said before he and Darius left the box.
“Where do you suppose they are going?” Meredith asked.
“I wager they are bound for the box opposite us.” Suzannah handed Meredith a pair of opera glasses and pointed directly across the way to the opposite side of the stage. She glimpsed four other men sitting there and she recognized them from earlier that evening when she briefly met Lord Kentwell for the first time.
“Those are your husband’s friends?”
“Indeed.” Suzannah chuckled. “Have you had a chance to meet them?”
“Not exactly,” Meredith admitted. “I only just arrived at the duke’s home a few moments before we left for the theater.”
“And what brings you to London? You’re from the north, aren’t you?”
“Yes. I came all the way from Yorkshire. But I’m afraid it is not under the best of circumstances.”
“How do you mean?”
“The duke’s uncle passed away this week. It is why I am here.”
Suzannah gasped. “Goodness, I didn’t know about Darius’s uncle. I am very sorry to hear about that. I take it you were close to him?”
Meredith was puzzled how Suzannah so freely used Darius’s Christian name, which, given what she knew of high society, was quite unexpected. But she sensed there was much she would come to learn about her new guardian in the days to come.
Meredith felt a flare of guilt and sorrow as something new occurred to her. “I only just realized I should be in mourning. I don’t even own a black gown. And I certainly shouldn’t be here. It is my first night in London and I have made a terrible blunder.” Tears of shame and sorrow burned her eyes. She wanted to blame it on her exhaustion, but everything had happened so quickly. Some part of her hadn’t quite accepted the truth that Uncle Ben was gone, and her life had been turned upside down. Only now was the reality sinking in.
Suzannah touched her hand. “It will be all right, Miss Montague. When Darius returns, you can speak to him about it. Until then, tell me about yourself.”
“You must call me Meredith.”
“Of course, Meredith.”
Soon, she found herself telling Suzannah everything about her life. About her mother and how she came to live with Uncle Ben. It was surely unwise to share so much about herself, but there was something so calming about Suzannah that she felt she could trust her, even with the most embarrassing aspects of her upbringing.
“Now we are friends in earnest,” Suzannah said, once she had finished. “Now, I should be honest about my own history. My father was a clerk for a shipping company. Seven years ago, he was blackmailed into accusing Kit of grand larceny of goods from one of Kit’s own ships.
