Page 5 of A Sense of Misgiving
‘Speak for yourself.’
Both men laughed. Luke drained his glass and stood, yawning.
‘I’m for my bed, Archie. I never could keep pace with you when it comes to imbibing, and I know better than to try it when you’re in this sort of mood.’
Archie swallowed his cognac and stood also, struggling to his feet with the aid of his cane. ‘I’m exhausted, too.’ He leaned heavily on his stick with one hand, wincing from the pain of exertion, and extended the other to Luke. ‘Thank you for the past few weeks,’ he said, giving Luke’s hand a firm shake. ‘It was just what I needed.’
‘And more to the point, no one realised that you’re actually Archie,’ Luke replied.
‘I think one or two suspected, but I’m pretty good at keeping up the old French accent. And since I lived over there for so long, no one can catch me out on detail. I suppose it doesn’t matter much now if the truth does come out, but I’d prefer it if it didn’t, at least while the old man’s still alive. He sets an awful lot of stock by reputation and that sort of thing.’
‘Shame he didn’t pass that quality on to his only son then,’ Luke replied, chuckling as he left the room.
Chapter Two
‘There we are. You will feel better almost at once,’ Flora assured her charge, standing over her until she drank all of the tincture that she had made up for her.
‘I did not feel unwell in the first place.’ The countess pulled a disgruntled face as Flora took the empty glass from her hand. ‘But if drinking it stops you from fussing…’
‘The weather has changed.’ Flora glanced out the window, distracted by the sound of light rain pattering against the glass. ‘Just what the farmers do not need at this time of the year. They will be worried about getting the harvest in.’
Zeus had abandoned the countess’s lap and now sat in front of the fire, washing his face. The countess looked tired and Flora could see that she was fighting the need to sleep.
‘Shall we dine up here together this evening, my lady? Henry and Sam won’t mind, I am sure,’ she said, referring to the earl’s two unmarried brothers who still resided at Beranger Court. ‘If we are not there, they won’t have to mind their language or watch how much they drink. They can get as drunk as lords, if they feel so inclined.’
‘God, I hope not. I’ve fended off enough drunken lords in my time. And why should they mind their language? All the swear words they know, they learned from me.’
Flora smiled. ‘You and I both know that the excellent educational establishments the boys were sent to taught them a great deal more than the subjects covered by the curriculum.’
The countess sniffed. ‘I don’t suppose a single swear word was ever uttered in your childhood home.’
‘Perhaps not, but I heard more than my fair share of coarse language when visiting the poor and needy, and I survived the experience unscathed.’
‘Ha, you—’
The countess’s pithy retort was cut short when someone tapped at the door and immediately opened it. Flora’s heart did a strange little flip when a familiar masculine aroma filled her senses. The earl had returned! Lady Mary entered the room ahead of him in a flurry of muslin and wearing a broad smile.
‘Ah, Grandmamma,’ Mary said, smiling as she knelt to give the countess a kiss. ‘I am so very pleased to see you looking so well, for which Flora must take all the credit. Flora, how do you do. I have had a perfectly lovely time, but I am glad to be home.’
‘I am not in the least unwell, and never have been, so your credit is misplaced,’ the countess replied, trying to pretend she was not cheered by the sight of her returned family. ‘I cannot imagine why everyone insists upon turning me into an invalid. I am old, not infirm.’
‘Ah, that must be it.’ Mary grinned. ‘Pray excuse me.’
Flora felt the earl’s eyes resting upon her as he waited for Mary to finish greeting their grandmother. He looked dishevelled, dusty from the road, but otherwise as devastatingly handsome as always. She cleared her throat and smiled at him, determined to pretend that his presence had neither unsettled her nor heralded the return of the inappropriate aspirations she had worked so hard to quell during his absence.
‘Grandmamma,’ he said, leaning over to take his turn to kiss her brow. ‘How are you?’
‘As well as always, no thanks to this interfering minx.’ She waved a hand at Flora. ‘She will keep insisting that I drink the vilest potions for no apparent reason.’
‘And yet you drink them,’ he said, failing to hide his amusement.
‘Bah! The hussy would tattle to you if I did not. Then you would feel compelled to replace her and I would be faced with the inconvenience of breaking a new gel in.’
‘I would do no such thing. I doubt there is another young woman in England who would have the courage to stand up to you, Grandmamma, so stop trying to invoke my sympathy.’ Luke turned towards Flora, and she was almost sure that his smile softened because he was pleased to see her. Pleased and gratified that she was able to control his contrary relative, she reminded herself. ‘How are you, Miss Latimer? I hope my grandmother has not tried your patience too severely.’
‘Not in the least, sir,’ she replied, bobbing a curtsey. ‘Although she continues to try her best to do so.’
Luke laughed and the awkwardness between them dissipated. The countess surprised her by not voicing an indignant contradiction. She enjoyed their verbal sparring and it was a rare occasion when she didn’t insist upon having the last word.
