Page 31 of Needs Must
‘Quite so, Mama.’ Celia looked affronted. ‘I did intend to call upon her out of a sense of obligation and Christian duty but thought better of it. It wouldn’t do to encourage her expectations. Standards must be maintained.’
‘If you believe that she will lower the tone atmytable,’ Cal replied calmly, ‘then I shall not be offended if you take your dinner in your rooms.’
‘Be driven out of my own dining room but a stranger?’ Cal’s mother appeared incensed. ‘Never did I hear such nonsense.’
‘It’s my dining room, Mother,’ Cal pointed out.
‘Semantics, my dear.’ The dowager countess spoke with her fork poised in midair. ‘I dare say the woman has fallen on hard times, but that does not make her your responsibility.’
‘Really, Cal,’ Celia said disdainfully. ‘I hope you don’t expect me to be polite to the lady. That would be asking too much.’
‘That is precisely what I expect of you,’ Cal replied. ‘I hope for your sake that you will not cut a guest of mine.’
‘It seems somewhat outrageous,’ Daventry remarked.
‘Then I shall not offend your sensibilities; any of you,’ Cal snapped. ‘I shall dine in privacy with Mrs Harte. And you and my sister, Daventry, would probably prefer to retire to your own estate. It’s about time you did, in all honesty.’
‘I say!’ Daventry responded, with glass poised to his lips.
‘Don’t be ridiculous, Cal,’ Celia said, a hint of panic in her voice. ‘I am your sister.’
‘But no longer my responsibility,’ Cal replied, his gaze focused on Daventry, whose cheeks had now flushed a deep shade of red. ‘You seem to sometimes forget that my patience is not limitless.’
‘The lady sounds intriguing,’ Arthur said cheerfully. ‘I shall certainly be glad to make her acquaintance.’
‘That goes for me too,’ Saul agreed.
‘Of course we will all be polite to your guest, Cal dear,’ his mother said in a placating tone. ‘She is after all a viscount’s daughter, so she deserves our compassion. Naturally, we will not mention her straitened circumstances.’
‘If by that you mean that her husband is no longer able to support her, that situation is common amongst our set. I have good reason to know it for a fact, even when the husband in question is still alive,’ Cal replied, his gaze still firmly focused on Daventry.
Both of his brothers glanced at Cal, nodding their approval. Cal knew that they shared his view of Daventry and thought it high time that he stopped living off Cal’s largesse.
‘The Seymours will be here tomorrow night, and a few other people,’ the dowager countess remarked. ‘I am sure they will join us in welcoming Mrs Harte to the district.’
‘The Seymours?’ Cal sighed. ‘Again?’
‘They are our closest neighbours, more or less.’ Cal’s mother waved a hand in the air. ‘You took Miss Seymour into dinner the last time they were here and seemed to find a great deal to talk to her about. No doubt you will take her in again.’
Cal shook his head. It would be more accurate to say that Miss Seymour had found a great deal to say to him. He had merely listened with half an ear. However, lesson learned. He would not incite any further speculation about a chit in whom he had absolutely no amatory interest. Besides, there was only one lady whom he had any intention of escorting to table. And for once he was anticipating rather than dreading the occasion.
The dowager countess hastily changed the subject and Cal felt no pressing need to say anything further about Mrs Harte. He had made his point and any member of his family who defied his wishes would live to rue the day.
‘What do you mean, I have to accept the earl’s invitation?’ Donna fisted her hands and planted them firmly on her hips. ‘I do not have to do anything I would prefer not to.’
‘Think about it, child. The earl can help you. He clearlywantsto help you, and if all you have to do in return is to spend a few hours at his dinner table, why all the fuss?’
Donna wished that Miriam would not make it sound so plausible. ‘The earl might want me there, but I very much doubt if I will be made to feel welcome by his mother and sister. You have heard what Mrs Cooper has to say about that pair.’
‘You have dealt with resentful females in the past.’
‘Anyway, apart from anything else, I have nothing suitable to wear for the occasion,’ Donna replied triumphantly as she played her ace.
‘You let me worry about that, young lady.’
‘Oh, botheration!’ Clearly Miriam had packed some of Donna’s finer clothes without telling her. Donna’s instructions had veered towards the practical. Funds were tight and she had not envisaged any need for finery. She ought to be furious but a part of her revelled in the thought of wearing silk again for a few hours and feeling its smoothness caressing her skin.
The dog, having eaten the flesh from the bone that Miriam had given him, had fallen asleep in front of the fire. But at the sound of Donna’s agitated voice, he lifted his head and yapped.
