Page 30 of The Viscount in her Bedroom
Lady Wade stood beside Louisa and watched her go. “You have exceeded my expectations, Miss Shelby.”
“Call me Louisa, my lady. We’ll be working together, after all. And this was why you hired me?”
Lady Wade smiled. “Partially. I do like knowing I have company even when my grandchildren are busy. And they won’t live here with me forever, I know.” Her smile faded. “Though Georgie seems like she has everything, hers has been a difficult life, even before Simon’s accident. I’m so disappointed in my son, God rest his soul. He allowed his wife her way in everything. Some women can only focus on men, Louisa, and she is one of them.”
Louisa suddenly remembered Simon’s words about Louisa having admirers; had he been comparing her to his mother?
Lady Wade sighed. “To my daughter by marriage, Georgie barely existed. Simon and Leo were the lights of her life, and it was always easy for them to charm her. She considered them a success. Although she certainly ignores Leo’s many problems.” She lowered her voice, glancing at the door. “I think she gave up on Georgie, because the girl would never be today’s ideal of beauty. And Georgie, being no fool, took that to heart, and thought she herself was the problem. What little girl wants to believe ill of her mother?”
“I’m glad you told me this, Lady Wade. Do you have suggestions on where we might start first?”
“Her wardrobe. Her mother insisted on what she has now.” She shuddered. “If I didn’t know better, I would have thought my daughter-in-lawwantedGeorgie to look bad. But certainly it is only negligence. I would never tell Georgie that.”
“I understand. If you don’t mind, my lady, I need to go find those sketches. Could we take a trip into London sometime in the next few days? We have dressmakers to see.”
Lady Wade grinned. “I would be thrilled to accompany you.”
Louisa practically bounced up the stairs on her way to her bedroom, startling a maid who was dusting.
Finally, she knew what she wanted, what her true purpose was! Though there might not be many young ladies of thetonwho needed her services, there were certainly girls among the families of the newly rich industrialists who had not been raised to enter Society. Louisa’s world, though not of theton, had its own strict rules and arrogance. There would be many families who would pay for her help.
As she turned into the ladies’ wing, she suddenly came to a stop and faced the gentlemen’s wing. What about Lord Wade? If Georgie blossomed into a confident young woman, as Louisa was certain she would, the girl would head off to London. Lord Wade would be alone, since he had vowed he would never marry. Could Georgie persuade him to accompany her?
ChapterSeven
After eating dinner in his study, Lord Wade joined them in the drawing room. During their afternoon going over sketches, Georgie had told Louisa she would tell Simon their plan this evening, and Louisa found herself nervous, though she was still confident. After all, formal instruction was now Lady Wade’s idea.
Lord Wade was not the kind of man who would explode in anger; he was very good at hiding his true emotions from his family—like her father. She would have to watch him carefully.
She admitted to herself that she watched him all the time, even when she didn’t have to. She melted at the way he tried to protect his grandmother from the depths of his emotions. Lady Wade was obviously more a true mother to him than his own.
Louisa liked the way he walked, and now that she’d seen him rowing, she understood why there was an athleticism to his every movement. Even the aid of a cane and his valet couldn’t disguise that.
When Simon was seated, and Manvil had departed, he said, “So Georgie, what is the big secret you wanted me to be here for?”
Louisa glanced nervously between Georgie and Lady Wade.
Georgie cleared her throat. “I’m sorry to call you in tonight, Simon. I know you had more work to do.”
Work in the evening? Louisa thought suspiciously.
“Georgie, anytime you need me, I’ll come running.”
Lady Wade smiled. “That I would like to see.”
Simon grinned. “Poor Manvil would have a hard time keeping up with me.”
Georgie took his hand. “I wanted you to know that for the next few weeks, I’ll only be able to work with you in the mornings.”
Lord Wade smiled. “Ah, so who is more important than I am in the afternoons?” he teased.
“Louisa,” Georgie answered.
He looked puzzled.
There was an excitement in Georgie’s manner that made Louisa feel relieved.
“I guess I should say that I’m working onmein the afternoons with Louisa,” Georgie continued. “She seems to think I’m not hopeless where the Season is concerned.”
