Page 56 of For a Lady's Fiery Heart
Chapter 32
Caroline awoke to the sound of doves cooing outside her window. She turned over and breathed in deeply the smell of the lavender-scented sheets. A sweet dream hung about her. Caroline had dreamt that she and James were at Pembroke, walking hand in hand in the newly refurbished garden of his making. Her heart quickened at the remembrance of what had come later in the dream.
As they had neared the top of the hill, the one she had dubbedLookout Pointas a child, she saw a little boy running after them. Caroline had sunk to her knees, holding her arms out to the child, who sailed right into them for a hug. When she had parted with him long enough to look into his face, she saw the strong resemblance between his childish features and James’s. However, it was her blue eyes that he had inherited.
She sighed, returning from the rose-coloured dream to the not-so-pleasant situation of her present. She did not doubt that she and James would have children someday. However, it was entirely up to him if they were to have any closeness between them besides a curt nod of indifference here and there.
Caroline wondered if she was being fair to James, but she could not abide sharing her home with another woman. Especially one bent on ruining her relationship with James.
A soft knock sounded on the door that joined her room to her maid’s quarters, and the door opened a moment later. “Good morning, my lady,” Hammond greeted her. “I trust you slept well?” she asked, as was her usual greeting every morning.
“Not really. But do not let it trouble you,” Caroline said. She was reluctant to sit up and leave the warmth of her covers. Perhaps Caroline could complain of another megrim today as well and avoid seeing anyone. She raised a hand above her head, running her fingers through her golden hair.
The ceiling was highly decorated and whitewashed. The panels had been carved into the delicate shapes of flowers and greenery. However, all the lavish furnishings and comforts in the world could not assuage the pain in her heart.
“Shall I call for the doctor, my lady? You look as white as a sheet.” Hammond came over to the bed, looking concerned.
Caroline could very well have pleaded illness, but it was not her body that was sick.
“No, I am well, Hammond. I should get up. I should have been up hours ago, I suppose.” Caroline sat up, bracing herself on her hands. “Will you open the curtains and crack a window, please? I should like to hear the birds better as I go through my toilette.”
“Of course, my lady.”
Hammond went to do as she requested and then set about tidying the room. She laid out a simple lavender day dress for her and then helped her brush her hair. Hammond poured water into a basin for her, and she splashed the cool water on her face. It helped to chase the last vestiges of sleep from her eyes, and she patted her face with a softly scented towel, feeling a little more like herself again.
A few minutes later, Caroline was dressed in the soft lavender dress, admiring herself in the full-length mirror. Suddenly, she heard one of the doors down the hall burst open and bang against the wall. Someone was shouting, and it sounded as if trunks were being picked up and hefted, with heavy footfalls passing by her room.
Caroline and Hammond exchanged glances, and they both hurried toward the door. “What in the world?” Caroline asked and cracked the door just a touch. She peeked out and saw that the commotion was coming from down the hall where Lady Beatrice’s room was.
She opened the door wider, wary of the woman.
“I said get the trunks out at once. I shall not stay in this house another moment!” Lady Beatrice thundered.
She was dressed in a travelling costume, with her reticule swinging on her arm and her hat already fixed atop her head. Two footmen exited her room with the last trunk, and Lady Beatrice started to follow them, coming straight toward Caroline. It was too late to close the door now. And she was curious.
When Lady Beatrice neared her door, she slowed her pace, glaring at Caroline. Her maid also gave her a smug look. Caroline only straightened. She would not be cowed in her own home–not anymore. “Lady Beatrice,” she greeted her coldly.
Lady Beatrice sneered at her. “You can have him,” she said and continued briskly down the hall toward the staircase. Joy lifted her heart. Perhaps James had been able to speak with his father after dinner and make him see what troubles they were having with Lady Beatrice being in the house. It seemed too good to be true.
Caroline shooed Hammond back from the door and closed it before another word could be said. Hammond looked none too pleased. “The nerve of the woman!” she exclaimed in a harsh whisper.
“As if the viscount belonged to her, and she had the authority to give you permission to take him off her hands. The very idea–” she said and started toward the door, not doubt to give chase and give Lady Beatrice and her stuck-up maid a piece of her mind.
However, Caroline stepped in her way. “We will not stoop to their level, Hammond. I am just glad she is going. Hopefully, it will be for good.”
A furtive knock sounded on her door, and her heart skipped a beat at the thought that it might be James. Caroline waved Hammond away, and she quickly disappeared into her maid’s quarters, closing the door softly behind her. Caroline took a deep breath, smiling to herself before she opened the door.
Grace came in without an invitation, but Caroline was glad to see her. “What has happened? I heard the ungodly racket of that woman and had to come to make sure you were alright. Did she say anything to you as she was leaving?”
Caroline drew her further into the centre of the room and could not help the glee with which she answered. “Lady Beatrice is leaving us, it would seem.”
Her sister did not seem surprised by the news. “Oh, yes. I knew that already. In fact, I have much to tell you of what I witnessed last night.”
Grace took her hand and led her over to the sitting area. “I was passing by the library last night after dinner to get a book. Well, anyway, I saw Lady Beatrice enter the library and thought to follow her. She has made no qualms about her hatred of reading, you know.”
“Yes, I know. Go on,” Caroline urged.
“Well, I stayed in the shadows and watched as she went in and interrupted the viscount. I think he had been there since we arrived from Thorneby. She was very bold in her advances, but he put a stop to her once and for all. Oh, Caroline, I wish you could have seen it. It was glorious!” Grace said.
