Page 16 of Choosing Her Earl at Last
“Rebecca?” Emmeline called after her sister. Rebecca ignored her and disappeared from sight. “Where did she go?”
Louisa gave her a puzzled look. “Is she prone to such behavior?”
Emmeline shook her head. She pulled Louisa along with her as she chased after her sister. They found Rebecca talking with a young woman holding a basket of linens in each hand. They were speaking with the familiarity of two people who knew each other.
“Rebecca?” Emmeline called her name as they approached.
Rebecca turned around. In reply, she said, “Martha, this is my sister, Emmeline, and our friend, Louisa.”
Emmeline and Louisa exchanged a glance of concern. Rebecca had completely ignored the rules of their society. Introductions were meant to be done with the highest-ranking person being given priority, and the appropriate titles made clear.
Given names alone were never meant to be used when introducing a member of the nobility or aristocracy. Emmeline examined the woman before them. She appeared to be a servant, a laundry maid by the look of her work-worn hands and the baskets of linens she was carrying. Dull brown hair framed earnest blue eyes in a face marked by weariness.
Remembering her manners, Emmeline gave a polite smile. “Martha, is it?”
Martha bobbed a curtsy. “Aye, my lady. Martha Gouldsmith.”
“I am, Lady Emmeline Livingston, nee Frampton, the Marchioness of Worthington. This is my friend, Lady Louisa Beauchamp, Viscountess of Harlow.”
“My lady,” the laundry maid curtsied once more.
Rebecca shot Emmeline a look of annoyance. “There is no need for formalities between friends.”
Emmeline arched a brow in disagreement. “How do you know one another?”
“The market is a wonderful place to meet new people,” Rebecca asserted, giving her sister a warning glare.
Sensing the tension between them, Martha cleared her throat and bobbed another curtsy. “If you will excuse me, my lady. I must return to my work.” She turned and scurried away, as fast as her heavy baskets would allow.
Rebecca watched her go with disappointment in her eyes. She turned back toward Emmeline, her jaw clenched in anger. “How could you be so rude?”
“Rude?” Emmeline echoed, confusion wrinkling her brow.
“Yes, rude,” Rebecca asserted.
Emmaline shook her head. “I merely provided the proper introductions.”
“You have become as cold and aloof as our mother. There is more to life than proper etiquette and titles,” Rebecca accused heatedly. “Have you no compassion for the struggle that most of London must endure? Have you grown so blindly selfish that you would judge a woman simply for how she must survive?”
For the briefest of moments, Emmeline feared that Rebecca might spit at her feet, she was so incensed.
“How could you say such things?” Emmeline was genuinely hurt by Rebecca’s outburst. “All that I have ever done was for the honor of our family and the security of your future.”
“Ladies,” Louisa’s voice calmly intervened. “We are drawing attention to ourselves. Shall we adjourn to a more suitable location for such a debate?”
Rebecca and Emmeline turned angry eyes to the onlookers who had stopped to watch the argument, causing them to scatter forfear of earning the ire of those more powerful than themselves. Emmeline sighed. “I have only ever wanted what was best for you. It is my duty to protect you.”
Rebecca shook her head. “I do not need your protection. I am no longer a child who needs continuous guidance. I am capable of making my own decisions. Much has changed in your absence.” Head held high, shoulders firmly set, Rebecca turned and walked back down the street from whence they had come.
Emmeline closed her eyes, breathing in silence for a brief moment to calm her inner turmoil. She opened her eyes to find Louisa standing beside her with a look of sympathy in her eyes. “She knows not of the sacrifices that you have made so that she might benefit.”
Emmeline nodded. “I know, and may she never know the truth of it. It pains me to be at odds with her. I only wish to see her happy, but she knows naught of the world of men. Counter to her words, she does need to be protected.”
“From herself it would seem,” Louisa agreed. “Perhaps a gesture of sisterly love would smooth the disturbance between you.”
Emmeline nodded in agreement. “She does love gifts. Perhaps I might find her something on the way home. We should not let her get too far ahead of us. It is not safe for a young lady to roam the streets alone.”
Louisa nodded, and they set off together after Rebecca. As they reached the end of the market street, a flash of sunlight on silver caught Emmeline’s eye. She paused, sending Louisa on after Rebecca. She lifted the silver trinket to find a beautiful locket with flowers carved into the polished metal.
