Page 15 of An Unwitting Alliance
A much safer source of conversation. The town itself was nothing special. However, there was one thing that stood out that Tom could mention. “You have a great deal of ponds.”
“Yes,” Mr. Vail said. “Being this close to the River Aire, we do indeed.”
Pondmight have been too strong a word; they were more like large murky puddles, but that sounded insulting. “And the meadow outside the town was decidedly eye-catching.”
“Isn’t it wonderful?” Mrs. Vail said. “We very much like our home. It’s far quieter than Leeds, but the city life is not too far away either. It is the best of both worlds. You are surely used to even greater chaos with the hustle and bustle of London.”
“I spend time in a variety of places,” Tom said. “But Rivenwood Manor in Brookeside will always bear my favorite landscape.”
Mrs. Vail put her hand on Cassandra’s knee. “I am certain Cassandra will love living there with you and Lord and Lady Felcroft.”
His tea disappeared in a pit in his stomach. He hadn’t thought much about what his future would look like if he failed to put an end to the engagement. He had no desire to share Rivenwood with someone not of his choosing. “She can visit Fairview. Often. Very often.” If all went well, she would never leave her parents’ side.
Mrs. Vail beamed. “We had hoped you would want to share some of your time here at Fairview. Many wives live so very far from their parents and cannot travel home, but we are fortunate that Airewell is not a great distance from Brookeside. I declare enticing you to visit often will give us even more reason for you to enjoy your stay with us now.”
She waited for Tom to agree. He swallowed and nodded.
“Pardon the interruption.” Megan entered the room, her face wary of the conversation at hand. “Mother, the boys are playing shuttlecock on the side lawn.”
“Thank you, Megan,” Mrs. Vail said. “We had hoped you could join Cassandra and give Tom a tour of the house and gardens.”
“Would you care to join us too?” Tom asked Mr. and Mrs. Vail, adding his signature smile, quite possibly the most radiant one he had managed since he’d learned of his engagement. He was absolutely not ready to be alone with a woman who hated him with only her younger sister to protect him should she attack. A shudder passed down his spine, ruining the effect of his smile.
“No need for us to come along,” Mr. Vail said without hesitation. “Besides, I should get my wife upstairs for a lie-down.”
Cassandra stood and Tom reluctantly followed suit as her parents left them. Now he knew why Ian was so scared of marriage. It made so much more sense now. Tom could hardly bear being semi-alone with his bride-to-be in the drawing room let alone a bedchamber. She might look the picture of perfection, but she had to release her anger at some point.
“We will begin with the piano room.” Cassandra opened the mystery double doors on the other side of the sitting room, revealing a pianoforte. A clever design, really. It extended the drawing room for parties but allowed for private practicing otherwise.
He cleared his throat, eager to put some of the awkwardness behind him. “Miss Vail, do you play?”
“Were you not in receipt of my letter?” Cassandra asked, deflecting his question. “I was quite certain I told you all about myself, including my interests.”
“Indeed, I read it thoroughly.” Tom followed her back through the drawing room to the vestibule. “I was greatly surprised to discover your hair today was not the texture of dried mud. I have been known to confuse my reds and greens, but I never mistake my browns. Your hair is decidedly blonde.”
Cassandra turned sharply toward him. “Oh, but that is when my hair is damp. As it is dry now, the appearance is altered.”
Tom’s brow rose. Why would she describe her damp hair in a letter? He followed her to a door just beyond the staircase with Megan a few steps behind him. “I am not sure my original question was answered about your abilities at the pianoforte, Miss Vail.”
She ignored him. So much for polite conversation.
“This is the dining room. We eat supper promptly at seven.”
Megan interjected. “Dinner might feel a bit unconventional. Perhaps you should warn him.”
His curiosity was piqued. “Yes, perhaps you should warn me.”
“Papa prefers the children to eat with us, with the exception of the little girls. It does get a bit rowdy at times.” Cassandra continued to the next room at the bottom of the staircase. “This is my father’s study.”
She knocked and then pushed it open. It was empty, but inside was a small, albeit cramped, library. Books extended from the ground to the ceiling in every inch of the room, minus the door itself and the fireplace. A large desk sat in the middle of the space with a ladder just behind it. There was a chair behind the desk and a second one squished under an oval window and covered in newspapers.
Tom turned to Megan. “Ah-ha, Miss Vail must spend most of her time sequestered in here. I can tell by the papers.”
“Here?” Megan giggled softly and shook her auburn curls. “Papa is most particular about his study. It is the only place he can truly be alone. And, might I add, he is protective of his books. We are allowed to borrow one at a time, but we must return it in a fortnight, or we must sit here and read from a text of his choosing for as long as he requires.”
Fascinating. Every family had unique rules and traditions. The Vails were so very different from what Tom was used to, but not necessarily in a bad way.
Megan pointed to the chair littered in disarray. “As for the papers, Peter is the only one allowedto touch them, and only after Papa is finished with them.”
