Chapter Eleven
Bertie read the gossip column with annoyance over breakfast.
Sir B— and Lady C— have surprised all their friends by showing a decided preference for each other’s company. Is a romance brewing so soon after Lady C—’s heartbreak? She showed very little interest in her rival, Miss A—, who came upon them at Gunter’s. Lady C— had eyes only for Sir B—.
Well, Lady Catherine had certainly warned him. He was bound to stand some ribbing today from Beau and Tony. He had never been an object of gossip before.
As an only moderately wealthy baronet, Bertie knew he could not in any way be considered an eligible suitor, but he did intend to enjoy her association as often as she was willing to grant it. He had relished their outing to the museum and was looking forward to their excursion into the East End today. Once again, he had been assigned as her escort.
As he bathed and dressed, he wondered if Cumberwell had made any progress in identifying the Gentleman Smuggler. The sooner the blighter was apprehended the better, especially if he was employing Lady Catherine’s assailant. There was no telling where the man would strike. The whole situation made him devilish uneasy.
Cumberwell had clearly been thunderstruck by his former fiancée’s danger. Hopefully the man would act swiftly to ensure her safety.
After taking Hermes for a gallop in the park, Bertie met Tony’s brother, Howie, at Tattersalls to look at brood mares. Howie had taken over their late father’s stud operation at Southbrooke, Tony’s Kentish estate. The young man valued Bertie’s insight and had made an appointment for him to give his opinion on several horses he was considering adding to his stables.
After this consultation, Bertie adjourned to the club for luncheon with Tony, who had at last returned to London from Dorset. He and his lady were stopping off for a day on their journey into Kent.
“I read something in the gossip column this morning that intrigued me, old fellow. Did you really take Lady Catherine for an ice at Gunter’s?” asked Tony with a laugh.
Sighing, Bertie took a sip of claret. “I did. Lady Catherine is fodder for the gossips since her engagement fiasco.”
“That I am aware of. But didn’t Lady Catherine believe you to have shot at her?”
“We mended our fences,” Bertie admitted. “We’re friends. Don’t go singing songs of April and May. Redmayne disapproves of me.”
Studying his friend, Tony lit a cigar. “You are taken with the gel,” he said seriously.
Bertie squirmed. “I enjoy her company.”
“Any sign of the brandy-smuggling gentleman?”
“None, so far. Spoke to Cumberwell at the Home Office yesterday. He’s going to look into it.”
“Cumberwell! Lady Catherine won’t take that well, Bertie.”
“All the more reason for him to take the business seriously. I don’t think the man is indifferent to her. Quite the opposite, in fact.”
“The whole affair seemed queer to me,” Tony said. “Cumberwell has always struck me as a gentleman, and his actions in that case certainly were not those of a gentleman.”
“It was Lady Catherine who cried off.”
“Bertie! The man immediately became engaged to her best friend! Clearly, there had been something between them. That is why the gossip is so fierce.”
Bertie knew this. Again, he remembered the sight of her in Fortuneswell, crying into her handkerchief. Now that he knew her better, he could not imagine anything else that would have upset her to that degree. Had she come upon them in a compromising situation? Was that why she had broken the engagement?
What a fool Cumberwell was!
And what an idiot I am. She could never care for an ordinary baronet.
At that moment, a waiter approached him with a note on a salver. He didn’t recognize the writing.
Sir Herbert,
Your services will no longer be required to carry my sister to the East End. Henceforth, I will be performing that task.
Redmayne
Bertie felt the note like a blow. Was this the result of his visit to Cumberwell? Had Lady Catherine been so annoyed she had dispensed with his services?
Tossing it across to Tony, he said, “What do you think?”
His friend read it and said, “Clearly Redmayne reads the gossip columns.”