Lady Louisa had been right when she said he would not be short of partners this night. In fact, he wasn’t entirely sure he had ever been pressed upon to dance by so many matrons with single daughters ever before.
With each false smile a lady flashed at him, with each shallow conversation, he only saw the reflection of his own shallowness. It was very disconcerting and made it very difficult for him to at least appear to enjoy himself.
“Something is bothering you, Rowland,” his uncle said from his side as the Duke took a moment to refresh himself with some punch.
More people had managed to squeeze into the room, though it scarcely seemed possible at the beginning of the dance. The continuous dancing, combined with the warmth of that many bodies, had started to turn the tent into a hothouse.
“Nothing at all, Uncle,” Rowland lied.
“Well, I do hope you are better at convincing ladies of love than that.”
“Why try to convince someone of what one doesn’t feel? Would it not be better to give up this whole charade and wait for the real thing to come along?”
“My dear nephew, please take the advice of an old man. All love is, is a charade.”
“Even my parents’ love?” Rowland asked with a raised brow.
Since their death, he had spent his childhood begging his uncle to provide him with any detail about them. Being a boy of such a young age, he had so few of his own memories of them. His uncle had painted a picture of good and honorable people that cared for each other.
“You are not a boy any longer,” his uncle said with a bit of hesitation. “They were good people, your mother and your father. Their marriage, however, was not one of choice but of obligation. They made the best of it, as most do.”
“I had no idea,” the Duke said before settling into the thoughts this brought about.
“I am sure they found joy in each other, however. If they had lived longer, I am sure you would have had siblings.”
Rowland rolled his eyes. Why was it that affection and intimacy always were one in the same? In James Vaughan’s mind, the only type of love was the physical kind. It was also why he had never found a permanent companion of his own.
Relationships based solely on physical attraction were never destined to go very far at all. His uncle had settled into this mentality of shallow quick romances in any country they might find themselves in. That was partly the reason why it came as such a shock that his uncle suggested and strongly insisted on their current venture.
Rowland had fancied the two of them living the rest of their days much how they had the first twenty-six years of his life. It had been fun, energetic, carefree, and without the added weight of a spouse giving her opinion on matters.
Though Rowland didn’t see relationships in the same light as his uncle, he also didn’t see the necessity of acquiring one. Perhaps there was a chance for actual love out there for him, but why waste his time looking for it when there was so much more he could be doing.
The night finally ended and, other than the mishap with Lady Louisa, it evolved without any defect. He made the acquaintance of several young ladies all amply ready to be married. Some sort of arrangement might be made with one of them perhaps.
Choosing a bride out of country ladies and untitled gentlemen’s daughters meant they would be more willing to go along with any arrangement he set, all for the sake of his title. It wasn’t like he had a terrible idea in mind.
After all, if his uncle was going to force his hand in marriage, it would make sense to do so in a way most convenient to him.
If he could find an agreeable lady to wed, she would stay at Bassen Park and he would be free to travel as he pleased like before. Naturally, the time would come to produce an heir. Once that was taken care of, however, he would return to his old life. She would stay and take care of the heir.
It was a win for both of them. It would mean little change in his ways, except for the years necessary to produce an heir, and she would get the fortune and prestige that she was searching for.
He had hoped that Lady Louisa would have been a willing friend in his search. She would have been a necessary companion in the task, to help him weed out the women most willing to take him up on his offer. Apparently, she would no longer be a part of the equation.
He thought of her again at his morning meal the following day. She was such a vexing conundrum to him. Though she was no great beauty like her cousins, she still had her own pleasant look that he rather enjoyed. She seemed so simple and straightforward.
But then there was that confusing side of her. First, she chose to lie at their first meeting. Rowland had assumed it was purely over embarrassment. After all, he had assumed her to be of a lower class. In a way, Rowland supposed that whole situation had been a result of his own actions.
But then there was that irritating conversation they had had the night before at the public dance. She had seemed so cross with his manners. How else did she expect him to behave in such a setting? He had a name and title to think of and represent in a way that would bring respect to his predecessors.
“Lost in thought over there, old chap?” a voice roused Rowland from his thinking.
He looked over to see his companion at the breakfast table, looking at him with a raised brow of interest.
“Perhaps it was a lady from last night that has finally caught your attention?” Colonel Jasper suggested.
“Well, she certainly caught my attention, but not in the way you were thinking.”
“And who would that be? Let me guess. The very lovely Miss Elisabeth. I know Lady Hendrickson is very set on you finding your way to her eldest daughter.”
“No, actually I was thinking of Lady Louisa. She said some cross words to me last night while dancing.”
“Cross? Really? Now, I’ve only spent a couple of afternoons and conversations with her, but I never quite pictured her as the cross type.”
Rowland looked over at his friend surprised by his words. Jasper was much older than him, perhaps by eight years. They had only shared a few years in school, but they had quickly grown to be friends during those. Like himself, Jasper had never married. It wasn’t for lack of desire but lack of opportunity and the ability to support a wife.
Rowland had been happy to sponsor his friend's commission as an officer. The early years of a militiaman didn’t offer much by way of wages. On top of that, it was a job with considerable traveling. These were both in opposition to finding his own happiness.
“She said I was putting on a very Lord-like show - in much more words than that.”
“Well, were you not?”
“Of course I was. I’m supposed to be. It is what is expected of me. It comes with the title.”
“Perhaps she didn’t mean it in an insulting way; you only took it so,” he suggested.
“You seem to be defending her very determinately,” Rowland retorted. “Your Lady Louisa claimed that I was behaving in a way as to hide my true personality all in hopes to trick one of her female companions into finding me agreeable.”
“Well, were you?” Jasper asked.
“Of course not! I mean, not really. I mean, you know how it is,” Rowland gestured irritatedly. “I do have to behave a certain way in public, that is just the way things are. There are certain expectations of me. Of course, I also would want to put my best foot forward when meeting several ladies that could have potential. I’m not going to flaunt my worst traits in such a situation.”
“Like how you pick at your cuticles or your atrocious handwriting?” Jasper teased.
Rowland rolled his eyes.
“I am simply saying I might have been putting my best foot forward, but she accused me of altering myself altogether to deceive and create an allusion of lies,” he added quoting her words exaggeratedly.
“Perhaps you were,” Jasper retorted with a shrug.
“Now I know for certain you are on her side.”
“My dear friend, when it comes between you and a pleasant Lady, I will always choose the latter. Besides,” he said with a laugh. “The Henry Vaughan I knew from days past would have never even tried to put on a mask before ladies. In fact, he would have made fun of those who did so in his presence.”
“Yes, well, that Henry Vaughan was a child and not the Duke of Rowland. Now I must play the game as well as any other. I need to acquire the wife and the heir so that I may return to my own life. The sooner it gets done, the better.”
“My dear friend,” Jasper said, setting aside his plate of boiled eggs and toast. “If you actually think you can go back to your old life, you are sadly mistaken. What I wouldn’t give to be in your shoes. I would happily find a woman to love and spend my days with.”
“You apparently already have in Lady Louisa,” Rowland responded in a teasing fashion.
“Actually, I might already have in another form. I rather hoped you would help me with that, old chap.”
“Happy to help,” Rowland said, interested to hear the name of his friend's interest.
“As we said, Lady Hendrickson is most interested in you marrying her daughter, Miss Elisabeth.”
Rowland thought on Miss Elisabeth. He had danced with her last night and made pleasant conversation. She was very lovely to look at and seemed to know all the right things to say. She rather did remind him of those shallow misses that his uncle enjoyed company with. There was nothing beyond the surface with that kind.
“And you wish to marry her in my stead I hope?”
“Unfortunately not, but I have found great interest in Miss Mary. She was charming to talk with, and I spent much of last night in her company if you didn’t notice.”
Rowland had noticed that now that he thought back on the night.
“I wonder if you could use your influence over the Lady Hendrickson and invite them here an evening? It would be a great opportunity to get to know Miss Mary better.”
“I doubt it would be hard to arrange. In fact, if I said the words, I would expect to find all four ladies right here on my doorstep,” Rowland said with a satisfied smile at his wit.
"As much as I wish to help you, my friend, I don't know if I could stand another night with Lady Louisa and still be civil," Rowland added.
“I really think you might have judged Lady Louisa a bit harshly. And if she really felt so poorly about you, I doubt she would come at all,” Jasper added as an afterthought.
“I suppose I could hope for that.”
“Yes, you might have to. I suspect we will be seeing a lot of them over the coming months, at least I hope so. I would guess Miss Elisabeth hopes the same.”
The addition of her name again in the conversation made Rowland think critically on the miss. It would be a reasonable choice for him, and an easy one at that. He was sure with Lady Hendrickson at the lead of her daughter’s search for a husband, she would move things along at a fast pace.
Though he found Lady Hendrickson's behavior very irritating, Rowland tried not to think too harshly of the lady. He had been told that she mourned over the recent death of her husband. Certainly, a woman alone with two daughters would feel a sharper pang to see them settled right.
She had the use of close relations to help her though.
Why else would Lady Louisa be in present company? No lady would choose to leave London during the height of the season unless it was to aid a relation that they had great affection for.
“Well, I am sure I have little say in the matter. I suppose I will be putting my poor handwriting to work today to invite the ladies over for a dinner party at their earliest convenience.”
“That’s very nice of you, old chap,” Jasper said with a smile across his face.
“You know, Miss Mary is at least ten years your junior, if not more.”
“I would guess closer to fifteen actually. I don’t think age matters much when you find the right one.”
“And she is your right one? You are certain of this already?”
“Not certain, no. But I intend to find out.”