Chapter Twelve
Brad stayed at White’s until he couldn’t stand the boredom anymore. He honestly couldn’t figure out why so many gentlemen liked to spend their entire days here. He had played chess, cards, and browsed through everything possible to read in the place, intentionally ignoring the stack of books that Tad had mentioned.
But, no matter how hard he tried, he kept wishing that he was back at his townhouse. At least there, he had things he wanted to do, like go through his ledger or make plans on how to best use the money he had coming in from his investments. Besides that, he liked to browse through the periodicals he collected, and the articles in those periodicals were current.
Everything at White’s, except for the Tittletattle, was outdated. Most of the information was useless. Oh, sure there were some things that never changed. Common sense was common sense. He didn’t need a financial book to tell him that he needed to spend less than he made. Whoever needed that kind of advice had to be a simpleton.
The book he did need, however, was in the stack he’d been avoiding. When no one else was in the room, he managed to sneak a copy of it. He quickly went over to the other side of the room and wrapped copies of the Tittletattle around it.
Before he could slip out of the room, Lord Whitney went over to the stack of books and took one, though he didn’t try to hide his action like Brad did. This gentleman seemed perfectly all right with the idea that other gentlemen could see him taking it.
Mr. Christopher Robinson, who just so happened to be entering the room, went over to Lord Whitney. “You won’t regret getting that book. There’s no other like it in London. Between you and me, I think the ladies who are married to us are very fortunate.”
Brad shifted the book in his arm, hoping the Tittletattle was hiding it well enough so that Mr. Robinson wouldn’t realize he had picked up a copy, too. It was bad enough that he was singling out Lord Whitney.
Hoping to avoid detection, he went over to the window and pretended he was interested in something outside. If he left the room right now, he might attract their attention, and if that happened, he doubted he would get out of this establishment without someone catching a glimpse of the book. Yes, he thought he did a good job of hiding it, but one could never be too sure about these things.
“Well,” Lord Whitney began, “you and your friend, Lord Edon, speak so well of this book. And we all know how masterful Lord Edon is in bed. It seems that smart gentlemen will heed your advice and read it for themselves.”
“Are you betrothed?” Mr. Robinson asked.
Lord Whitney nodded. “Yes. Soon I will be joining the ranks of the other gentlemen in this establishment.”
“There are some who still haven’t taken a wife, but most of us have. I didn’t even know you were paying a lady suit.”
“Oh, I’m not. This is an arranged marriage.” He cleared his throat then continued, “I want a marriage with a lady who is compatible with me.”
“Are you looking for a love match?”
“To be honest, the possibility of a love of match didn’t occur to me. When I said I was looking for someone who is compatible with me, I meant that I desire to have someone who shares the same interests I do. I think the marriage would be a lot better that way.”
Mr. Robinson gave him a teasing grin. “If she is as compatible to you as you wish, then it will be a love match.”
Lord Whitney returned his smile. “That would be nice, but if it is only an amiable relationship, that will suit me just fine.”
“So, who is this fortunate lady?”
“I can’t say at this time.”
Noting the hesitation in Lord Whitney’s tone, Brad turned his attention away from the window so he could look at the gentleman.
“Why is that?” Mr. Robinson asked.
“Well, I promised her father that I would be discreet about the matter until she’s ready to be married,” Lord Whitney replied, shifting from one foot to the other.
Brad wondered if Mr. Robinson noticed the curious way Lord Whitney was acting, but he didn’t seem to since he grinned. “You’re hiding her identity on purpose. You know it’ll drive us all mad as we try to figure out who she is.”
Brad couldn’t be sure, but he thought Lord Whitney seemed relieved that Mr. Robinson believed him. “That might be a small part of it, although her father does wish to be discreet about it until the time is right to make the announcement.”
“You’re a sly one, my lord. I never thought you had it in you. I thought you were as serious and bland as Lord Roderick. But now I see I’ve underestimated you.” He chuckled, obviously enjoying the prospect of guessing which lady Lord Whitney would be marrying.
If there was such a lady. Brad had a suspicion that Lord Whitney was lying about it, but he had no idea why Lord Whitney would enact such a ruse. As Mr. Robinson had pointed out, Lord Whitney seemed more like the serious type. Every time Brad had seen him, he often had his nose stuck in a history book, and whenever he talked, the only topic he discussed involved ancient cultures. Brad didn’t think Lord Whitney even noticed things like ladies.
Lord Erandon came into the room, and Mr. Robinson told him, “You’ll never believe this. Lord Whitney is betrothed.”
Lord Erandon offered Lord Whitney a congratulatory pat on the shoulder. “A wife is the best thing a gentleman can get. You’ll be pleased you gave up bachelorhood.”
“Especially when you realize how pleasant the wedding night is,” Mr. Robinson said. “There’s nothing like the wedding night.”
“Or the day after,” Lord Erandon added.
Brad decided this would be a good time to head on out of the room. No one was looking at him. No one would notice the book he was holding.
By the time Brad had managed to squeeze around them, Lord Edon had shown up, which meant that more gentlemen were getting involved in the conversation.
Brad definitely didn’t want to be a part of this. All he wanted to do was get home and get the book to a hiding place. He would die of embarrassment if anyone knew he had this in his possession. Well, Tad knew, but Tad would keep the secret to himself. Thankfully, Loretta hadn’t married a blabbermouth. Before the day was over, all of London was going to know that Lord Whitney had the book because Lord Edon and Mr. Robinson would spread the news all over the place.
Brad, however, didn’t want everyone to know his business. If they did, they would all be laughing at him because he was probably the only gentleman in London who actually ran from his wife on his wedding night. He could only hope the book would have enough advice in it to tell him how to approach Ava without embarrassing himself further. As soon as he got home, he would start reading it.
***
Ava decided to wear her new gown for dinner. Through the afternoon, she had debated whether to wear it this evening or if it might be better to wait for a special occasion. The gown was really such a beautiful thing. It almost seemed a shame to waste it on a dinner where there would be no guests. But then, she recalled the fact that she’d purchased it solely for the intent of pleasing her husband. Whether there would be other people with them was irrelevant. The only thing that mattered was that he would be there.
Except, she couldn’t be sure he’d be there for dinner tonight. He hadn’t been there in the morning, and when she had returned to the townhouse, she had learned that he still wasn’t home. She didn’t know if he even planned to have dinner with her, much less if he intended to eat at home this evening.
In the end, she figured that wearing the gown would still be in her best interest. Even if she ate alone, it wouldn’t hurt to wear it because she could always wear it again in the future. So she summoned her lady’s maid and asked the lady to give her a hairstyle that would best flatter her.
She had to admit that making the effort to be as attractive as possible did make her nervous. Yes, she had done that earlier in the Season, but back then, she had no one in mind that she wanted to impress. Now she did. And that made all the difference.
As usual, Ava had her hair styled before she put on her gown. Her lady’s maid took her time in fixing her hair, and Ava decided not to look at her reflection until she was done. When the lady told Ava it was time to look at the mirror, Ava did so, and she was pleasantly surprised by the results of her lady’s maid’s efforts.
Ava’s hair rested down her back in gentle waves. Her lady’s maid swept some hair over her shoulders, which gave her a softer look. She turned around so that she could see how long her hair had gotten over the past couple of years. She was surprised that it had gotten as long as it had. It nearly reached her waist!
“Your hair is one of your nicest features,” the lady told her. “I understand why you never wear it down, though. It’s so thick and curly.”
Ava faced the mirror. She could only hope that Brad liked it.
Her lady’s maid helped her into the gown. Since it was so expensive, Ava was careful as she slipped it on. The last thing she wanted to do was tear the delicate fabric due to her carelessness.
When she was done putting it on, the lady fastened the buttons in the back. And as she was doing so, Ava got a good look at her reflection. She had tried the gown on before she purchased it, and she recalled being pleased with the way it flattered her figure. But looking at herself now, after her hair had been styled to make her look more attractive, she was especially happy with what she saw. She felt just like a princess.
Her lady’s maid sighed in awe. “You look like a different person. I don’t know if your husband will even recognize you.”
Good. That was exactly what Ava was hoping for.
The grandfather clock in the hallway chimed, letting Ava know there was only fifteen minutes left before dinner would be served. The butler had told her that Brad liked to eat dinner at six. After going through all this work to impress him, the last thing she wanted to do was be late.
She thanked her lady’s maid and left her bedchamber. She passed Brad’s bedchamber as she went down the hall. Her steps slowed as she went by the door. She had no way of knowing if he was in there or not. He could still be getting ready for dinner, he could be in the drawing room waiting for her and Stephen, or he might still be out. There was no way she was going to knock on his bedchamber door to find out if he was there. Not with the way things were between them.
She hurried on down the hall and lifted the hem of her gown before she went down the steps. She kept quiet so that she could determine whether or not people were speaking. To her dismay, she didn’t hear anyone. Not Brad. Not even Stephen. Maybe she would be eating alone tonight.
She approached the drawing room, fully expecting for it to be empty, but to her surprise, Stephen was sitting in a chair, staring up at the ceiling.
He turned his head in her direction, his eyes grew wide, and he let out a low whistle. “Is that really you, Ava?”
Her cheeks warm, she nodded, feeling much shyer than she thought she would feel. “I bought a new gown today.”
With a smile, he stood up. “You did more than that. You made yourself look absolutely splendid. If I had known that was what you looked like with your hair down, I would have arranged for you to marry me instead of my brother.”
Would he really have done such a thing? If he was being sincere, then that meant Brad might be pleased when he saw her this evening. If he saw her this evening.
“Do you think your brother will like the way I look?” she asked.
“If he doesn’t, then he’s dead. Only a man who’s dead would be able to overlook how attractive you are.”
“Thank you,” she replied. “That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
Catching a movement out of the corner of her eye, she turned her gaze and saw Brad enter the drawing room. Brad halted in his steps as soon as his gaze went to her.
“You can’t believe it, either, can you?” Stephen asked him. “Who had any idea Ava was such a beauty when you married her? Now the question is, what will you do with her now that she is much too attractive for you?”
Brad shot his brother a piercing look. Though Stephen was smiling as if he was joking, it was clear to Ava that Brad didn’t consider his words funny at all. Never in a million years would Ava ever think Brad wasn’t attractive enough for her. Brad was a fine looking gentleman. From the moment they met, she’d felt a spark of excitement around him that she’d never had for anyone else.
She cleared her throat. “Stephen is jesting. It’s clear to anyone that you’re a handsome gentleman,” she told Brad.
As she hoped, Brad relaxed.
Since there was an awkward moment of silence between them, she continued, “I hope you don’t mind that I purchased this today.” She gestured to her gown. “I don’t often buy things, but I thought it might be pleasing to you if I did.”
Right away, she realized she had said the wrong thing. While she had to tell him that she’d made the purchase so he would expect the bill that would soon be coming for him, he didn’t need to know she bought it with the sole intent of pleasing him. Now she seemed like a fool. Not only did she sound desperate, but she also seemed pathetic.
“How much did you spend on it?” Brad asked.
Stephen groaned. “For goodness’ sakes, Brad. She did this for you. She wants to look nice for you, and I, for one, think she did a marvelous job. She’s lovelier than most of the ladies in London. Even the mistress I used to have wasn’t as beautiful as she is. Can’t you appreciate what you have?”
Brad glowered at his brother. “I’ll thank you not to bring up the mistress when we’re in the company of a lady.” He gave a slight shudder then turned back to Ava. “I meant no disrespect. You do look nice in that gown. I just want to know how much I’ll be expected to pay for it. I only ask so that I can be prepared. I don’t have a steward who manages the money for me. I do that myself.”
“Yes,” Stephen began, “you like to do everything yourself. It’s a subtle form of control.”
Noting the way Brad’s eye twitched, Ava decided to interrupt them. All she needed was for the two of them to get into another fight. She’d been hoping to have a pleasant dinner with Brad, and that was never going to happen if these two started to argue. “Well, the gown was originally two and a half shillings, but I managed to talk the dress shop owner into a twenty percent discount.”
Brad paused for a moment then asked, “You managed to talk him into taking twenty percent off the price?”
“That’s what she just said,” Stephen replied.
Before Brad could respond, she hurried to add, “I didn’t think he would go down more than fifteen percent. But early on, my aunt taught me that it never hurts to ask for a higher discount than what you think you’ll get. What I usually do is ask the seller if they can give me a better price. Most of the time, they’re willing to negotiate with me. When they are, I ask for more than I expect to receive.”
Looking intrigued, Brad clasped his hands behind his back. “And what do you do if they refuse to give you a lower price?”
“I’m always willing to walk away from a purchase. There’s nothing so important that I have to buy it.” Though, that wasn’t exactly true with this particular gown. This particular purchase had been so important to her that she probably would have actually paid the full price. More than anything, she wanted her marriage to be a good one, and being attractive to Brad was necessary for that to happen.
“I didn’t think any of the dress shop owners were willing to negotiate on their prices,” Brad said. “Loretta used to say that there was nothing she could do to get a better price on any of her gowns.”
“There was no reason for her to negotiate,” Stephen spoke up. “You have more money than you can spend in a lifetime.”
“This is why you’re not good with money,” Brad told Stephen. “To you, money is something you spend. You never save anything. You think it comes so easily, too. If you had to choose your investments carefully, if you had to actually work for it, you would better appreciate how difficult it is to make money. Then you would understand why the thing Ava did today was smart. If you had learned to do the same thing she did, your allowances would’ve lasted longer.”
Stephen rolled his eyes. “I should’ve known that you would get more excited about how much money Ava saved on that gown than how pretty she looks in it. You never cease to amaze me. A normal gentleman would take her upstairs to the bedchamber instead of having dinner, but all you care about is how much money she saves you.”
Brad’s face turned bright red, and Ava knew right then and there that the fight she had been trying to prevent was inevitable.
The butler, thankfully, came into the room and announced that dinner was ready.
“Don’t you have somewhere else you need to go?” Brad asked Stephen once the butler left. “Must you come to dinner?”
“I would be more than happy to go somewhere else,” Stephen replied. “But I don’t have any money.”
Brad’s jaw clenched. “Maybe you should have dinner upstairs in your bedchamber.”
“I refuse to be a prisoner in my own home. I have every right to be at the dinner table with you and Ava. Besides, I need to be there. I will be serving a useful purpose. With me there, Ava will have something interesting to talk about.”
Ava’s face grew hot with embarrassment. This argument was getting worse by the minute. Not only had she started it because she bought the gown, but now they had turned their attention back to her. Both gentlemen stop talking for a moment and looked over at her. Did they expect her to add something? Were they looking for her opinion?
“I’m not going to leave her with someone as boring as you,” Stephen finally said. “I’m going to the dining table. Whether or not you care to join us is up to you.”
Then Stephen shocked her by going over to her and extending his arm toward her. She hesitated. Brad was her husband. He should be the one to escort her to the other room. However, considering the fact that he didn’t want to be with her and that he couldn’t even bring himself to consummate their marriage last night, she honestly didn’t know if he would even make the offer to escort her or not. If she refused Stephen’s offer, would she suffer further embarrassment by having to go into the dining room by herself?
Brad huffed and stormed out of the room.
At first, she thought he was going to go back up to his bedchamber, but he didn’t turn in the direction of the stairs. Instead, he headed on down the hall that led to the dining room.
“My brother is always irritable,” Stephen told her. “Unfortunately, it’s something we must both deal with. I know it’s too late to change things, but I’m sorry I made you marry him. If I thought he was going to act like this, I wouldn’t have punished you this way.”
Punish her? From the way things were going, Brad was the one who was being punished. Brad didn’t want to be with her, but Stephen didn’t know that. Like everyone else, he assumed that last night had gone the way a wedding night was supposed to go.
“I know there’s nothing I can do to change the fact that you are married to my brother,” he continued. “But I can do my part to make you feel welcome here. If you need anything, you can come to me. I realize I’m probably the last person you want to accept any help from, but I feel bad about what I did by forcing you to marry my brother. I had no idea he would act this way. I knew he would be upset, but I thought by now he would have gotten over it. He’s never been upset this long before.”
“He probably had his heart set on marrying someone else,” she replied.
“No, he didn’t. And that’s the ironic thing. He’s wanted to get married for five years now. He just hadn’t picked the lady. Who knows if he ever would have? None of the ladies he’s had over for dinner parties have taken an interest in him. He should thank me for matching him up with you, especially after seeing how attractive you are.” He shook his head. “Sadly, I’m beginning to think he wants to be miserable.”
Whether he realized it or not, he had just let something important slip. Brad had invited other ladies to his dinner parties. If given the choice, he would never have invited her because she embarrassed him at his ball.
“Anyway,” he continued, “you can’t take anything he says or does to heart. This is just the way he is. I’m sorry I brought you into this.”
She was, too, but not because she didn’t want to be with Brad. She was sorry because he didn’t want to be with her.
“We should probably get in there before Brad starts to get anxious,” Stephen said. “Believe it or not, if he doesn’t eat at a certain time, it upsets the rest of his day. Or, in this case, the rest of the evening.”
She slipped her arm around his, and he led her out of the room.