Lady Windermere's Lover by Miranda Neville

Author:Miranda Neville [Neville, Miranda]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fiction, Historical romance, Georgian
ISBN: 9780062243324
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2014-06-23T21:00:00+00:00

The confrontation with his wife ran through Damian’s mind as he sat in the library waiting for Bingham. Nothing seemed amiss with the latest batch of reports from his London agent, beyond the excessive amounts Cynthia spent on clothes and furnishings. Her household decorative purchases made him shudder. He must tell her not to buy any more furniture or pictures without consulting him first.

However, he couldn’t quarrel with her efforts at the dressmaker. She bore almost no resemblance to the young woman he had wed. The fact that he’d failed to recognize her at Drury Lane bore testament to her transformation from dowdy provincial to ravishing London beauty. Too bad that her morals had made the same journey.

The hypocrisy of the thought scratched his conscience. Did he not wish for a fashionable wife who would help advance his career? There had never been a chance that his marriage would become a love match like that of his parents, an ill-matched but curiously happy pair. He would settle for shared ambitions and compatibility in the bedchamber.

His breath shortened. Why wouldn’t she agree to give up Denford? All she had to do was admit her sin, accept his forgiveness, and they could be perfectly happy together.

Bingham, a partner in a respected firm that had handled the Lewis family affairs for half a century, was announced “Tell me,” Damian asked, once the formalities had been observed and a new series of reports delivered, “how did it come about that Lady Windermere occupies this house? I expected it would be let once I left the country.”

“In the hurry of your departure, you forgot to leave instructions. When Lord Morton inquired as to its availability this spring, I wrote to Markham at Beaulieu to see if you had mentioned the matter to him and he asked Her Ladyship. I understand she decided to come to London to visit the warehouses for the redecoration of the manor, and to consult a physician.” He looked anxiously at his employer. “I saw no reason why she shouldn’t use the house under the circumstances.”

“No reason at all, Bingham.” He wished she’d remained in the country, however. Julian Fortescue would never have encountered her had she been safe in Oxfordshire. “Is there anything else?”

“I hesitate to bring this up, but there is an oddity that bears investigation with regard to Lady Windermere’s expenditures. She has bought a good many pieces from a warehouse in Long Acre.”

“Hamble & Stoke. Never heard of it.” Damian leafed through a sheaf of bills, recognizing some of the more egregious examples of Cynthia’s bad taste. “Fifty guineas seems high for a miserably uncomfortable sofa, and I wouldn’t take the still life in the hall at any price. Still, I won’t complain. Her extravagance doesn’t threaten to outrun the constable, does it?”

“No indeed. Mr. Chorley’s settlement was generous and will be more so when a happy event should occur.” Bingham cleared his throat. “Now that Your Lordship has returned,” he added delicately.

Not as things stood at present.

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