Madeleine Robins by The Heiress Companion

Author:The Heiress Companion [Companion, The Heiress]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

By the time Miss Cherwood sufficiently recovered herself from Mr. Greavesey’s proposals to emerge from the office, Jane Ambercot had retired noisily to her room, announcing in an uncharacteristically melodramatic way that she would not see anyone. Jane’s maid, much disgruntled at being included in this ban, confided in Rowena that she thought she had heard the sound of crying from her lady’s room once the door was closed. Little as she liked the situation, Rowena could not suppose that any purpose would be served in storming Jane’s room, so she contented herself in sending up a light supper and hoping that a chance would come to talk to her friend.

Lord Bradwell, on the other hand, was very much in evidence at dinner and afterward. He stalked about the drawing room with a distempered sneer for anyone who approached him. The effect would have been ludicrous, except that he was so much in earnest that it was impossible to laugh at him. “For all the world like Young Werther!” his unhappy mother confided in her companion. “My dearest Rowena, what could have brought my sunny Jack to such a pass?”

“I imagine it must have to do with Jane, ma’am, but as to what the particulars are, I cannot tell you more than you know.”

“Just when things were looking particularly promising. Well, had you managed to pull them through, I was hoping to delegate responsibility for Lyn to you as well.”

Rowena started slightly. “I beg your pardon, ma’am?”

“I was going to ask you to try your matchmaking on Lyndon, dear. But with this experiment gone so awry...”

“I agree completely,” Rowena said with alacrity. “After all, ma’am, I never claimed to be better than a very amateur at this game.”

“I know it. But you seemed to show such promise! In any case, I’m sure that these silly fools have brought themselves to whatever pass it is they’ve found, and I am minded to let them resolve it themselves,” Lady Bradwell said disgruntledly. “After all, I have waited years for Jack to come to his senses, and just when he appears to be doing so — Faugh! And look you there at Lyn, talking with Ulysses Ambercot quite as if nothing in the world were the matter! And his brother walking about like a bear!” The older woman sniffed disparagingly. “Rowena, I warn you now, in case you ever consider marriage: Men are fools. They have their good points, and all in all I cannot regret having married Bradwell —” A soft smile lit on her lips for a moment and was rigorously erased. “But by and large, they are the most contrary breed imaginable!”

“Until you need them, ma’am?” Rowena suggested.

“Certainly, child. Until you need them. I didn’t say they were useless altogether,” Lady Bradwell replied with dignity, and applied herself to her teacup.

Whatever his appearance, Lyndon Bradwell was not in the least unaware of his brother’s novel behavior. His good-natured attempts at conversation had been rebuffed with a violence he would

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