Regency Secrets by Lara Temple

Author:Lara Temple [Temple, Lara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Published: 2023-04-01T22:01:11+00:00

A Match for the Rebellious Earl

Lara Temple

Chapter One

‘Useless fops…’ thump ‘…the lot of them!’ thump ‘What is the point…’ thump ‘…of having a stable of stallions…’ thump ‘…if not one of them has sired an heir?’

Thump, thump, whack!

Genny straightened the small table that had fallen victim to Lady Westford’s enthusiastic cane-wielding. Her tantrums were always accompanied by a militant tattoo, but today she seemed intent on wearing a hole in the carpet. It didn’t help that Carmine, Her Ladyship’s off-key canary, accompanied the thumping with contrapuntal warbling and frenetic leaps about his large gilded cage.

Mary and Serena sat stiffly in their chairs, dark and light heads bowed, hands folded in their laps. With their lovely profiles aligned they looked like women posing for a tableau of penance.

Genny plucked a stalk of hay from her skirt and began stripping it into slivers, imagining it was Lady Westford’s cane she was shredding.

Or, better yet, Lady Westford.

‘And now the family is headed by a wastrel and a rogue who did not even see fit to attend his grandfather’s funeral, and never cared one snap of his fingers for the Carringtons.’

‘To be fair, Lady Westford, other than Emily and Mary, I haven’t seen that the Carringtons have ever cared one snap of the fingers for him either. Quite the opposite, in fact,’ Genny intervened—and immediately regretted her impulsive comment. Her object was to soothe the dragon, not throw oil on its fiery breath.

Lady Westford’s cane slashed the air towards her. ‘We gave that doxy’s boy everything and he repaid us by shaming us even further! This is what we are brought to… Oh, go away, all of you!’ she exploded, her voice cracking. ‘You are no use to me. You’ve had your chance and failed. You two…’ her cane slashed the air again, now towards Mary and Serena ‘…you were gifted the finest of the Carrington men and you brought them both to nothing. Now all you do is feed off the Carrington teat like the empty vessels you are. Soon I shall follow Alfred to the grave and leave the Carrington tree bare of fruit. I’m surrounded by nothing but fops and rogues and barren women and hangers-on and… Oh, go away!’

They did as they were told and Genny sighed as she closed the door behind her.

‘Well, that will teach me that silence is golden,’ she said far more lightly than she felt as she surveyed her sister.

Serena Carrington was ashen, her hand pressed tellingly to her abdomen, as if the pain of her third stillbirth was as sharp inside her as it had been two years ago.

‘Come out to the garden, Serena,’ Genny suggested, but her sister gave her a slight smile and shook her head.

‘I think I shall rest a little, Genny.’

Mary and Genny stood in silence until the door to her room closed.

‘Well, this cannot continue,’ Genny said, taking Mary by the arm and guiding her downstairs to the library. ‘Serena will never recover from losing Charlie and her babes if that harridan keeps flaying her every single day.

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