Mistletoe for Felicity by Sally Britton

Author:Sally Britton [Britton, Sally]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pink Citrus Books, LLC

Nine

Felicity sat in the drawing room, absently playing with the lace on her sleeves as she tried to shake the unease that had settled over her. The house was unusually quiet, a stillness that seemed to mirror her troubled thoughts. She knew that Tad had worked until dawn and was now resting, but the cold dismissal of the previous night still stung. She felt a confusing mixture of concern, rejection, and doubt.

A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts, and she looked up to find Mrs. Bennet entering, a strained smile on her face.

“Your ladyship, Lady Victoria Wainwright has come calling,” Mrs. Bennet announced, her voice tinged with hesitation.

Felicity had met Lady Victoria Wainwright only once in London, years before her grandmother’s illness. Everyone knew the earl’s daughter had a sharp tongue and haughty demeanor. Her family held an ancient title, and she never let anyone forget it. Felicity’s stomach twisted, but she rose and nodded, steeling herself.

Lady Victoria had married a gentleman who lived five miles north of Winterway House. Apparently, five miles wasn’t enough to keep her away.

“Please show her in,” Felicity said, forcing a gracious smile.

Lady Victoria swept into the drawing room, her silks rustling, her nose tilted ever so slightly upward. She was older than Felicity, her beauty mature and her eyes shrewd.

“My dear Lady Felicity,” she cooed, her voice dripping with false warmth. “How are you faring in these . . . interesting times?”

Felicity greeted her with a polite curtsy, choosing to ignore the undertones in Lady Victoria’s words. “I’m well, thank you. Please, make yourself comfortable.”

They settled into the ornate chairs, and Felicity ordered tea. Their brief exchange on the weather, on the health of their families, was stilted, the undercurrents of judgment palpable.

“Tell me, dear,” Lady Victoria said after accepting her tea, her eyes narrowing slightly, “how do you find married life with a merchant’s son? I must say, it was quite the surprise when I heard you had married into the Harcourt family. My cousin wrote me all about it.”

Lord William Thursby and Lady Victoria were, indeed, cousins. Thick as thieves, too, from what their grandmother used to say during Felicity’s visits with her grandmother.

Felicity’s cheeks warmed, but she kept her voice steady. “Mr. Harcourt is a wonderful man, and we are very happy.”

Lady Victoria’s lips quirked into a condescending smile. “Of course, dear. But you must admit, it’s a different world you’ve entered, isn’t it? I mean, marrying into trade. If one is going to marry a mere Mister, she ought to consider a landowner of some reputation. As I did.”

Felicity’s fingers tightened around her teacup, the insinuations in Lady Victoria’s words striking uncomfortably close to her current fears. The fears that she didn’t understand her husband so well as she ought to, to be a good wife to him.

“Every marriage is an entry into a new world,” Felicity replied, her voice calm. “But my husband isn’t a merchant any longer, of course. He has left that behind him.” But he hadn’t.

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