From The Ashes (The Ministry of Curiosities #6)(64)

"How did Seth fare?" I asked, eager to change the subject. "Did he meet any agreeable young ladies last night?"

"Several," his mother said with a preening smile. "He was very popular."

"Any in particular catch his eye?"

"Miss Yardly seemed to, and I know he caught her eye. She told me after dinner that he was utterly charming, and he amused her greatly."

Gus and I exchanged glances and suppressed smiles. Miss Yardly had been the debutant with the roving hands.

"He must like her," Gus said with a serious air. "He mentioned her last night, didn't he, Charlie?"

I glared at him until Lady Vickers looked my way, an expectant smile on her face. "Did he? I wasn't sure he took to her. She's not the prettiest girl or the wittieset, but her father's business is doing well, by all accounts, so she's popular. Very much so." She lowered her sewing to her lap and frowned at the fire. "Although, her popularity is quite out of proportion to his wealth. All the gentlemen seemed to be trying to catch her eye last night. Indeed, they couldn't stop looking at her." She sighed. "That's what happens when a girl with such a feminine shape wears a low cut gown. At least you won't have that problem, Charlie."

My cheeks heated, but I couldn't protest. She was right.

Lady Vickers picked up her sewing again and attacked it with vigor. "Mrs. Yardly ought to point to Lady Harcourt as an example to teach her daughter some modesty. That woman doesn't know the meaning of covering up."

Gus's cheeks flamed and he kept his gaze firmly on the window, pretending not to be listening. Lady Vickers seemed to have forgotten he was there.

"To be fair," I said, "Lady Harcourt has fallen prey to the gossips over her past as a dancer, not her clothing."

"Ah, there you are," Seth said, strolling in with a swagger. His eyes were brighter than when he'd left and the color had returned to his face.

"You look better," I said.

He grinned and pecked his mother on her cheek. "I feel better. The Honorable Jane Debney-Green's maid knows a wonderful tonic for curing the aftereffects of excessive drinking."

Lady Vickers clicked her tongue. "That's quite enough of that talk."

"I heard you discussing Julia just now. I forgot to ask last night, Charlie, but how did she seem when she was here?"

"Shaken, but whether that was from their earlier meeting, which I gather was quite heated, or from the gossip about her past, I don't know."

"She's only got herself to blame," Lady Vickers said.

Seth threw himself into one of the chairs. "You can't talk, Mother! You should have heard some of the things said about you after you left London."

She sniffed. "I bore it all with my head high and my dignity in tact."

"You weren't even here!"

"The stigma followed me to America. The point is, I didn't let it upset me too much. I knew what would be said about me when George and I decided to make our relationship known, but I did it anyway. Besides, my situation is different. I did what I did for love. Her motives are entirely avaricious, and everyone knows it. People are more forgiving when romance is involved, and I am being quite sure to tell them that George was the most romantic of men and that our life in New York was a fairytale."

"You cannot be serious," Seth said. "They believe you?"

She looked down her nose at him. "Where do you think you got your charm from? It's not your father, believe me. He had as much charm as a starving rat."

Seth looked like he was about to defend his father's honor then thought better of it.

"I'm sure Lady Harcourt would like a visit from a friend," I said to him.

He shook his head. "We're not friends, and she would try to manipulate me to her side. You shouldn't worry about her, Charlie. Julia is a survivor. She'll find a way back from this."

"Perhaps," his mother said.

Lincoln entered, carrying a tray with tea things. He poured while I served.

"I'll take mine to my room," Lady Vickers said, returning her sewing to her basket. "I have letters to dispatch. If all goes well, you'll be coming out to dinner with us tonight, Charlie."

"Tonight!" I looked to Lincoln. He set the teapot down with a clunk, but said nothing. "So soon?"

"Of course," she said. "Why wait?"

"Does this dinner include me?" Seth asked.

"Yes, and I told you so last night on the way home and you agreed to attend."

"I was drunk! You can't hold me to something I agreed to under the influence."

"You're going," she said with a stern glare. "As Charlie will be."

"If she goes, I go," Lincoln said.

Lady Vickers nodded stiffly. "I expected as much. Fortunately, Mrs. Overton is quite keen for you to attend too."

I heaved a sigh. The Overton girl only had eyes for Lincoln. Not that I cared, but I knew he would dislike being the object of her affections. Besides, she was wasting her time with him. He did not want to marry. I sighed again. It was going to be a long dinner.

Lady Vickers accepted a teacup and left us. Once she was out of earshot, Lincoln reported on his morning's work. "Fawkner introduced me to other doctors in the hospital. A microbiologist confirmed that Harcourt invests in his work on tropical diseases."