A Wallflower Christmas (Wallflowers #5)(33)

“Thank you, but no,” Hunt said affably, pulling Annabelle’s arm through his. “If you’ll pardon us, I have a few things to discuss with my wife.” And without waiting for an answer, he dragged Annabelle from the ballroom with a haste that left no doubt as to what would happen next.

“Yes, I’m sure they’ll be chatting up a storm,” Rafe remarked, and winced as Lillian drove her elbow hard into his side.

CHAPTER 10

Every common room of the manor was busy after supper. Some guests played cards, others gathered around the piano in the music room and sang, but by far the largest group had gathered in the drawing room for a game of charades. Their shouting and laughter echoed far along the hallways.

Hannah watched the charades for a while, enjoying the antics of competing teams that acted out words or phrases, while others shouted out guesses. She noticed that Rafe Bowman and Natalie were sitting together, smiling and exchanging private quips. They were an extraordinarily well-matched pair, one so dark, one so fair, both young and attractive. Glancing at them made Hannah feel positively morose.

She was relieved when the case clock in the corner showed that it was a quarter to eight. Leaving the room unobtrusively, she went into the hallway. It was such a relief to be out of the crowded drawing room, and not to have to smile when she didn’t feel like it, that she heaved a tremendous sigh and leaned against the wall with her eyes closed.

“Miss Appleton?”

Hannah’s eyes flew open. It was Lillian, Lady Westcliff, who had followed her out of the room.

“It is a bit of a crush in there, isn’t it?” the countess asked with friendly sympathy.

Hannah nodded. “I’m not fond of large gatherings.”

“Neither am I,” Lillian confided. “My greatest pleasure is to relax in a small group with my friends, or better yet, to be alone with my husband and daughter. You’re going to the library to read to the children, aren’t you?”

“Yes, my lady.”

“That’s very nice of you. I heard they all enjoyed it tremendously last evening. May I walk with you to the library?”

“Yes, my lady, I would enjoy that.”

Lillian surprised her by linking arms with her, as if they were sisters or close friends. They went along the hallway at a slow pace. “Miss Appleton, I…oh, hang it, I hate these formalities. May we use first names?”

“I would be honored for you to call me by my given name, my lady. But I can’t do the same. It wouldn’t be proper.”

Lillian gave her a rueful glance. “All right, then. Hannah. I’ve wanted to talk with you all evening there is something highly private I want to discuss with you, but it must go no further. And I probably shouldn’t say anything, but I must. I won’t be able to get any sleep to night otherwise.”

Hannah was dumbfounded. Not to mention rabidly curious. “My lady?”

“That forfeit you asked of my brother today …”

Hannah paled a little. “Was that wrong of me? I’m so sorry. I would never have”

“No. No, it’s not that. You did nothing wrong at all. It’s what my brother gave to you that I found so…well, surprising.”

“The toy solider?” Hannah whispered. “Why was that surprising?” She had not thought it all that unusual. Many men carried little tokens with them, such as locks of hair from loved ones, or luck charms or touch pieces such as a coin or medal.

“That soldier came from a set that Rafe had when he was a little boy. Having met my father, you won’t be surprised to learn that he was quite strict with his children. At least when he was there, which thank God wasn’t often. But Father has always had very unreasonable expectations of my brothers, especially Rafe, because he’s the oldest. Father wanted Rafe to succeed at everything, so he was punished severely if he was ever second best. But at the same time, Father didn’t want to be overshadowed, so he took every opportunity to shame or degrade Rafe when he was the best.”

“Oh,” Hannah said softly, filled with sympathy for the boy that Rafe had been. “Did your mother do nothing to intervene?”

Lillian made a scoffing sound. “She’s always been a silly creature who cares more for parties and social status than anything else. I’m sure she expended far more thought on her gowns and jewels than she did on any of her children. So whatever Father decided, Mother was more than willing to go along with it, as long as he kept paying the bills.”

After a moment’s pause, the contempt vanished from Lillian’s tone, replaced by melancholy. “We rarely ever saw Rafe. Because my father wanted him to be a serious, studious boy, he was never allowed to play with other children. He was always with tutors, studying or being taught sports and riding…but he was never allowed one moment of freedom. One of Rafe’s few escapes was his set of little soldiers he would stage battles and skirmishes with them, and while he studied, he would line them up on his desk to keep him company.” A faint smile came to her lips. “And Rafe would roam at night. Sometimes I would hear him sneaking along the hallway, and I knew he was going downstairs or outside, just for a chance to breathe freely.”

The countess paused as they neared the library. “Let’s stop here for a moment it’s not quite eight, and I’m sure the children are still gathering.”