The Accidental Countess (Accidental #2)(14)
The grand estate of the Earl of Upbridge, Lucy’s father, was settled in the quiet countryside of Surrey. A sense of calm settled over Cass when the manor house finally came into sight. She had grown up here in a sense. Her parents’ estate was less than three miles away. She sat up straight and gulped. “Lucy, what if my parents get word of this house party and decide to pay a visit to your parents?”
Lucy laughed. “Cass, you’re forgetting that your parents are decidedly unhappy with my family at present. It’s perfect timing, actually. And didn’t you send your mother a letter?”
“Yes. I informed her that I am staying with you in town for the next week.”
“Settled, then.”
Cass bit her lip. “Only if my parents remain safely over at their estate.”
“I anticipate no problems,” Lucy replied with a smile, pulling on her gloves as they approached the front of the manor house.
Cass sighed. Of course Lucy was convinced everything would be quite all right. Cass, however, lived in constant fear that her mother would arrive, tell Julian everything, and demand her daughter return home instantly. Her mother had never cared much for her daughter’s infatuation with Julian, and it had little to do with the fact that he was marked for her cousin. “He’s a second son, Cassandra. He might be good enough for Penelope, but we didn’t raise you to marry a second son.”
That was just it. Her parents had raised her to marry a man with a title, an illustrious title, the more illustrious the better. The only reason they hadn’t completely disowned her for turning down a duke was the fact that somewhere in the back of her mother’s mind, she was probably thinking that Cass might marry a duke with a family name that went back centuries and that would be an even better catch than the newly minted Claringdon. That’s all she was to her mother, a pawn to be played in the great game of the ton’s marriage mart.
When Lucy’s coach finally pulled to a stop at the entrance to the estate, the butler and housekeeper were there to greet them with a bow and a curtsy.
“Don’t worry about a thing, Your Grace,” the housekeeper said as she ushered them into the foyer of the manor house. “The servants, we’ve all been aflurry preparing for the party. Everything is arranged.”
“Thank you so much, Mrs. Prism,” Lucy responded, allowing the butler to take her hat and cloak and waiting for Cass to hand over the same. “But you must remember you cannot refer to me as ‘Your Grace’ during the party. And this is Miss Bunbury.” She gestured to Cass.
“Of course. Of course.” The housekeeper chuckled. The butler had a twinkle in his eyes. They continued into the house. It smelled exactly as Cass remembered it from childhood, a mixture of lemon wax and silver polish. The bustling of the servants and the smiles on everyone’s faces bolstered Cass’s confidence. As the day progressed, Cass noticed that true to Lucy’s word, all of the servants appeared to be completely at ease with calling their mistress Lady Worthing and pretending Cass was named Patience Bunbury. In fact, they’d already begun. It was quite ludicrous, actually, but Cass had to smile at the willingness of the earl’s servants to participate in their mistress’s foibles. They did appear to be completely devoted to Lucy.
When the butler stopped by to get Lucy’s approval on the wines to be served with the first dinner, she answered, “Thank you, Merriman.”
“My pleasure, Lady Worthing.” He bowed before taking his leave.
“Leave it to you to orchestrate such madness, Lucy,” Cass said with a laugh.
“They think it’s a lark, dear. There’s no reason this shouldn’t be fun.”
“I see.” Cass pressed a hand to her belly. Perhaps it would be all right after all. Perhaps.
“The servants have done an outstanding job. All we have to do is see to the finishing touches. Come along.” Lucy turned in a swirl of yellow skirts.
Cass spent the rest of the day following her friend through the cavernous rooms as they made the last-minute plans for the house party’s amusements. Mrs. Prism tracked them with a quill and parchment to scribble down their requests.
“I sent word to Captain Swift letting him know that the house party doesn’t officially begin until Saturday,” Lucy said as they entered one of the drawing rooms.
“What did you say about Pen?” Cass asked.
“I told him that Penelope had been confused as to the start of the thing, hence her leaving London too early. I managed to secure us a few days before Julian appears.” Lucy smiled.
“Yes, but you put us in the position of having to immediately explain to him upon his arrival why Penelope is not here when she left for the house party several days earlier,” Cass replied.
“Leave it all to me,” Lucy said with a simple, confident flick of her wrist.
“You do not have a magic wand, do you?” Cass asked, glancing about under the furniture as if the said wand might be found.
Lucy rolled her eyes. “No, I have a quick tongue, and that is even more useful. Magic wands can be stolen, dear.”
Cass shook her head but couldn’t help but laugh at her friend’s antics. That was it. If she was going to pretend, she might as well pretend on a grand scale. How many times had she thought, what she wouldn’t give to have a small bit of Lucy’s courage and confidence for a day? Just one day. Though she wouldn’t say no to that magic wand, either.