Too Wilde to Wed (The Wildes of Lindow Castle, #2)(86)

Diana was unsurprised, since Lady Gray emitted an audible moan if anyone mentioned Godfrey’s name in her presence.

“She refused to give me any money to spend in Manchester,” Lavinia spat, her hands curling into fists. “I swear I am going to marry the first man who asks me.”

“Perhaps we should turn back,” Diana said, her brow furrowed. “I’m not sure I have enough to pay for the Royal George.”

“The duke’s coachman will cover everything. She merely did it to be unpleasant. Because she knows I love that milliner, and she wants to make me unhappy. She screams at me, and then she accuses me of giving her a nervous spasm, takes her soothing drops, and doesn’t wake up for a whole day, sometimes.”

Diana moved across to sit beside Lavinia and took her hand. “Obviously, you could marry within a month of returning to London if you wish. Your suitors are legion.”

“My suitors have probably married by now,” Lavinia said morosely. Then she shook herself. “Do forgive me. I am weary of the way my mother treats me. I am an heiress, after all, yet she won’t give me any pin money.”

“You can always live with me in Manchester,” Diana said, kissing her cheek.

Lavinia’s cheerful smile broke out again. “I made up my mind not to be thwarted by her. Look at this!” She reached into her knotting bag and drew out a long strand of pearls.

“They’re lovely,” Diana said, somewhat puzzled.

“I intend to sell them,” Lavinia announced. “I know how it’s done, because one of my friends is always selling her pearls when her allowance runs low, and buying the string back the next month. I’ll take them to a jeweler, an excellent one, of course, so he doesn’t cheat me.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Diana asked. “You won’t be able to buy them back next month; you’ll be in London, not Manchester.”

“I’ve never liked these pearls. My aunt Mildred gave me the string with a withering remark about how it would draw attention to my only asset.”

“That was unkind, and equally untrue.”

“I shall happily turn her gift into money. We will have to pay the house agent, after all. We can’t count on His Grace’s coachman for that!”

Diana had a guilty feeling that the duke oughtn’t to pay for their stay in the hotel, but she couldn’t deny that she felt better with every turn of the coach wheels taking her farther from North, and the castle.

“Perhaps we should ask Hickett to find us a less costly hotel than the Royal George,” Lavinia said a while later, showing that she didn’t feel entirely comfortable about relying on His Grace’s generosity either.

“I agree,” Diana said, with relief. “After all, neither of us is a true guest of the duke. I came to the castle under false pretenses, and you arrived in search of me.”

“My mother told me to instruct His Grace’s coachman to pay for everything, including meals and gratuities for our chambermaid,” Lavinia said. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but neither of our mothers is precisely ethical.”

“A depressing inheritance,” Diana agreed. “My mother will never forgive me for taking employment as a governess.”

“It would have served her right if you’d become a duchess, and never acknowledged her thereafter,” Lavinia muttered.

Hickett was too experienced a servant to betray any surprise when they explained their new plans. His sister and her husband owned an inn, he told them, and he promised to get them a clean, safe room there. Moreover, he voiced no objection to taking Miss Gray to visit one of the best jewelers in the city.

To the dismay of the grooms at the Royal George—a magnificent establishment that would probably cost the equivalent of one of Lavinia’s pearls for a single night—the Duke of Lindow’s carriage trundled off to a considerably humbler establishment, the Beetle & Cheese.

Hickett’s sister, a Mrs. Barley, set them up in a cunning little room tucked under the eaves, and Lavinia declared herself perfectly delighted. “Just look how adorable this sloping ceiling is,” she cried, bouncing on the bed. “I wish Parth could see me now. He wouldn’t think I am such an extravagant person, would he?”

Diana wasn’t sure what Parth had to do with it, but Lavinia took herself off with Hickett, refusing to permit Diana to accompany her to the jeweler’s. “They’ll know from your face that you would accept a low price.”

Having nothing to do until Lavinia’s return, Diana ventured downstairs, where she had a fascinating conversation with Mrs. Barley. “The problem is keeping barmaids,” the woman lamented. “They run off with men, they go home to their mothers . . . Tonight is the same story. I have no one to stand behind the bar and draw pints.”

“How hard can it be?” Diana asked. “I should think you’d have no trouble filling the position.”

“It’s work,” Mrs. Barley explained. “In my opinion, there’s many a lazy piece that would rather lie in, even though a good barmaid can make over four shillings a night!”

Diana gaped at that information. “More than any governess is paid.”

“That’s for an excellent barmaid,” Mrs. Barley said. “One as tempts the men into giving her tips, if you see what I mean.”