Too Wilde to Wed (The Wildes of Lindow Castle, #2)(87)

They parted on the best of terms, and Diana resolved that once she moved to Manchester, she would definitely stop by the Beetle & Cheese occasionally to say hello to Mrs. Barley.

Not merely because she might learn all the gossip from the castle either.

Back in their little room, she took a nap and dreamed of North. She jumped out of her skin when her cousin threw open the door to their room. “They are counterfeit!” Lavinia cried.

Diana sat up, blinking. “What?”

“My pearls!” Lavinia shut the door behind her. “They aren’t worth more than a few pence. What’s more, my earrings . . . do you see these earrings?”

She sat down beside Diana. “Rubies?” Diana ventured.

“Red paste that isn’t worth tuppence,” Lavinia stated. “My father gave me these on my fifteenth birthday. I thought the other day that they weren’t sparkling the way they used to.”

“Oh, no,” Diana cried, slapping her hand over her mouth.

“That’s right,” Lavinia said grimly. “My rubies have been stolen, as have the pearls. The jeweler sees it all the time. A thief finds work as an upstairs maid, and over a few months, the woman takes away one piece of jewelry and then another to be copied. Do you know how often my mother dismisses the domestic help?”

Diana shook her head.

“I can think of thirty or forty suspects, on both sides of the Channel. My jewelry is gone, and I’m sure that my mother’s is lost as well. Gone for good.”

“Oh, Lavinia, I’m so sorry!” Diana cried.

After a moment, Lavinia’s brow cleared. “I’ve never loved bedecking myself in jewels anyway. A woman should be the jewel, don’t you think?”

Diana smiled at her. “I know many women who would be in hysterics.”

“My mother has all the talent for hysterics in my family,” Lavinia said dryly. “The problem is that we haven’t money to give to a house agent. Hickett can pay for our room and board, of course. My mother will repay him.”

“Your mother will be terribly upset about your jewelry,” Diana said, imagining the scene.

“She’s already peculiar about money,” Lavinia said, nodding. “This will give her another nervous turn.”

“I have an idea!”

“No,” Lavinia said, a moment later. “Are you cracked, Diana? Completely deranged? You are a lady.”

“Not tonight,” Diana said, grinning. “Tonight I shall be a barmaid. I shall earn the price of our room!”

Lavinia shook her head. “I had no idea how impulsive you really are.”

“It’s a bit mad,” Diana conceded. “But how hard can it be? A barmaid merely stands behind the bar all night long.”

“I think there’s more to it than that,” Lavinia said. “What if someone we know sees you, Diana?”

“This is the Beetle & Cheese, Lavinia!” Diana said. “Who would see me? Think about it.”

“You can’t do it alone. I’ll join you behind the bar.”

“No,” Diana said. “Absolutely not. You would be ruined, and you are a member of polite society. I can try something as mad as this because I don’t care.”

Lavinia chewed on her lower lip. “It’s improper.”

“You wanted to be ethical,” Diana said encouragingly. “Besides, Lavinia, I could always walk out if I feel uncomfortable.”

She found herself laughing at Lavinia’s incredulous look. “You really are not a lady,” her cousin exclaimed. “You’re excited at the idea, aren’t you?”

Diana nodded.

“Why? That’s what I don’t understand. No lady would wish to be a barmaid!”

“I don’t want to be a barmaid. I’m just curious to see what it’s like.”

“Mad,” Lavinia said with conviction. “Utterly deranged.”

“You mustn’t be seen in the tavern,” Diana told her.

“It will not affect my reputation.” Lavinia looked supremely confident. “I am perfectly capable of stopping by a public room for a glass of lemonade, properly escorted by the duke’s servants, of course.”

“Not at night,” Diana said.

Lavinia gave in. “Well, either Hickett or a groom has to stay with you in the room, then.”

“Very well,” Diana said. “That’s reasonable. I’ll ask Hickett to put a groom in the corner where he can keep an eye on me.”

Lavinia clapped her hands and her eyes lit up. “What do you think a barmaid wears, Diana? I don’t believe I’ve ever seen such a costume.”





Chapter Twenty-three




North spent the day going over the estate books his aunt had been keeping while he was gone. They confirmed what she had told him: that income had increased in two of the six ducal estates. At the sound of an excited cacophony of voices in the entry—the greater part of his family, by the sound of it—he remained bent over the ledgers.

He didn’t look up until the door to the library opened.

His father stood there. “North.”

North came to his feet. “Father?”

“Hickett has returned from Manchester.”