“The earl and I have an announcement to make. Our beloved daughter, Blanche, has consented to marry William Cavendish, Lord Burlington. Needless to say, our family is delighted with the match.”
Blanche Howard and William Cavendish ascended to the dais amid thunderous applause.
Georgy stood stunned, like a bird flown into a stone wall. Her ears began to roar as the blood rushed to her head. She felt her gorge rise. The bastard! The bloody bastard! I’m going to be sick.
When Louisa heard the announcement, her heart filled with anguish for her sister. She looked about the ballroom and saw Georgy standing wide-eyed as if she were rooted to the spot. I must go to her. She crossed the floor and took her sister’s arm. “Are you all right, Georgy?”
Her sister stared at her blankly and Louisa knew she was far from all right. She gently led her from the room and found her a seat. Then she went in search of her mother. “Georgy has taken ill. She needs to go home, I’m afraid.”
“Oh dear, I hope I didn’t carry the chicken pox infection home to her.”
“No, Mother, I don’t think it’s that. She feels faint and has a dreadful headache. I’ll go home with her and put her to bed. You and Father must stay. Georgy will be fine tomorrow.” Lu knew that her sister would not be fine. Her dream of marriage and someday becoming the Duchess of Devonshire had just been shattered.
A footman took a message to the Russell coachman, and Lu led her sister from the Devonshire mansion. Georgy sat huddled in silence as the carriage bowled along Piccadilly, slowed as it entered Grosvenor Crescent, and came to a stop in front of their house in Belgrave Square.
When they entered the house, a maid came forward wondering what was amiss that the Russell sisters were returning from a ball at such an early hour. When she saw Georgy’s pallid face she gasped. “Oh, my lady, you’re ill. Will I send for the doctor?”
Louisa put her arm around her sister. “That won’t be necessary, thank you. Just make sure that we are not disturbed.”
Once the bedroom door of the room they shared was closed, Georgy began to scream. Lu sat quietly as her sister tore at her clothes and flung things about the chamber. She knew Georgy had to get it all out. After she had screamed for half an hour, her screams turned to sobs. Louisa put her arms around her sister and held her tightly. Then for the next hour she rocked her.
Chapter Fourteen
The following day Louisa urged her sister to come downstairs for lunch. “If you are absent, you’ll be subjected to all sorts of scrutiny.”
When Georgy entered the dining room, her mother searched her daughter’s face with anxious eyes. “You missed breakfast, darling. Are you feeling all right?”
“I’m fully recovered, thank you, Mother.” Georgy suppressed a shudder.
“I realize now why the Howards threw a ball at Devonshire House. It was solely to announce the engagement of their daughter Blanche.”
“Blanche Howard isn’t even pretty,” Georgy said with disbelief.
“That’s an understatement. But when I analyze it, it’s no surprise that they made a match for her with William Cavendish, Devonshire’s heir. Since the couple are distant cousins, the marriage will keep their great wealth in one family.”
Louisa glanced at Georgy. “Perhaps William had no choice in the matter.”
“Oh, it’s undoubtedly a marriage of convenience,” their mother declared. “Still, I have high hopes we’ll have an announcement of our own soon.” She gave Georgy a conspiratorial wink. “Do give me a hint who it is, darling.”
The blood drained from Georgy’s face, and Louisa took her hand and squeezed it under cover of the tablecloth. Georgy couldn’t bear her sister’s pitying touch. She took a deep breath and forced a smile. “I’m surprised you haven’t guessed that Teddy Fox is pressing me to make a commitment.”
“Oh, darling. Nothing would make me happier than a match with Teddy.”
“He keeps begging me to visit the House of Commons and watch him from the visitors’ gallery. Perhaps Lu and I will go tomorrow.”
Louisa quickly changed the subject. “Where is Father? He’s never late for lunch.”
“He and Abercorn are dining out today, before they attend the Lords.” She gave Louisa a speculative look. “James is an exceedingly handsome man. He has everything to recommend him . . . title, wealth, and that irresistible Irish charm.”
Lu tossed her head. “I have no trouble resisting him.”
Her mother smiled archly. “Methinks you protest too much.”
That night both Edward and Charles Russell dined at home.
“I’ve been assigned to the HMS Britannia. I’ve come to say good-bye. She’ll be sailing to the Mediterranean shortly.” Edward couldn’t stop grinning.
His father and mother offered their congratulations because they knew this was what their son wanted.
“I propose a toast.” Louisa raised her glass. “To a safe voyage, Edward.”
“Not too safe,” her brother declared. “I’m looking forward to some action.”
Charles, needing to share the limelight, said, “I might be posted to India.”
“India?” Georgy could not hide her revulsion. “That’s halfway around the world, and you’ll find the people and the food disgustingly foreign.”
“Oh, I love curry.” Louisa blushed as she thought of her rendezvous on Half Moon Street. She could actually smell and taste the piquant spice, and feel Abercorn’s hands caressing her body.
“Well, it’s not definite yet,” Charles admitted. “It’s just a rumor, really.”
“In that case, I take it you will be attending the boat race?” John asked his son.
“Oh, I wouldn’t miss it. Teddy Fox, George Grey, and I are going to watch our friend James Hamilton. He’s rowing for Oxford, you know.”
“Yes, I spent the afternoon with James. He’s leaving tonight for Henley-on-Thames to get in a week’s rowing practice. He invited us all to go and watch the race.”
“Oh, please let’s go,” Georgy urged.
Her mother realized the presence of Teddy was the reason her daughter was keen. “Perhaps we can make up a party with Henry and Beth.” Georgina’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Oh, I’ve just had a brilliant idea. If I can persuade Queen Adelaide to join us, perhaps we can all stay at Windsor Castle.”
The next day, Louisa watched her sister avidly gaze down on the members of the House of Commons. “I’m so glad you’ve recovered from your disappointment over William Cavendish.”
“I’ll never recover from my disappointment, but I don’t have time to waste feeling sorry for myself.” She pointed her finger. “There’s Teddy sitting on the back bench.”
Louisa was far more interested in watching her brother, Lord John, as he conferred with Prime Minister Earl Grey. Perhaps someday Johnny will be prime minister.
By the time the session ended it was after five o’clock and the sisters descended from the visitors’ gallery. As the members were leaving, Louisa greeted Johnny, while Georgy rushed over to join Teddy Fox.
“Looking down on the floor of the house brought back some sinfully delicious memories, Teddy.”
“Christ, I can never look at the Table of the House without getting an erection.”
“I always knew you were a man of parts, Teddy. We must get together again, sometime soon.”
“I’m hard now, just thinking about it.”
“I know the cure for that. Do you have your carriage here?”
Teddy glanced over at Louisa. “But you’re here with your sister.”
“Just because we came together, doesn’t say we have to leave together.” She gave him a provocative glance. “Coitus in a carriage over bumpy cobblestones sounds rather thrilling. But it’s entirely up to you, Teddy.”
When Louisa turned around, her sister was nowhere in sight. Nor was Teddy Fox. “Wherever did Georgy go?”
“She left with Edward Fox. Do you have a ride home, Lu?” Johnny asked.
“We
came in a hackney.”
“Come on then, I’ll get you a ride.” Lord John took her arm and led her toward a gentleman she knew very well. “Mr. Prime Minister, would it be convenient to drop my sister off in Belgrave Square?”
“Lady Louisa, it would be my pleasure. I take it you were in the visitors’ gallery this afternoon. Did you enjoy the session?”
“I did. Everything about politics fascinates me, Lord Grey.”
On the drive to Belgrave Square he told her the Greys planned to attend the boat race. Louisa told him her family was also making plans to go and watch the boat race between Oxford and Cambridge, so when they arrived at her house, he came inside.
The duchess greeted him effusively. “John and I would be honored to have the prime minister stay for dinner.”
“And if I were not prime minister?” he teased.
“I’d show you the door immediately.”
Before the meal was over, Earl Grey agreed to join the Russells for the Oxford boat race. When Georgina told him they might all get an invitation to stay at Windsor for the weekend, he said he’d drop Sailor Bill a note and urge him to attend. “In an unofficial capacity, of course. That way, the royal couple can dispense with all that stultifying formality.”
John laughed. “With the two of you coercing them, I warrant a stay at Windsor will be a fait accompli.”
Georgy didn’t arrive home until long after dinner. When her father asked where she had been, she replied, “The session at the Commons didn’t finish until late. When I turned around Lu had left without me. Johnny was kind enough to give me a tour of Parliament, and then he put me in a hackney cab.”
Louisa, who knew she was lying, didn’t have the heart to deny she had left her sister behind. Georgy, crushed by Lord Burlington, was now concentrating all her efforts on Teddy Fox. Lu prayed that he would make an offer for Georgy.
The Duke and Duchess of Bedford, their two eldest daughters, and their son Charles arrived at Windsor on Friday evening. They made their way to the State Apartments, where a royal footman led them to the grand reception room. King William and Queen Adelaide greeted them warmly. The Russells were familiar with Windsor because they had been there in June when the duke had received the Order of the Garter. The Greys arrived accompanied by their son George and were followed shortly by Lord and Lady Holland, and their son Teddy.
The three Oxford graduates gathered in a corner to discuss the boat race.
“What are the odds?” Charles asked.
“Cambridge is favored because of their weight. The heavier crew usually wins.”
“Not this time, George. Oxford has Abercorn.”
Teddy grimaced. “God doesn’t favor Irishmen.”
Charles grinned. “No, but the devil does!”
George laughed, but Teddy wasn’t amused.
“How about a private bet?” Charles challenged. “A hundred guineas says Oxford takes it.”
“Done. I shall look forward to cleaning you out,” Teddy boasted. “George?”
“You’re a disloyal swine to bet against Oxford. I could never do that.”
“Loyalty is for fools, gentlemen.”
At that moment dinner was announced, and the royal guests moved into the king’s dining room. The Verrio painting on the ceiling depicted a banquet of the gods in their full naked glory. It immediately prompted Teddy Fox to move forward and take a seat between Louisa and Georgy Russell. “You look lovely tonight, Louisa.”
She frowned because he hadn’t complimented Georgy.
“A thorn between two roses,” he said fatuously.
“I can almost feel your prick,” Georgy said outrageously.
Teddy leaned over and whispered in her ear, “And shall before the night is over.”
After dinner the ladies moved into the adjoining chamber known as the queen’s drawing room, while the men accompanied Sailor Bill to the king’s closet for cards and brandy. Neither the ladies nor the men made any mention of the fact that Georgy Russell and Teddy Fox were missing from the company.
“Hurry and dress. We need to be at Mortlake so we can see the finish of the race,” Charles Russell informed his sisters.
“Is it not possible to be at Putney to watch the start of the race, then take a carriage to Mortlake to watch the finish?” Louisa asked.
“Hell, no! There will be such a crush of spectators along the river, we’d be stampeded by the crowd.”
Georgy grumbled, “The race isn’t until this afternoon. What’s the bloody rush?”
“We have to stake out our spot this morning. If you’re not ready in ten minutes, I shall leave without you. It’s not just me—we’re joining George and Teddy.”
“Uncle Holly chartered a boat for the adults,” Lu told Charles, “so they can follow the boat race down the Thames.”
“Private vessels on the river will be thicker than whores at Vauxhall. There are boat accidents every year. What a lark if the royals get tipped into the water.”
“Charles, since you’re in the navy, I wouldn’t make jokes about sinking boats.” Lu suddenly remembered breakfast.
“No time for that. There’ll be plenty of hawkers selling food and drink.”
The Russells joined Teddy and George, who were pacing impatiently at the Quadrangle. George, the prime minister’s son, had bribed a Windsor coach driver to transport them in a royal phaeton.
They all alighted from the carriage at Chiswick Bridge. Georgy took George Grey’s arm, and Louisa wondered whom she was trying to fool, when she had disappeared with Teddy for half the night. When Teddy attached himself to her, Louisa thought it rather odd. “Haven’t you got the wrong Russell?” she said lightly.
Teddy gallantly kissed her hand. “Lady Louisa, you know how I feel about you.”
Lu kept a wise silence.
People were already beginning to gather in the area, and the three males decided they had better find a bookmaker. Teddy offered to place bets for the sisters, and when Louisa wanted to wager on Oxford, he tried to talk her into betting on Cambridge.
A vision of Abercorn came full-blown into her mind. “Not a chance,” she said.
“I surrender to your superior judgment, Teddy,” Georgy declared.
When the men returned from placing the bets, they bought food from the hawkers. They started with sticky Chelsea buns, then moved on to meat pasties and steaming mugs of black peas, followed by roasted chestnuts. Stag Brewery, which was located at Mortlake and supplied the army, rolled barrels from the brew house and flogged pints of beer to the gathering merrymakers.
Ribbon makers were doing a brisk business selling rosettes in university colors: white for Cambridge and blue for Oxford. Charles, George, and Louisa sported Oxford blue, while Teddy and Georgy proudly displayed white ribbons, not caring that they were dubbed traitorous turds.
Mummers, stilt walkers, and acrobats entertained the crowds for thrown pennies. Time passed quickly as everyone had fun in the holiday atmosphere. Teddy paid chivalrous attention to Louisa all day long, and before the race started he took her hand. “You know, Lu, it is my parents’ fondest wish to have you as their daughter. If I offered for you, you wouldn’t refuse me, would you?”
She stared at him aghast. “Oh, Teddy, please don’t offer for me. Georgy would be devastated. You must know she is mad in love with you.”
“I know she’s in lust with me,” he murmured.
Just then a roar went up in the distance and everyone knew the race had begun in Putney, more than four miles away. As people jostled her, Louisa surreptitiously moved away from Teddy toward her brother Charles.
The excited voices of the crowd moved closer apace with the rowers. Finally the two boats came into view in the distance. They were just specks at first, but as they grew larger, Louisa could make out that Cambridge was in the lead. “Oxford! Oxford! Oxford!” she chanted.
The skulls drew close enough that the splashing of the oars could be heard above the noise of the crowd, and Louisa could clea
rly make out James Hamilton. Steadily, the latent strength of the Oxford men pushed their boat past their competitors. Louisa held her breath as the Oxford Blues increased their gain. She watched James’s powerful arm and shoulder muscles ripple and bulge and glisten in the sunlight, and thought him the most attractive male she had ever known. As the Oxford team outdistanced their competitors, the Cambridge men lost heart and stopped rowing short of the goal. “James! James! James!” she cried happily.
Charles, deliriously happy, picked up Lu and swung her into the air. “We did it! Come on, let’s go and congratulate James.”
Suddenly she felt reluctant, but Charles and George were gungho to join their triumphant friend to celebrate his victory, and she went with them. She saw that Teddy’s face looked like a thundercloud and realized he was jealous of Abercorn.
There was such a crush of Oxford men gathered about the rowers that Charles and George had to fight their way through. When the males saw a female, they gallantly moved aside and allowed her to reach the riverbank.
James was wiping his glistening perspiration with a towel. He was grinning from ear to ear at his brother, Claud, and still trying to catch his breath.
“You’ve just won me a hundred guineas from Teddy Fox and another fifty quid from the bookmakers,” Charles cried happily.
“When Cambridge was ahead, did you fear you would lose?” George asked.
James smiled into Louisa’s eyes. “Not for a minute. When I set a goal, I never doubt myself. If I did, I’d be defeated before I started.”
She did not dare think of the last time they had been together. Instead she thought of the horse race at Woburn. Lu had known since then that Abercorn had a will of iron and that determination was bred into his bones. Once he sets his mind on a goal, he will move heaven and hell to achieve it. Louisa shuddered.
Suddenly Teddy was beside her. He took hold of her arm in a familiar, proprietary way. “I cashed in your winnings, Lu. Because of the bet I placed for you, you’re twenty pounds richer.”