A Convenient Match for the Earl (Preview)

Chapter One

“Lydia, the dress is perfection! You’re going to look stunning at your wedding. Lord Ashford truly is the luckiest man in the world,” Miss Amelia Fairfax ran her fingers over the soft white skirt, pulling the pleats out and allowing them to fall back in place.

Lydia hummed and turned, looking in the mirror. “It’s all right, I suppose, but there are still improvements to be made.” 

Their mother, Lady Catherine, sighed. “I don’t know what more you think there is to be done. You look stunning, we will arrange your hair just like this on the day of the wedding, and you are going to be the most beautiful woman who ever walked down the aisle. And the flowers in the garden are in bloom. More will be arriving within the week.” 

With a shrug, Lydia stepped down off the little dais and strode over to the window, looking out at the garden. “I don’t think we need to worry about that.” 

Amelia took a step back, exchanging a look with her mother. With each day that passed, Lydia seemed to grow more disinterested in her impending nuptials. Amelia had tried to speak with her several times, but each time she did, Lydia brushed her off. 

“Lydia, darling, you must make sure that the veil is long enough.” Mama held out the swath of fine lace, allowing it to drape over one arm. “Come now, away from the window before it colors your skin.” 

With a sigh, Lydia started to turn but she stopped, grinning as she looked out the window once more. 

Amelia stepped to the side to see what her sister was smiling about, and as she did she saw Captain Frederick Hargrave standing there. He blew a kiss to Lydia, continuing his walk to the front door. 

What was that about?

Though she didn’t want to say anything in front of their mother for fear of blowing this out of proportion, she would have to speak to Lydia. She couldn’t be receiving advances from a man a week before her wedding to an earl. Her reputation and that of the family would be ruined. 

Amelia wrapped her arms around her torso, biting the inside of her cheek. “Lydia?” 

Lydia sighed, her shoulders slumping as she trudged back to the dais. “We’ve measured the veil several times already, and revisions have been made. There is nothing more to do but walk down the aisle and say I do.” 

She’s being too nonchalant about this.

Something didn’t quite make sense, and though Amelia thought she knew what it was, she didn’t want to voice it aloud. If she did, there would be no turning back. Their family would embarrass an earl, and there was little that could be done about that. They would be ostracized. 

It would bring her family to ruin. 

Amelia would talk some sense into her sister later and make sure she ceased whatever it was she thought she was doing.

“My lady, there is a gentleman at the door who wishes to see Miss Fairfax.” The butler stepped into the room, judgment in his eyes as he looked at Lydia. 

Amelia’s stomach did a flip as Lydia lit up like the sun was shining from deep within her, and she seemed desperate to escape. 

Lydia rushed to the door. “Please keep him busy for a couple of moments, Gunther. I’ll get changed and then meet him in the drawing room.” 

Without a second thought, Amelia rushed after her sister out of the room. Lydia hiked her skirt and took the stairs two at a time, hurrying down the hall to her bedchamber. Amelia tore down the hall after her, surging into the room with Lydia before she could shut the door. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” Amelia asked, her tone sharp as she put her hands on her hips.

“If you’re going to stand there and act superior, the least you can do is loosen these buttons for me.” Lydia turned her back. 

“I will do no such thing! You want to look pretty for Captain Hargrave, but you have no reason to. You know as well as I do that he’s only here with the worst intentions.”

Lydia glared over her shoulder and motioned to her back. “He’s a family friend and nothing more, so you can stop pretending that I’m going to run away with him this instant.” 

“You don’t get nearly this excited to see Lord Ashford.” Amelia reached for the buttons, slipping them from their little loops, knowing that if she didn’t, Lydia would just kick up more of a fuss. “Captain Hargrave may very well be a family friend, but he is known for drinking and gambling. And do not get me started on what he is rumored to do with unwed young ladies.” 

“You’re making this a problem out of this when there is nothing the matter.” 

Amelia scowled at her sister and took a step back, waiting for her to slip from the wedding dress and into a pale blue dress that complemented her eyes and her blond hair. Lydia stood with her back to Amelia once more.

“There is a problem.” Amelia fastened her sister’s dress. “You shouldn’t be this excited to see a man who isn’t your betrothed. There is nothing wrong with marrying an earl, especially when our own father is simply a baron.” 

“Then you marry him!” Lydia snorted and shook her head when Amelia remained silent. “That is what I thought. You and I both know that I am the best chance at improving our family’s station in life. I am the one with an engagement to an earl while you are still stumbling through the Season and trying to find a man who wants to dance with a woman with horrid auburn hair.” 

Amelia’s fingers twitched. She hadn’t slapped her sister since they were children, but she wanted to now. Just to bring some sense back into her. Lydia couldn’t see what she was doing to the family—or perhaps she didn’t want to see—but whatever flirtation was happening with the captain would only end horribly for their family. 

She glanced out the window, and there, standing in the garden was Lord Ashford. 

“Lord Ashford is here,” she hissed, glaring at Lydia. “What’s your plan now? You can’t possibly sit with your future husband when the captain is outside waiting for you. You should be glad Gunther has the good sense to stall him outside.” 

Lydia ran to the window and looked down before turning back to Amelia, the color draining from her face. “You must go out there and send him away. Please. Tell him that it’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding.” 

Amelia pinched the bridge of her nose. “That’s the day of the wedding.” 

“Please. I need you to do this for me.” Lydia clasped Amelia’s hands in her own, holding them tight. “Tell him whatever you want, but I can’t talk to him today. Do you understand?” 

“This isn’t right.”

“I’m nervous. I’m going to spend the rest of my life with that man and though he is a good man, I will still be saying goodbye to everything I know. Please, just do this one thing for me. Give me this one week to say goodbye to the life I had, and then on my wedding day, I will happily walk down the aisle and meet my husband.” 

Amelia pulled her bottom lip between her teeth before nodding. “Fine, but you owe me.” 

“I will find you a suitor who loves auburn hair and will allow you to spend your days singing and painting to your heart’s content once I have the connections to do so.” Lydia pulled Amelia into a tight hug. “Thank you for giving me this.”

“You owe me,” Amelia said again before spinning and leaving the room. 

She rushed down the stairs and out the side door, stepping into the garden and smoothing down her skirt. With a deep breath, she plastered on a bright smile and walked along the winding path to the earl.

Lord Ashford’s gaze connected with hers, and not for the first time, she was struck by how handsome he was. Though he was a little too rough for her liking, his hands worn from what she would assume to be excessive riding and hunting, and his blue eyes dark and moody. His hair caught the light and reflected it like it was spun gold. 

“Miss Amelia, to what do I owe this pleasure?” he asked, his gaze pulling from hers as he looked toward the house. “Gunther said that he would be fetching Miss Fairfax.”

“He did,” she said, doing her best not to stumble with the lie. “But as you know, it’s bad luck to see the bride the week before the wedding. A bad omen, our grandmother used to say, God rest her soul.” 

The earl’s smile faltered. “Surely it cannot be that bad of an omen, can it?”

Amelia felt sick to her stomach. Lord Ashford was a kind man, and the thought of continuing to lie to him didn’t sit well with her. However, Lydia was her sister, and she needed this time to come to terms with the fact that her life would change. 

“Yes.” Amelia gave a sharp nod. “But perhaps you would take a turn about the garden with me?” 

He glanced behind her to where she knew Esther, her maid, was hovering and watching over them. “Are you certain? I assume there is much to do to prepare.” 

“We can speak about Lydia, if you like. She is truly excited to marry you.” 

At the mention of Lydia, Lord Ashford nodded, his smile stretching from one side of his face to the other. If nothing else, it was clear that he loved Lydia. He looked like a boy who adored a girl and couldn’t wait to spend the rest of his life with her. 

Amelia’s heart ached for him. She wished her sister felt the same way. There was a time when she believed that Lydia loved the earl, but that belief was starting to fade. 

Lord Ashford tipped his head to her. “I don’t want to keep you from your sister when you are all preparing for the wedding. Please tell Miss Fairfax that I will see her in a week.” 

She forced a smile and curtseyed slightly. “I’ll make sure that she knows.” 

Without another word, Lord Ashford spun and walked away toward where a groom was waiting with his horse. Amelia stayed outside, making sure he mounted the horse, riding away and fading into the distance. As soon as he was gone, she breathed a sigh of relief and strode back into the house, wandering through the halls until she found her family and Captain Hargrave in the parlor with pots of tea. 

Mama arched an eyebrow. “Amelia, how good of you to join us.” 

“I’m sorry, Mama. I was feeling a touch dizzy, so I went through a walk in the gardens.” The lie slipped from her tongue, but it was bitter. She didn’t want to have to keep hiding things for Lydia, but there was little else she could do. 

Lydia and Captain Hargrave stood near the window, watching the ducks on the pond in the distance. Lydia leaned closer to the captain, twirling a strand of her hair around her finger, her other hand on the man’s arm.

Amelia cleared her throat as she walked over to the tray of sandwiches near her sister, but Lydia ignored her. 

As Amelia took a little sandwich from the tray on the table, she held her tongue. It wouldn’t do any good to cause a scene now. Though, she did join her father on the couch, staring daggers into her sister’s back. 

If Lydia wasn’t careful, she would ruin the family without a second thought.

“Lady Fairfax,” the captain said as he turned around and strode over to them. “I would be honored to come calling tomorrow if you would allow it. It has been a long time since I have been in the company of such charming ladies, yourself included, of course.” 

Amelia wished for her mother to say no, but Mama simply blushed and nodded, falling victim to the flattery once more. Though her mother was a married woman, it didn’t seem as if she was immune to the charms of younger men who wielded pretty words and careful manners like a weapon.

It seemed that if Amelia didn’t do something, her sister would fall victim to the same trap.

 

Chapter Two

“It is not too late to back out of the wedding.” William smirked and nodded to the wardrobe laid out on the bed by Henry’s valet, Jacob. “You don’t have to dress yourself up and walk down the aisle to a woman who only wants you for what your estate can afford.” 

Henry rolled his eyes. “You’ve been saying the same nonsense since the engagement became official. If you think I’m going to turn my back on them now, it’s not going to happen. She is the woman I wish to spend my life with.” 

“You went to her home only two days ago, and yet she could not make time for you.” William paced to the window with a shrug, looking out of the sprawling lands of Derbyshire. “If she truly loved you the way that you loved her, don’t you think she would have come to see you instead of hiding in her home and claiming it was bad luck to see you?” 

“I met with her sister.” 

“Who is a good deal less ridiculous and far more naïve than Miss Lydia Fairfax is.” William turned and perched himself on the windowsill, his arms crossed over his chest. “I think you should give this a touch more thought, Henry. You are marrying a woman others have warned you against.”

“The ‘others’ that have warned me are you.” Henry looked down at the wardrobe on the bed before nodding to Jacob. “This will do well for the wedding. We should depart Hertfordshire soon after the wedding and return, so I suspect I won’t need much more than that.”

William scowled and tipped his head back, looking up at the ceiling. “You’re not listening to me.” 

“I love her.”

Though the words still sounded foreign to his ears, they were true. He loved Miss Fairfax, and he was looking forward to spending the rest of his life with her. He hadn’t thought he would find someone he loved so dearly, and yet, throughout the course of the Season, she had far surpassed what he hoped he would discover when looking for his future wife. With each dance at the balls, his certainty grew.

William made a noise in the back of his throat. “You’re daydreaming about her again and not listening to a word I’m saying.”

“Yes, because I have no idea what your true objections are. There is nothing wrong with Lydia or her family.” Henry glanced down at the shoes Jacob brought forward, nodding to the selection. “You know as well as I do that the daughter of a baron is a perfectly respectable woman to marry, and you’ve met her. She’s kind and considerate.” 

Jacob stifled a laugh as he turned and put the shoes into the trunk. 

With a triumphant noise, William flung his arm out and motioned at Jacob. “See? Even he knows that there has to be something wrong with this woman, and he hasn’t seen how she flounces around at balls, preening and primping for anyone who might look her way.” 

“All the women primp and preen, and for the record, so do most of the men.” Henry tried to keep the frustration out of his voice, but he was growing tired of the conversation. “Can’t you be happy for me, at least in the slightest?”

“I am happy for you, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t worry about you. You may put on a relaxed exterior, but I know you, and I know at heart that you are the kind of man who would like to lose yourself in the love and grandeur of it all, not once stopping to question if you and this woman are truly compatible.” 

“We are compatible. I’ve gone on several promenades with her. We share the same interests in music and in art. She has a head for numbers, often speaking about estates and their standings and what she knows of bookkeeping.” 

William pressed his lips together in a thin line. “Are you sure that this is what you want to do? Are you sure that Miss Fairfax is the woman you want to spend the rest of your life with, despite the fact that those around you think you should take more time to know her?” 

Henry stood taller. “I’m certain. She and I are a good match for each other, and we’re going to have a happy marriage.” 

“I’m going to continue to worry about you, but if you’re sure that this is what you want to do, then I won’t argue with you.” William forced a smile and crossed the room to clap a hand on Henry’s shoulder. “I’m glad you’ll be happy in your marriage, and I want the best for you.” 

“Do you?” 

William squeezed his shoulder. “It’s my job as your oldest friend to make sure that you’re not going to regret this, but based on the way you’re blushing and looking like a little boy with his hand in the cookie jar, I’m sure you’re going to have a good wedding.”

“You’ll be there with me, won’t you?” Henry bit the inside of his cheek. His sister and grandmother wouldn’t be with them due to his grandmother’s illness, but he needed his friend there. 

If nothing else, then he wanted William to get to know the Lydia that he knew. The one who laughed and smiled and teased him mercilessly as they promenaded. The same Lydia who would rush to meet him whenever they were to spend time together. 

He wanted his friends and family to meet the version of Lydia, who existed outside of balls and showing off for other people. 

And in several days, they would have the chance to do so.

Henry looked at the time on his pocket watch. “I have to go meet with Grandmother and Isabella. Jacob, will you finish my packing, please? William, walk with me.” 

Jacob nodded and got to work stacking the trunk with everything else Henry would need. 

William followed Henry out of the bedchamber and through the halls. “What do you want to talk about?”

“You’ll be here tomorrow morning to travel, and I want you to be on your best behavior.” 

“I’ll try my best, but I can’t promise anything. You know how I get when I’m trapped in a carriage for hours on end with nobody but you to speak with.” 

Henry rolled his eyes, the corner of his mouth twitching as he walked William to the front door. “You need to go pack.” 

William nodded before leaving, whistling to himself as he walked out the door. Henry stood there for a moment longer, glad that his friend was coming around to the thought of him getting married.

As he walked into the drawing room, his grandmother, Lady Eleanor, started coughing. Her entire body shook with the cough, her lungs sounding as if they were rattling in her chest. Isabella surged forward with a cup of water, helping their grandmother sit up and take a drink. 

Henry paused and crouched down in front of Lady Eleanor. “Are you going to be well while I’m gone?” 

“Of course.” Lady Eleanor sniffed and sat up taller. “You don’t have to worry about me, boy. I’ll be just fine while you’re gone.” 

“I’m always going to worry about you.”

“I’m recovering from my cold; this cough is just lingering longer than I would like.” Lady Eleanor smiled and patted the seat beside her, shifting to the side to make enough room for Isabella to sit down. “Now, since I’m not well enough to travel and Isabella insists on staying with me, we’re going to have to talk about the ball for when you return with Miss Fairfax.” 

“Are you sure you want to organize a ball?” Henry stood and sat down on the couch across from them, leaning back against the cushions and crossing one leg over the other. “I don’t want to put too much strain on either of you while I’m gone.”

“Miss Fairfax will be family.” Lady Eleanor folded her hands in her lap. “She seemed like a perfectly lovely young lady when we met at that ball last month. She told me how much she loved dancing, so I think it would be a kind gesture to have a ball to welcome her to Derbyshire and her new home, don’t you?” 

“It would be very kind, Grandmother,” Henry said, already sensing that he was losing the battle.

Lady Eleanor would do what she wanted, and if she wanted to make Miss Fairfax feel at home once she arrived, who was he to disagree? He appreciated that she would go out of her way to show such kindness to her. 

“We’ll have a wedding ball,” Isabella said with a bright smile, clapping her hands together and bouncing to her feet. “It will be great fun, and I know that Miss Fairfax and I will become the very best of friends. She seemed so lovely when we met her previously.” 

“If you’re sure that you want to do this, then I would be happy to have it arranged.” Henry grinned as he looked between the two of them. “I want to do our best to make sure that she feels welcomed into our home. The journey will take several days, and I’m sure she will be weary though, so perhaps we have a day of rest between our arrival home and the ball at least?” 

Isabelle nodded. “I’ll make sure you both have time to rest. Grandmother and I will work out all the details, and you won’t have to worry about a thing.”

“I like the sound of that.” He winked at his sister before standing. “I have to make sure everything is in order for us to leave tomorrow morning, but you will be sure to take care of Grandmother, won’t you?” 

“I’ll send for you if we need you,” Isabella said as she stood and rushed to wrap Henry in a tight hug. “I hope you have safe travels.” 

The doors burst open, and Daisy, his youngest sister, came running in, her curls flouncing behind her and her maid rushing to keep up. “Henry, you can’t possibly leave without saying goodbye!” 

Henry laughed and disentangled himself from Isabella to crouch down and sweep Daisy into a large hug, spinning her around. “How could I possibly leave without saying goodbye to my little wildflower?”

Daisy laughed and cupped his face in her hands. “You couldn’t.” 

“Exactly. I was going to say goodbye over breakfast in the morning before you went to do your lessons for the day.” 

Her bottom lip jutted out as he set her on the floor. “Can’t I come with you?” 

“Not this time, wildflower, but I promise you’re going to have so much fun once Miss Fairfax gets here. And you and I and Isabella are going to go on one of our picnics, just the three of us.”

Daisy lit up, her smile stretching wide. “Then I suppose I can go to bed.” 

“Love you,” Henry said, shaking his head as Daisy ran back out of the room, her maid hurrying to keep up once more. He turned to his grandmother and Isabella. “Do the best you can to keep her out of trouble.” 

Isabella blew a strand of her hair out of her face. “I’ll do my best.” 

“That’s why I leave you in charge.”