Saving Samantha (Sisters Before Misters Book 2) Read online

  Lucy gathered the taller girl into her arms, “People are cruel. You are a beautiful girl, and you shouldn’t ever have to question that fact. But even if you were not, you shouldn’t be ashamed to leave your room because of your appearance. What happened to human kindness?”

  Hazel flushed, “We all have things about ourselves that make us uncomfortable, especially in society. No one wants to be judged harshly. You know about my spells and how embarrassing they can be.”

  Sam nodded.

  Juliana flushed, “Just recently I made a cake of myself trying to chase the Duke of Bilkshore.”

  Sam turned to her friend, “It wasn’t that bad, Juliana.”

  Juliana gave a deprecating laugh, “It was. He had taken to hiding from me at social events. I think that is the epitome of desperate.”

  Lucy smoothed her wild hair, “Sam, do you remember when I came to you that morning and announced that if you were going to remain Freddy’s best friend that you were going to have to be mine as well?”

  Samantha nodded, “I have never been so grateful to anyone in my entire life. Instead of losing Freddy, who can be a stick in the mud at the best of times, I have gained one of my very dearest friends in you, Lucy.”

  Lucy hugged her close, “I feel the same. But it was not easy to do.”

  Sam broke away and turned to her, “In what way, tell me?”

  “Let me start at the beginning. Growing up in Shropshire, the oldest of three daughters, my father impressed upon me that I was to marry and to marry well. I never expected to form a love match. I was to marry a title and then bring out my younger sisters.

  We were at a county assembly when I first met him, Mr. Frederick Hangbottom. He was a younger son with a small stipend. I was wearing my crepe silk, and he had a stain on his cravat. It was love at first sight.

  There was something strong and stable about him. Something that I hadn’t felt in a very long time. It took one dance and the next thing I knew a month had passed by, and we were engaged.

  Father grudgingly brought my sisters and myself to London to prepare for the wedding. It was here that I realized the vast difference between my countrified self and the Ton.

  Harold, Freddy’s older brother, was in poor health. He had never married and was furious that Freddy was throwing his life away on a little nobody like me.

  Harold had been under the impression that Freddy would marry Samantha. I knew that Freddy’s best friend was Sam, but I had thought Sam was a man.

  Imagine my dismay when I met the most beautiful woman of my life to date. And she is the lady that everyone wanted for my fiance. Not only that but she hated my very existence and called me Miss Prissy Pants—yes, I knew, of course, I knew.

  We married, and then two months later Harold passed. Suddenly our newlywed bliss was shrouded in mourning. Not only this, but Harold had never taught Freddy how to be a Baron.

  I was losing him! Samantha knew about those things, and he spent more and more time with her. People made comments, so many nasty comments to me. I felt like the greatest fool for ever thinking that I could have been more than a girl from Shropshire.”

  Samantha was horrified, “Lucy, I am so terribly sorry. I have never had an inappropriate relationship with Freddy! He’s like my brother!”

  Lucy laughed, “Oh, I know, dear. In fact, in a jealous rage one evening I asked him to choose between us.”

  Samantha blanched, “You didn’t!”

  Lucy grinned, “I can be quite dramatic when I wish to be. I told him that I couldn’t live that way. He would have to choose between us. Freddy was confused. He said that he chose me the moment he saw me at that country dance. I had been a fool. I hate to say it, but I believe that was when the reducing diets started. He wants to be everything for me. Silly man—can’t he see that I am desperately in love with him?

  My eyes were opened that day. And the very next, I came here and even though my heart was racing, I asked if I could be your friend .”

  Samantha’s lips twitched, “You demanded that if I were to remain Freddy’s best friend, I would be yours as well. But I am ever so glad that you did. I am sorry Lucy, I didn’t know. I am terribly selfish, and I didn’t think about how you would feel. Please forgive me.”

  Lucy grinned, “There is nothing to forgive. But you cannot let those fops win. You cannot let one comment rule your world. You are tall. Taller than most ladies and some of the men, that is true.”

  Samantha’s face fell.

  Lucy pinched her shoulder, “This is not a bad thing. You need to stand up straight and stare them in the eye. You are beautiful, Sam. There is a loveliness to you that is unparalleled. Don’t let someone’s spitefulness tear you apart.”

  “That is excellent advice,” Hazel admonished.

  “Besides, I need you for something,” Juliana’s eyes twinkled, “and we can pull one over on Mr. Harris who technically started ‘Lady Stretch’ in the first place.”

  “You are more than those empty words, Sam.”

  Samantha stared at her friends, knowing that they had her best interest at heart. And then she took a leap of faith.

  Firming her resolve, she replied, “ All right, I am in.”

  CHAPTER 3

  “We almost intercepted another guinea run. We were tipped off by that Rattenbury character, but Bardeau evaded us at the last moment,” Henry paused, “We have intelligence that there is to be some activity near Kent. With your permission I should like to remove myself from London, sir.”

  Colonel Brad considered his young lieutenant-colonel’s proposition.

  The Colonel was an older man in his late forties, but he still had a rather imposing figure. His dark hair was peppered with gray and tended to thin a bit on the top, but most would say he was a remarkably terrifying person. One did not get to this particular station in life without a great deal of hard work and determination.

  The Colonel was also Earl of Garfield and Viscount of Ellington.

  While they had wanted to crack the code in the French nursery rhyme, which they had found involving the Corbineau’s, Harris had discovered Corbineau to be a double agent.

  When his beautiful wife had disappeared without a trace after her husband kidnapped Lady Lillian, the Colonel knew what had happened to Corbineau. He had the account from Harris first hand. Thank heavens for Jack Rattenbury.

  “What is the report?” The Colonel asked.

  Henry leaned in, “The Duke of Bilkshore’s country estate, Chatterling, is not far from Dover. I have noticed that he enjoys an exceptional array of French spirits in his homes.”

  The Colonel’s eyes narrowed, “Do you think he is a sympathizer? He is an American after all. It hasn’t been that long since we fought and died on those battlefields.”

  Henry shook his head, “No, nothing of the sort. I do however think that they are using his estate as a cover and that he is none the wiser. Being new to the peerage, the Duke has many responsibilities that he is taking care of here in town. I dare say that he has had little time to spend at Chatterling.”

  There was an interesting light in the Colonel’s eye, “I am starting to understand. No doubt that these activities have been occurring for some time.”

  Henry shrugged, “They live along the coast, some of these families could have been free trading for decades. It is not them I am concerned with, they need to feed their families, and I am not the law they answer to. But I will be damned if I will allow these spies to steal our reports and gold to fuel his mercenaries.”

  Colonel Brad nodded, “I agree, but I believe that in order to fully penetrate this situation we need to involve the Duke.”

  “How so,” Henry asked, feeling uneasy at the light that had appeared in the Colonel’s eye.

  Colonel Brad tapped his short beard, “Never you mind. I shall have to think on it and let you know. You are dismissed, Lieutenant-Colonel Harris.”

  ***

  “A house party? In the middle of the bloody season? Surely, bro
ther, you are jesting?” Ian eyed his elder brother Oliver, the Duke of Bilkshore in horror.

  Oliver, Duke of Bilkshore, Earl of Ravensblood, Viscount of Harondon, Baron of Moore turned to his three younger brothers who were lounging in a rather ungentlemanly like manner all about his library.

  And for the briefest of moments, he desperately missed his twin, Ryan. It wasn’t as if they were joined at the hip or any other such nonsense, only that Ryan understood how vexing their younger brothers could be.

  Jacob was closest to the twins in age. He had slightly longer blonde hair that he tied at the nape of his neck in a queue with a bit of leather.

  “Ollie, this doesn’t sound anything like you,” Jacob frowned, “What gives?”

  Oliver hated being called ‘Ollie’ as if he were seven-years-old. “What gives, Jakey-poo, is that when the head of the war office calls upon you and asks a personal favor for the crown—you say yes.”

  James, the youngest of the bunch and by far the prettiest, had been nursing some French brandy, “The head of the war office likes house parties? Who knew?”

  Ian looked as if he wanted to bang his head into a wall, or perhaps just James’ head. Ian’s looks were harder, more defined. Some felt that because he worked his body to extremes that he looked less of a gentleman and a bit more—savage. “No, idiot, there has to be more to the story.”

  Oliver smiled at Ian’s tone, “Not that he was willing to tell me. They are bloody tight lipped about intelligence, but I do know the name of our first guest.”

  “Don’t keep us in suspense man!” Ian bit out.

  Oliver’s eyes twinkled, “Mr. Harris will be arriving shortly.”

  James looked crestfallen, “It’s not even a woman?”

  Jacob choked, “A woman cannot call upon a home, full of unmarried gentlemen to plan a house party.”

  “The kind of women I like do!” James retorted.

  Ian eyed Oliver, “Oh yes, a house party sounds like a lovely idea, especially with this brood. Shall I start packing for America then?”

  Oliver frowned, “America? I do believe you mean, Kent?”

  Ian rolled his eyes, “That’s so sweet.”

  “What is sweet?” Oliver was starting to get fed up with the bastards—brothers or no.

  “That you think we won’t be deported after this fiasco is over,” Ian walked away muttering under his breath, “house party indeed!”

  Oliver swung around to see Jacob struggling to keep a smile off of his face. “Surely you do not think things will go as badly as all of that?”

  Jacob shook his head, “Not in the least, Ian is a worry wort in the extreme. And besides, I think we shall all enjoy Newgate immensely.”

  Ian’s “Ha” from the other room was just what Oliver needed to start a raging headache.

  CHAPTER 4

  Juliana stared at her mother in disbelief. And then just to be entirely sure she was not misunderstanding the situation she reiterated the Dowagers words. “The Duke of Bilkshore has requested that Eden, my sister in law, the Countess of Lancaster, to serve as hostess at a house party he is having in Kent.”

  The Dowager was beside herself with excitement, “Do you not see, Juliana? You did not frighten the Duke away! You simply gave up too early, darling!”

  Juliana frowned, something did not add up with her mother’s estimation of events. They were seated in the back morning rooms having already broken their fast. Eden would soon be joining them. She usually did after going up to check on Auggie in the nursery.

  “Why would the Duke wish to have a house party in the middle of the season?” Juliana asked.

  The Dowager’s lips pinched, “He is an American darling, they do not possess the same stamina, you cannot fault him for that.”

  Juliana huffed, “That was not at all what I meant, mother. It just seems rather unusual, that is all. And please do not try to make this into something, because the Duke is not interested in courting me.”

  “Why wouldn’t the Duke of Bilkshore be interested in you, Juliana?” Eden’s voice came from the doorway.

  Eden, the Marchioness of Lancaster, walked over to where Juliana was sitting on a pale green brass-inlaid rosewood sofa. Eden was a voluptuous woman with blond curly hair and sparkling blue eyes. They twinkled behind a small pair of spectacles that were perched upon her nose.

  Juliana sometimes wondered what it would be like to have those womanly curves. Even her younger sister Lillian had been more endowed than she in those areas. The Dowager provided Juliana with the best undergarments available, but the sad truth was that Juliana was—thin.

  Juliana looked down and flushed.

  The Dowager cleared her throat, “I will hear no more of this nonsense!”

  Eden’s brow wrinkled, “You will be attending the house party, Juliana will you not?”

  “Of course,” Juliana sighed, “I would not disappoint you. Is there anything that I can do to help?”

  Eden nodded, “I should have the list of guests from Mr. Harris this morning if you wouldn’t mind helping me write out the invitations?”

  Juliana’s head whipped up, “Mr. Harris?”

  “Yes, the Duke said that Mr. Harris was helping him with the guest list,” Eden couldn’t understand why this was so important to Juliana. “He is a rather handsome young man, isn’t he?”

  “What was that?” Juliana asked, her mind whirling with activity, no longer paying attention.

  Eden frowned, “Mr. Harris is rather handsome.”

  Juliana smiled, “He most certainly is. I have made arrangements to pay a visit to Samantha this afternoon. I had better get a few things finished first.”

  Eden eyed her curiously but didn’t comment further.

  “I want you to keep an open mind about the Duke of Bilkshore, Juliana,” the Dowager admonished as she was leaving the room.

  But now that she had figured out what the men were up to, Juliana had no trouble dealing with her mother. “I shall be the epitome of ladyhood, mother.”

  As Juliana was leaving, she heard her mother ask Eden, “ Why is she such an unnatural child? ”

  It was a wonder.

  ***

  “Sam, we have no time to lose. Mr. Harris has involved the Duke of Bilkshor in his schemes, but I do not know to what level.”

  Juliana and Sam were holed up in Samantha’s bedchambers to ensure the utmost privacy.

  Samantha’s golden eyes widened, “Do tell!”

  “It appears that the Duke is about to have a house party at Chatterling, his country estate in Kent. Which just so happens to be just off the coast of Dover.”

  Samantha’s intelligence was no sub par, “So, you think that this has something to do with the smuggling?”

  Juliana bit her lip, “Of that, I am not exactly sure. I do not believe that Mr. Harris has taken the Duke into his confidence, but I could be mistaken. He did ask that the Duke request Eden as his hostess since he is a bachelor.”

  Samantha looked surprised, “Interesting, I would not have thought the Duke would need someone to do his hostessing for him. Couldn’t his housekeeper do that?”

  “You know that she could, or many other women could serve in that capacity. But with my brother’s undercover work in the war office.” Juliana trailed off.

  Samantha giggled, “ They aren’t very spy-like, are they ?”

  Juliana laughed, “Well, they are men.”

  “So, what is our plan then?” Samantha inquired, “I don’t know how we are going to infiltrate the army.”

  Juliana looked determined, “It is easy! You shall seduce him!”

  “Me!” Samantha looked horrified, “Lady Stretch?”

  And then the humor of it struck, and she began to laugh, “Oh Juliana, that will never work! You need to formulate a new plan. Mr. Harris does not find me attractive in the least. I can just see me flouncing about in my undergarments. He would be bored to tears!”

  Juliana huffed, “Come now! You would have to put mor
e effort into it!”

  “I don’t know how to seduce anyone, Juliana! Half of the time I can barely look most gentlemen in the eye. I am too tall and too rounded. Honestly, this is a terrible idea.”

  “It is not! Haven’t you been paying attention in the bluebell meetings?” Juliana was getting irritated.

  Sam sighed, “I have, but I don’t feel like men find me attractive in that way.”

  Juliana tapped her chin, silent for a moment. “I hadn’t wanted to bring this out so early, but…”