Marriage Under Siege Read Free

solar, if that
will please you. It is the warmest room.'
    'Thank you. Foxton has so
directed us. Mistress...?' He saw the quick glance pass between Foxton and the
lady.
    'I see that Lord Edward did
not see fit to inform you, my lord.' She met his enquiring gaze without
shyness, her composure still intact. It ruffled him that he was the only one to
feel in any way compromised by this situation.
    'Inform me? I am not
sure...' Impatience simmered. His brows snapped together in a heavy frown,
usually guaranteed to provoke an instant response. Josh saw it and awaited the
outcome with interest.
    'My lord.' Foxton came to
his rescue. 'If I might be permitted to introduce you.' He bowed towards the
still figure at his side, his face enigmatic, but his eyes sharp. 'I have the
honour to introduce to you Honoria, Lady Mansell. The wife—the recent bride—of
Lord Edward. This gentleman, my lady, is Sir Francis Brampton, a distant cousin
of Lord Edward and, as heir to the title, now Lord Mansell. And Sir Joshua
Hopton, who travels with him.'
    The lady sank into a deep
curtsy as the two gentlemen bowed. Sir Francis took the opportunity to attempt
to marshal the jumble of facts and impressions that assailed him. This was not
what he expected when he had received the news of Edward's sudden death. This
could probably provide him with an unnecessary complication. He forced his mind
to focus on the most startling of the developments.
    'Edward's wife? I was not
aware...' He fixed the lady with a stark stare as if the fault were hers. And
then frowned as he took in her neat hair and clear features. 'And yet...I
believe that we have met before, my lady.'
    'We have, my lord, but I
did not expect you to remember. It was more than two years ago—in London,
before the outbreak of hostilities.'
    'Of course.' He failed to
hide the surprise in his voice. 'You are Mistress Ingram, the Laxton heiress, if I am not mistaken. You were at Court in
the autumn of 1640. At Whitehall. I was there with Katherine...'
    'Yes. I am—that is to say,
I was Honoria Ingram.'
    'Indeed, we were introduced
at one of the Queen's masques. One of Inigo Jones's
extravaganzas.' There was the merest hint of distaste in his voice.
    'I was there with Sir
Robert Denham, my guardian, and his family.'
    'I know Sir Robert, of
course. But my cousin's wife! I had no idea...'
    'How should you, my lord?'
She watched his reactions with some detached interest, but without emotion,
without involvement.
    'Lord Edward had always
given the impression—to my father— that he had chosen not to marry and never
would. We were given to believe that he did not hold women and the state of
matrimony in very high regard.'
    'As for that, my lord, I am
not in a position to give an opinion.'
    The lady before him grew
even paler, if that were possible. Lord Francis groaned inwardly at his clumsy
choice of words and his thoughtless lack of tact. There was no excuse for it.
Sir Joshua's inelegant attempts to cover a laugh with a fit of coughing
irritated him further and elicited a fierce glance in his direction before
Mansell turned back to his cousin's widow in a hopeless attempt to mend a few
fences.
    'Forgive me, my lady. That
was unwarranted. I did not intend any discourtesy. My manners appear to have
gone begging after four days of travel in adverse conditions. Will you accept
my apology?'
    The lady gave her head a
little shake. 'It is not necessary, my lord. Your assessment of the situation
is most percipient and quite correct. I believe that it was certainly not Lord
Edward's intent to marry until very recently. The prospect of a fortune in land
and coin, however, can make even the most obstinate or the most jaundiced of
men change his mind.' The pause was barely discernible. 'And Lord Edward was,
without doubt, both.'
    'How long ago—since you
were married?' Mansell could not mistake the bitterness in her tone, however
much she might try to conceal it, as she exposed the reason for the