“Certainly.” Richard looked about the room, searching for someone as jovial as Harry. His eyes drifted toward the seat Leticia had just vacated, and he wondered what the cousins could be discussing at this very moment.
“Your Grace,” Miss Loery said calmly. “Perhaps you could just ask someone to join us?”
“Of course,” Richard responded. He cleared his throat and, raising his voice so that he might be heard above the din of chatter, he said, “Would anyone care to join our game?”
Several people in the room stopped everything and turned to look at him in awe. Others, those who must not have heard, kept right on doing as they pleased, and a few seemed surprised that he had spoken in such a way. Belatedly, he realized that making such an announcement was a bit uncouth.
“Oh, I’ll be your fourth—” Miss Walch said, standing and pushing away from the game of commerce. Inwardly, Richard flinched at the idea of having to endure the rest of his evening in the company of his bride-to-be and her two dearest friends. The situation had felt stifling enough when Harry was there to make jokes and keep the ladies entertained. But now, the prospect of having to sit here with just Miss Loery and her two friends was almost enough to make Richard flee altogether.
“No,” his mother said tartly as she rose from her own seat at the commerce table, “allow me to join my son.” Immediately, a flood of relief crashed through Richard’s body as he rejoiced in seeing his mother come to his aid.
“Of course, Your Grace,” Miss Walch returned, dropping into a quick curtsy and stepping aside to give Richard’s mother room to maneuver around the table. As his mother swept toward them, he saw a self-satisfied smile creep onto her face, and now, he recoiled in earnest.
She’s not coming over here because she wants to save me. She’s only joining us because this arrangement will give her a chance to talk about the future she foresees for Miss Loery and me.
Richard gulped back all the Shakespearean insults that sprang to mind as he would never curse his mother. Ever since he’d proposed to Miss Loery, his mother had spoken of nothing other than the wedding festivities and the prospect of welcoming a new child into the family very soon. He groaned inwardly, thinking of how this interminable evening would now also become insufferable.
“Son,” his mother said cheerfully as she glided toward the table. Richard stepped back and pulled her chair out for her.
“How do you do, Mother,” he replied, waiting until she had tucked her maroon skirts properly around her before giving the chair a gentle push back underneath the table. “Rousing game of commerce, was it?”
“Oh,” she scoffed. “You know how it goes. Leticia always wins the first few hands then she gives up and lets the rest of us have a chance to play.”
Richard slid down into his seat and opened his mouth to comment, but Miss Loery beat him to it. “I’m afraid I don’t know Lady Leticia very well. I understand she is a dear friend of yours, Your Grace?”
He was so taken aback by the remark that he choked on his words. Luckily, his mother was not quite so tongue-tied. “Yes, Lady Leticia and her entire family are our closest friends. Why, she and Richard have known one another since she was born.”
“That’s marvelous,” Miss Loery said as she picked up her own cards and began to scrutinize them. “I have always envied others who have been born into such comforting arrangements. It is so nice that the two families have maintained a firm friendship over the years. I should hope to spend some time with Lady Leticia in the next few months as I do believe I know a few eligible gentlemen who might be interested in courting her.”
“Lady Leticia won’t be interested in anything like that.” The words flew out of Richard’s mouth before he could stop them. The three ladies, including his mother, all gave him puzzled looks. “What I meant to say is that since the two of you are not yet well-acquainted with one another, you couldn’t possibly know what Lady Leticia would like in a husband.”
Miss Drawlington giggled, and Miss Loery joined. “I don’t think it should be much of a problem. If Lady Leticia is important to you, then it will be my pleasure to help find her a suitable match.” Her thin eyebrows arched as her blue eyes widened. “We’d hate for one of your dearest friends to spend the rest of her days as a spinster, wouldn’t we?”
“She’s not a spinster,” Richard retorted, feeling his irritation rise.
“Not yet,” Miss Drawlington whispered with a smirk, “but she will be very soon. If I’m not mistaken, she’s already participated in at least three Seasons.”
“Four, actually,” Richard’s mother chimed in as she sifted through her own cards. She eyed him and said, “But she could choose to get married at any time she likes.”
“Has she had many offers?” Miss Loery ventured.
Richard coughed and shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t think—”
“She has,” the Dowager said, her voice mild and sociable. “She just hasn’t fallen in love yet.”
Again, Miss Loery and Miss Drawlington shared identical smirks. “And is that important to Lady Leticia? To marry someone she loves?”
“It is important,” Richard’s mother said, tearing her eyes away from her cards and directing them at Miss Loery, “to everyone. No one should get married unless they have found their one true love.”
Richard was not surprised by the words his mother had just spoken. She’d expressed the same sentiment many times over the years. But repeating those words now on the eve of his wedding to his bride…it felt as though she were trying to drive home a point.
“I understand it was that way for you, Your Grace,” Miss Loery persisted without missing a beat. While Richard sat, staring at his mother, trying to decipher how the conversation had gone from talk of grandchildren to Leticia, he felt a sickness begin to roil in his stomach.
“Perhaps, we should finish this round and call it a night, Ladies,” Richard interrupted. He knew it was inconsiderate to put an end to the discussion in such a way, and he hoped his mother would forgive him for speaking over the top of her, but he just felt as if every bone in his body ached, almost as though he’d been swimming in the river and got swept away by the current.
“So soon?” Miss Loery asked as her eyebrows scrunched together in confusion.
“I’m very tired,” Richard explained quickly. He made as if to yawn, but the movement looked more like he was just opening and closing his mouth.