a definite quandary. To know that she had a genuine chance at the position, solely as a result of her experience with horses and her desire to do the job, was extremely encouraging.
To know that she might lose the position, for no other reason than that she was a woman, was sobering to say the least.
By Friday, Antonia had still not come up with a plan for either avoiding or deceiving Mr Bingham. She had toyed with the idea of dressing up as a man, and had even gone so far as to mention it to Catherine, who had naturally thought it a foolish and outlandish idea. But, friend that she was, Catherine had managed to sneak some of her brother’s clothes out of his room for Antonia to try on.
It had soon become apparent, however, that dressing up in a boy’s clothes simply wasn’t going to work. There was no disguising the feminine curves of Antonia’s figure, nor the shapeliness of her legs in the skin-tight pantaloons and tall boots she would be required to wear. Then there was the problem of her face. It was simply…too pretty. The long curving lashes fanning out over soft grey-green eyes could never have belonged to a man, nor could the high, prominent cheekbones or the decidedly feminine mouth.
As Catherine pointed out as they stared at Antonia’s reflection in the looking glass in her bedroom, if she and Mr Bingham were to stand at thirty paces and meet by the light of the moon, there might be a slight chance of accomplishing the deceit. But during a face-to-face confrontation in the glaring light of day, there was simply no mistaking Antonia for anything but the lady she was.
‘I shall just have to explain the situation to Mr Bingham as best I can,’ said Antonia, as she and Catherine shopped for fabric in the village on the following Monday morning. ‘It is unlikely that he will not have heard Eva or one of the other servants mention my affection for Lady Clara. Perhaps I can use that as justification for my wishing to secure the post.’
Catherine sighed as she turned her attention towards a particularly fine length of Italian silk. ‘You may be able to explain them to Mr Bingham, Toni, but will he be able to explain them to the Earl? And even if you are able to avoid meeting the Earl at the initial interview, no doubt you will be forced into an encounter at some time in the not-too-distant future.’
The timing of Catherine’s statement could not have been more propitious. As the girls concluded their shopping and made their way along the street, they were stayed by the unmistakable sound of a carriage approaching. And when an impressive looking coach-and-four rounded the corner and drew to a halt in front of the very shop before which they were standing, Antonia’s eyes widened in horror.
Carlyle! There could be no mistaking the elaborate coat of arms emblazoned on the coach door or the quality of the four black horses which drew it. Nor could she question that the man who flung open the door and climbed down moments later could be anyone but the omnipotent Earl of Carlyle himself!
‘La, Toni, it’s him!’ Catherine squeaked. ‘The Earl of Carlyle! Oh, upon my word, Cynthia was right. He is handsome!’
For once, Antonia was forced to agree with an assessment made by someone whose opinion she would normally have paid scant attention to. Lord Carlyle was handsome; as handsome as any gentleman she had ever seen. Tall and commanding of stature, his features were classically perfect. A slim, aquiline nose was set above an unsmiling mouth that topped a chin that was firm and slightly square, while dark brows drew together under a shock of even blacker hair. He sported a multi-layered cape over a jacket of dark blue superfine and smooth-fitting buff pantaloons, below which Antonia could see the gleam of highly polished Hessians. He wore no jewellery save a signet ring on the ring finger of his right hand.
Not surprisingly, the arrival of the Carlyle coach and the appearance of the dashing Earl were sufficient to cause quite a stir in the tiny main street of Upper Tipping. A small cluster of girls stood giggling together across the street, while some of the more daring ladies began to cast frankly longing glances in Lord Carlyle’s direction. But it was not until the town’s leading prattle box, Lady Dalrymple, rushed from the mercer’s shop opposite and made a beeline for the three of them, that Antonia knew it was too late for her to try to escape.
‘Lord Carlyle!’ Lady Dalrymple hailed him imperiously. ‘My lord, a moment, pray.’
The gentleman glanced up, clearly nonplussed by the sight of a large and bedizened matron steaming towards him at full charge, and did not smile as he doffed his glistening black beaver. ‘Madam?’
‘Lord Carlyle, how delighted I am to see you home again.’ Lady Dalrymple, winded by the short run across the road, took a few deep breaths before turning the full force of her countenance upon him. ‘I had heard rumours that you were…returning to Upper Tipping, of course, but I had feared them little more than that. One hears so much chatter about Town these days.’
The Earl inclined his head in a gesture that was polite, but nothing more. ‘As you can see, they are rumours no longer.’
‘No, indeed, and how pleased I am that they are not,’ Lady Dalrymple professed heartily. She smiled up into his face—expectantly, it seemed to Antonia—and when no light of recognition dawned in his eyes, added quickly, ‘But surely you remember me, Lord Carlyle? Your dear mother and I were the closest of friends.’
‘Indeed,’ he said, though with no noticeable increase in warmth.
‘Oh, yes. Though I was not in London as frequently as I might have liked, we used to spend a great deal of time together whenever she was at Ashdean.’
Still nothing. Lord Carlyle continued to regard the woman with the utmost civility, but with no more insight into who she was than he had upon her arrival. ‘Madam, I pray you will forgive me, but—’
‘Lady Dalrymple, my lord!’
This last bit of information was delivered, to Antonia’s way of thinking, with more than a hint of desperation, and its response awaited with equal trepidation. It was clear from the expression on Lady Dalrymple’s face that the interview was not turning out at all as she had expected.
Fortunately, it seemed that Lord Carlyle was nothing if not a gentleman. The merest shadow of a smile touched his lips before he bowed to her and said, ‘But of course, Lady… Dalrymple. How remiss of me. Mother spoke of you…often.’
Lady Dalrymple’s anxiety vanished like a puff of wind. Oblivious to the slight note of sarcasm in the Earl’s voice, she beamed her delight and blissfully furthered her perjury. ‘Oh, yes, we were the closest of friends, she and I. And as such, I am so very glad that I am the one to be on hand to welcome you back.’
‘Thank you, Lady Dalrymple. I must say, I had not expected such an…enthusiastic welcome before even reaching my own door,’ Lord Carlyle drawled.
Fortunately, Lady Dalrymple was both slow to take offence and quick to take advantage of an opportunity. As the mother of two unmarried daughters, she could ill afford to be otherwise. ‘Yes, well, as I said, it is truly fortunate that I happened to be so close. Am I to hope that you will be staying with us for a while, Lord Carlyle?’
‘My stay is of an undecided duration,’ Lord Carlyle remarked carefully, ‘since there are a number of things which I hope to accomplish while I am here.’
‘But, that is wonderful,’ Lady Dalrymple enthused, convinced by the Earl’s carefully worded statement that he must be looking for a new wife. ‘I was only telling my girls yesterday—lovely girls, both of them unwed—that it would be such a pleasure to see a Carlyle in permanent residence again.’
‘And
