Page 42 of The Unfortunate Debutante
Simeon quickly rose and bowed. “Lady Lansdowne,” he greeted her politely.
A gracious smile came to Eliza’s lips as she acknowledged him. “Lord Wentworth. What a pleasure to see you again.”
“No, it is not,” Downshire huffed as he stopped pacing. “Wentworth is fired.”
Not offended in the least, he placed his snifter onto a table and remarked, “I shall take my leave, then.”
Downshire glared at him. “You will not,” he ordered. “You were the one who got Emma into this blasted mess.”
“Language, dear brother,” Eliza chided, tipping her head towards Emma. “Your ward is present.”
“My apologies, Emma,” Downshire said, his eyes darting to her, “but she has landed herself into a most bothersome situation.”
“Another one?” Benedict joked.
Lord Jonathon walked over to the drink cart and poured himself a drink. “And what situation would that be exactly?”
Downshire lifted his brow at him. “Why don’t you explain, Wentworth?”
Simeon glanced over at Emma, and he saw that she had a pained expression on her face. Poor girl, he thought. He turned towards the group and started to explain.
“After we went to Miss Cosette’s dress shop…”
Eliza cut him off. “How is dear Cosette doing?”
“Very well,” Emma said, speaking up for the first time. “She sent her regards and informed me that she will be joining us for breakfast tomorrow morning.”
“That’s wonderful news,” Eliza replied.
“Eliza…” Downshire grunted.
Pressing her lips together, Eliza turned her expectant gaze back towards Simeon.
“As I was saying,” he began, “we ran into Mr. Lockhart…”
Benedict spoke over him. “Did you arrest him?”
“I had no grounds. He didn’t do anything criminal in the square near Gunther’s,” Simeon explained.
“Pity,” Jonathon mumbled, sipping his drink.
Downshire tossed up his hands in the air. “Will everyone stop asking questions?” he exclaimed. “Wentworth hasn’t even gotten to the worst part, yet.”
All eyes turned towards him, and he continued. “After Lockhart departed, a closed carriage came barreling towards us, and I pulled Miss Pearson to safety.” He hesitated before admitting, “Unfortunately, I landed on top of her, and there were many witnesses.”
The room grew silent, but he could tell by the expressions that something had passed between the members of the Beckett family.
Rachel spoke first. “It matters not. We are here for Emma’s Season, and we are not going to retreat. We will face this latest hinderance head on.”
“It isn’t that simple, my love,” Downshire sighed. “Emma’s reputation is in tatters, and it may never recover from this.”
Walking over to the settee, Eliza sat down next to Emma. “We will sort out this mess. This isn’t the first time that a member of the Beckett family has done something scandalous.”
“No, but it is the first time that the ton has witnessed it,” Jonathon said, lowering himself down into an armchair.
Benedict walked over to the drink cart. While he was pouring himself a drink, he asked, “What is our battle plan?”
“Emma should marry, and quickly,” Jonathon remarked.
