Page 14 of The Perfect Rose

Samuel’s shoulders shook in laughter. “Lady Rose must have made it for him as a result of the competition. It’s a lovely crown, Lady Rose. It seems to suit Mr. Hastings quite well.”

“Thank you.” Lady Rose replied to Samuel, her cheeks pinking just a bit.

Frederick chuckled as the table broke out in conversations around him and about him, but not including him; it almost felt as if he was watching a play. Miriam was silent, which worried him. He noticed more than one guest eyeing Rose with contempt, again. Could she not gain a moment’s respite from their jealousy? He feared that the poor reception of her offering would put Lady Rose and her mother into a sour mood once again. He tried to run his fingers through his hair but caught on the roses instead. He heard a buzzing in his ear just before he felt a burst of hot pain in his neck. A bee sting. He flipped his hand backward, swatting the pest away, but the stinging remained. He ground his teeth and tried not to react.

“Ahhh! A bee!” Miss Haybury jolted from the table. Dishes clanked and her glass of punch toppled over, swamping her meal in the fruity drink.

Lady Gardner stood. “Calm down, Miss Haybury.” The room fell silent all but for the bee lazily flying overhead. She turned to Frederick, and he felt the gaze of the entire party. “Did it sting you, Mr. Hastings?”

So she had seen. It wasn’t a surprise since she sat quite close to him. “Yes, my lady. But I’ll be fine.” He glanced down the table to Rose, but her face was as unreadable as a blank slate, and a little pale as well.

“I see,” she said, though Lady Gardner squinted her eyes as if she could not actually see. She nodded to a nearby server. “Please open the windows.” The young man obeyed and within a minute, the offending bee had found its way outside.

Miriam looked pale. She reached across the table and took hold of Miss Haybury’s hand. “No harm done, Miss Haybury.” She smiled her reassurance to the red-splotched, dramatic young woman as the staff cleared her plate. Miriam refolded her hands in her lap and leaned toward Lady Gardner. “Thank you, my lady, for your calm demeanor and example.”

“It was a bee, Miss Hastings. Not a raging rhinoceros,” Lady Gardner snapped.

Miriam winced, almost as if she were physically struck.

Frederick absolutely would not stand for his sister being treated thus. “Lady Gardner, Miriam has played the perfect hostess, showing both compassion and gratitude.” He narrowed his eyes at the Countess Gardner with a hope that the proud old lady would remember her place.

The countess pulled her shoulders back. “Of course she has done well, not so well as my Rose might have given the situation, but well enough, nonetheless. There is no need to overreact, Mr. Hastings.” She gave a taut smile, returned to her seat, and faced Miriam. “If for any reason, Miss Hastings, you find yourself in need of guidance, I am only happy to step in . . .”

“It will not be necessary,” Frederick cut in. She might be a countess, but this was not her home, and she was not the hostess. Currently, Miriam could give her a lesson on goodwill and manners.

Miriam swallowed, her blush crimson.

Lady Gardner narrowed her eyes at Frederick, but nodded her head almost imperceptibly, evidently taking the hint. The remainder of the meal was eaten in uncomfortable silence. So uncomfortable, Frederick’s throat felt as if it were swelling. He wondered once again, as he sipped his soup, why it was he’d given Miriam permission for this house party.

When the ladies left the dining room after dinner, it was all Frederick could do not to rip off his cravat. As the courses had come and gone, he’d found himself less and less capable of ignoring the swelling in his throat and neck. He fumbled with the knot about his throat as quickly and elegantly as possible. The swelling he felt was barely relieved. He looked around at the table of men. They were watching his actions with rapt attention. He must look a fool, tearing his cravat off as he had. Oh well. There are worse things. “I’ve never been stung by a bee before. I can’t say it’s something I want to repeat.”

Lord Hanby rose from his chair and folded the point of Frederick’s collar down. “You’re swelling, Hastings. It might be wise to call for a doctor.”

Frederick chuckled. “I thank you for your concern, but I don’t feel as bad as that.”

“Freddy,” Samuel eyed him warily, “at the least, you ought to take a good look at it. Enough people have reacted poorly to these stings as to make one careful.”

If Samuel was concerned, perhaps the situation was more serious than he thought. “I’ll be up in my room. When you’ve finished your port, by all means, join the ladies in the drawing room.” He drained his cup in three large swallows before he walked out into the hallway. His steps on the polished wood floors echoed through the emptiness all the way to his empty room. His valet Jason was likely below stairs, taking dinner with the staff. His neck was getting quite hot, and he found wisdom in taking a look at the bee sting.

He shrugged out of his jacket and took the rose crown off his head. He threw them both onto his writing table, and his mangled cravat joined the pile. He was halfway done unbuttoning his shirt when a knock sounded at his door. “Come in,” he said. News traveled fast it seemed. Jason would help put him to rights in no time.

The door pushed open just as Frederick pulled his shirt front open to look at his neck better in his mirror.

“You’d best put your clothes back on, young man.”

Frederick turned sharply to see Jason flanked by Lady Gardner and Lady Rose in the doorframe. Rose, he noticed in a split second, was quite red in the face. He smirked as he glanced down to his bare chest. He knew very well the picture he made; his sparring matches at Jackson’s this past season had him looking like a field worker. He began slowly buttoning himself into his shirt, fully enjoying Lady Rose’s discomfort. Lady Gardner, on the other hand, did not waver, but walked, quite uninvited, into his bedchamber, Jason following closely on her heels. Lady Rose hung outside the door.

“My apologies. I did not know my valet would be bringing guests.” Frederick wasn’t actually sorry in the least. He owed Lady Gardner nothing, especially after the spectacle she’d made at dinner.

It seemed Lady Gardner had forgotten the event had occurred. Exuding confidence, she stood directly beside him. “Rose and I have treated bee stings for longer than I care to admit. Allow me to see your neck.” It was not a request so much as a command. What was more surprising was how quickly he found himself obeying.

She made a small tsk sound as she examined his neck. “Rose, bring me the tweezers.”

“Excuse me, but why do we need tweezers, my lady?” If today had taught him anything, it was to not underestimate the Gardner women and their sharp objects.

“The stinger is still in your skin, Mr. Hastings. I will be removing it with the tweezers.” She pushed him to sit on his wooden chair beside the writing table and turned to her daughter, still frozen in the doorway. “Now, Rose.”

“Of course, Mother.” He watched Lady Rose with curiosity as she walked toward him. She held out her hand to her mother, her gaze stubbornly not leaving the floor.