Perhaps such intimacies weren't truly meant for her in that case. There were plenty of women who lived without a husband or lover and had perfectly happy lives. Flitting her glance around their table, Eleanor wondered how many of the couples seated there had happy marriages. She knew that her mother was utterly in love with her father, but she discounted that particular marriage because she had no idea how her father felt about her mother other than he used her mother's love to dictate exactly how their household would be run and how her mother would live her life. The other couples... Miss Chandler's parents eyed each other with barely concealed disdain, Grace had her rake and her husband was probably off somewhere with his mistress, her friend Lady Patience had her husband Lord Roger Moore firmly under her thumb although he also had a mistress... and Edwin's other acquaintances were still bachelors. She'd made up for their uneven numbers by inviting her friend Miss Matilda Brething who had come with her mother. Mr. Brething was out of town. Probably with his mistress as well.
The entire situation made Eleanor feel rather miserable as she faced the fact that she didn't particularly like the idea of Edwin having a mistress. And yet unless she was willing to perform her wifely duties he would certainly go looking for one. Even if she did perform her wifely duties he might still go looking for one. For all she knew he already had one.
No... she thought, studying him opposite her at the table. No she didn't think he would be the type to still have a mistress so near to his wedding, not at the beginning of the marriage. Besides, when would he have the time? He was either working or in her bed, making her forget why she wanted, needed, to get away.
The best thing she could do was keep on with her plan. Obviously her emotions were becoming far too entangled. Any more of this and she’d end up like her mother, so in love that she'd do whatever her husband said and forgive anything he did. Did her father have a mistress? If so he was very discreet. The other women around the table might not have the happiest marriages, but they were happy in other parts of their lives. From what Eleanor could see, love only made a person weak and she was determined to be strong.
Besides, after tonight she doubted her husband would want anything to do with her anyway.
Pasting a brilliant smile on her face, she started up a conversation with Lord Moore, who was seated to her right. Her father was on her left but he was already speaking in earnest with Mrs. Brething about Mr. Brething's horses. As the first course was brought in she kept her eye on Edwin, wondering when he'd realize what she'd done.
Chapter 6
Edwin was going to kill his wife. Slowly. Painfully.
Their party was four courses into dinner and he was starving.
He remembered with clarity the exact moment of his downfall, last week when she'd suddenly started acting amenable after a long conversation about his favorite dishes and those that he disliked. There was an astonishing lack of any of the former and a superfluity of the latter. Even those dishes he did enjoy, such as a good fish, had been rendered inedible to him by the mustard sauce. He hated mustard. She must have directed the chef to slather it on.
Mostly he'd pushed his food around on his plate, forced himself to take a few bites for politeness sake (and also because he was so hungry that even creamed turnips were starting to look appealing) and concentrated on entertaining his guests. Also on trying to keep the f
urious glitter from his eyes. He could see Eleanor watching him out of the corner of his eye but he refused to look at her. If he did he wouldn't be able to hide how furious he was with her.
Instead he concentrated on getting to know Miss Chandler better, a task made more difficult by the fact that it was becoming increasingly obvious that she and Eleanor's friend Lady Grace were acquainted and they did not enjoy each other's company. Personally, he didn't particularly enjoy Lady Grace's company either but he hadn't made the seating arrangements so he was stuck with her for now. The sly barbs that she'd tried to stick into Eleanor at the beginning of the evening had seemed to be just momentary female jealousy over the fact that her escort had been eying Eleanor's charms - which hadn't made him pleased with Conyngham either and even less pleased with Eleanor for giving him the opportunity.
It was obvious that Grace was used to having male attention focused on her although surely she'd shared with Eleanor in the past. The two of them set each other off beautifully with Grace's midnight hair against the sunlight golden strands of Eleanor's, the startlingly pale sky blue of Grace's eyes that looked almost violet to Eleanor's brighter sapphires. But Grace didn't seem to have the inner sweetness under the hard outer shell that he knew Eleanor possessed. While Eleanor might play at being a pampered spoiled brat there was much more to her beneath that; Grace was all crystalline hard edges, corrupted power... would this be what Eleanor could have become after a season of being labeled a Diamond of the First Water, with countless men falling at her feet and fighting to win her hand? Edwin was fervently grateful that he'd married Nell before she could become jaded and he had no intention of allowing her to do so now.
"Miss Chandler, I've been meaning to wish you happy on your engagement to the Viscount," Lady Grace said, but even the smile she graced upon Miss Chandler seemed to have a hard edge. Miss Chandler gripped her fork unnecessarily hard, Edwin noted, but showed no other reaction. "It must be such a relief to you and your family."
The slight paling of Miss Chandler's face made Edwin want to step in and save her but he couldn't help but feel that was Hugh's duty to protect his future bride from the sly reminder of the Chandler's financial situation. Unfortunately Hugh's attention was being taken up by Mrs. Chandler, who seemed to feel it her duty to keep her future son-in-law conversationally entertained. Going by the look on Hugh's face he probably would have preferred it if she hadn't.
"Thank you, Lady Brook," said Miss Chandler. Although her looks weren't to Edwin's taste, he had to admit she had the most amazing emerald eyes, right now they looked hard as diamonds as she tilted her head upwards to meet Lady Grace's gaze. "I appreciate hearing it from you personally, although Al- Lord Brook had already wished us happy on behalf of you both."
Conyngham choked on his wine and Lady Grace looked like she might actually leap across the table at Miss Chandler. Mentioning Grace’s husband was almost guaranteed to send her flying across the handle. And had Miss Chandler almost referred to him by his Christian name? If so it must mean that she knew him well, was perhaps even close friends. Brooke’s lands were near to her family’s estate after all. Why on earth had Eleanor seated these two anywhere near each other? Unless she didn't know... it was possible that the guilty look on her face was just for starving him, not for both starving him and giving him miserable company. There were undercurrents between these two women that threatened to disrupt the entire dinner party if he didn't do something to stop them now.
"And I'm pleased to welcome you to the family," he said cheerfully, cutting the tension as best he could with false brevity. "Not just because Eleanor's my wife. Hugh and I have been like brothers for years. Has he told you about the time we tried to make a pig's bladder explode in his tutor's closet?"
"No," said Miss Chandler, turning her wide green eyes to him. There wasn't any real interest in her face, but that hadn't been the point anyway.
"Edwin, don't you dare or I'll tell her about the time you tried to convince Eleanor the house was haunted," Hugh threatened. As Edwin had expected, the mere mention of the bladder incident had garnered Hugh's attention away from Mrs. Chandler and back to paying proper attention to Miss Chandler, which meant that Edwin could get back to focusing on ways to kill his wife.
With a little wave, he summoned one of the footmen over.
"What's the next course?"
"Beef rubbed with pepper and mustard seeds -"
Edwin shook his head, cutting the man off and sending him back to his place. His wife was going to have a red hot bottom to match her dress tonight.
********
Although she did her best to avoid her husband Eleanor didn't move quite quickly enough as the women headed to the drawing room to leave the men to retreat to the library and their cigars and port. She let out a little squeak as her husband gripped her upper arm, pulling her into one of the hallway alcoves as the rest of the ladies tittered and chattered their way to the other room.
"I'm sorry," she said immediately, gasping for air as the shock of how quickly he'd caught her reverberated through her. The words came automatically as she realized she was a bit frightened; no matter how angry he might be it wasn’t like Edwin to ignore the rules of proper behavior, not with an audience. Had she pushed him farther than she’d meant to?
"If you're not now, you will be later," he said a little grimly. "But that's not why I'm here."
"It's not?" she asked, relaxing a little bit, but then she looked up into his hooded dark eyes and realized that she shouldn't have relaxed at all. All signs said danger. There was no heat in Edwin's eyes, not of passion or anger, just icy coldness that seemed to slice right through her to the bone. Never before had she seen him look at her like that, as if she was a stranger.