Malcolm followed his gaze. The skies were grey, the clouds impenetrable. The threat of rain hung heavy in the air.
He smiled grimly. “It rarely does.”
17
Selina had expected the days of voting in Twynham to be arduous, but they proved even worse than she had predicted. She had not accounted for the shadow Malcolm had cast on her own spirits, nor the discouraging prospect of certain loss for Mr Forrester. The first was a private woe; the latter was shared by all his supporters. But she rallied to the challenge as she always did, feigning smiles she did not feel and spending hours outside the Town Hall entreating the voters.
Now, with only hours to go until the results were announced, Anthea had finally persuaded her and their chief campaigners to take a little luncheon in Twynham’s finest inn. Excepting Mrs Forrester’s reddened eyes, no one would have guessed they were facing defeat. Mr Forrester was regaling the gathering with anecdotes of his time as a student, drawing humour from even the driest situations and making Selina gladder than ever that she had chosen to support him. For her own part, Selina was determined to seem cheerful, though she could not feel it.
The last thing she wanted was for Malcolm to hear that she had spent the days of the election sighing with regret.
“Allow me to serve you a little more trout, my lady,” said Lord Louis, who was seated beside her. “There really is no finer way to bolster oneself for the final push than a hearty meal!”
Every bite of the delicious spread before them had turned to dust in Selina’s mouth, but she nodded and thanked Lord Louis for his thoughtfulness.
“There are still plenty of voters expected to turn out later today,” Louis was saying, as happily as though he truly believed there was any way they could resist Sir Roderick. “We must keep up our energy and our spirits to the last!”
“I cannot thank you enough for your support in the past few days, my lord,” said Selina. “I am sure your presence has made a world of difference.”
Louis blushed and shook his head. “My presence is hardly worth tuppence where these mercurial men are concerned, my lady. I am neither known as a great mind nor the heir to a great fortune, and greatness – of whichever sort – is what seems to tempt them.” His blustering cheerfulness faltered a moment. “I am only sorry that I could not do more.”
“Nonsense. You have been a great boon to the final days of our campaign! All the more so because your help was so unexpected.”
Louis shifted uncomfortably. He set down his knife and fork and spoke soft and low with shame. “It would have been still more unexpected to find me speaking out against Sir Roderick and denouncing his bribery. That, I know, would have been the noble thing to do. And yet I have not.”
“You would not have achieved anything by it,” said Selina. Louis shook his head ruefully.
“No. What’s the word of an earl’s younger son against that of –” He glanced sideways at Selina. “No, I still cannot do it. I cannot speak ill of my friend, though I know he has done wrong.”
“His Grace of Caversham is not at fault for Sir Roderick’s behaviour,” said Selina, calm and even. “Perhaps it is uncharitable for us to wish that he had cast Sir Roderick out. Even dukes must have companionship, after all. It speaks highly of the duke that he has forgiven Sir Roderick.”
“I fear it would have been much better for him to abandon the man.” Louis took up his cutlery again, the prospect of a little more food bringing the light back to his eyes. “However, there is no use crying over what cannot be helped. I am surprised to hear you speak so well of Caversham, my lady. I had the impression that you and he…” He stopped to chew on a piece of potato, and his eyes widened as though he had only just realised what he was saying. He swallowed hard. “In any case, I think you have the right idea. Companionship is precisely what Caversham needs. He’ll never admit it, but he knows as much himself. Why, the way he spoke of your brother’s wife after that lovely ball she threw for the ambassador!” Louis gesticulated expressively with his fork. “Ah, what a night that was! Caversham told me the following day that he would never settle for anyone less accomplished when he came to choose his own duchess.”
“Really?” Selina’s lips tightened around her polite smile. She knew perfectly well that Malcolm had not assigned any credit for the ball to Daisy.
“Oh, he was quite forthright on the subject. ‘A woman who could pour her heart into a ball like that – and all for the benefit of another,’ he said to me. ‘I might never deserve her, but I have always considered her the only woman worth having.’” Louis dabbed the corner of his mouth with a handkerchief. “‘Well, Caversham,’ I told him, ‘you’ve missed the boat there. You never glanced at the girl when she was Miss Daisy Morton. If you meant to catch her, you went about it entirely wrong.’ And he laughed, but not happily, I think. In fact, I’ve rarely seen him so forlorn.”
Selina laid her hands in her lap so that Louis would not see them tremble. “Does he often talk that way about ladies he admires?”
“Never! That’s why it struck me so. Caversham’s never been the sort to get sentimental over a woman.” Louis stopped to take a sip of wine. “But I must admit, he is precisely the sort to give his heart to a woman he can never have. That would be truly typical. He’s always been his
