‘And does the lady have a name?’
Freddie put down his glass and clasped his hands together. He said ecstatically. ‘Miss Fairchild, but she allows me to call her Lya!’
‘Leah, the name of Jacob’s wife, in the Bible?’ Tristan raised an eyebrow and said drily, ‘I believe that means weary, in Hebrew.’
Freddie shook his head, saying impatiently, ‘No, no, that’s not it at all. Quite absurd. Her name is Natalya, but those close to her use the shortened form.’ His face relaxed into another blissful smile. ‘Lya.’
With a great effort of will Tristan forbore to tease him. ‘You had best tell me where it was you first saw the lady.’
‘It was just as we were leaving the theatre. Gore’s parents had hired a box for us to see Macbeth. I am not a lover of Shakespeare, but it would have been churlish not to go. At the end, Gore and I waited in the foyer for Mr and Mrs Conyer to join us. They know everyone in Bath, you see, and it took them an age to make their way to the door. But that’s by the bye! I happened to look round and there she was, making her way out of the theatre with an old lady wearing the most outmoded fashions!’
He noted Tristan’s look of surprise and laughed. ‘No, it wasn’t Natalya in the odd clothes. She was looking very elegant in cream muslin, but her companion was dressed in the most shocking bright green creation and a headpiece bedecked with any number of feathers and ribbons. That’s what attracted my attention, to begin with, until I saw Miss Fairchild. Our eyes met and...that was it. I knew I was in love—’ He broke off and gave a loud sigh. ‘Oh, Tristan, if you could only have been there.’
‘I am glad I was not,’ retorted his uncle, grimacing. ‘I think I might have been very unwell!’
Freddie waved this aside. ‘I mean I wish you could have seen her. Then you would understand. She is the most beautiful creature! Face and figure quite perfect. Dark hair, coal-black eyes, an ivory complexion—exquisite!’
‘So what did you do?’
‘What could I do? I touched my hat as she went past.’
‘You disappoint me. I thought you would have immediately stepped up and demanded an introduction.’
‘If only I could have done so! Good God, Tris, I am not so lost to all good manners, you know. As it happens, it was a good thing I didn’t jump in. Mrs Conyer told me the old lady is Mrs Ancrum, one of Bath’s most respected residents and a stickler for propriety. Fortunately, the Conyers are acquainted with her and they presented me when we...er...happened to meet in the Pump Room.’
Tristan felt a smile tugging at his lips. ‘Goodness me. Shakespeare, the Pump Room—you grow old before your time, Nevvy.’
Freddie grinned. ‘I am merely getting in practice for when I have to take you there, my aged guardian! But enough funning.’ He put down his empty glass and leaned forward, fixing Tristan with his trusting blue eyes. ‘Tris, I am serious about this, I want to make her an offer, but I need to make sure I have your permission, first.’
‘And your mother’s agreement. She is your guardian, too, remember.’
‘Yes, yes, but Mama will not be a problem. She would never deny me my happiness. But that is not the only thing, I do not gain control of my inheritance until I reach five-and-twenty, so, until that time, I shall need an increase in my allowance, if I am to set up my own establishment.’
‘Naturally,’ murmured Tristan. ‘What do we know of Miss Fairchild, save that she is the most beautiful female you have ever clapped eyes on? What relation is she to this Mrs Ancrum?’
‘None. Natalya is an orphan. She lives in Sydney Place with her aunt and uncle. Mr and Mrs Pridham. They live very quietly, but they are perfectly respectable. And you are not to be thinking they have been putting Natalya in my way. Quite the opposite, in fact. She is closely chaperoned whenever she goes abroad, at balls she is permitted no more than two dances with any gentleman, and whenever I have called at the house Mrs Pridham ensures we are never alone. They never give one the least encouragement.’ His cheerful, open countenance clouded slightly. ‘To be frank, they are downright discouraging! That is why I want to make sure I have your blessing before I proceed.’
‘And have you mentioned it to your mother?’
‘Not yet. She has been in London with Grandmama, did you know?’
‘Yes. She wrote to tell me she had watched the procession of King Louis from Hyde Park to Grillon’s.’ Tristan’s mouth turned down. ‘I have no doubt the crowds will be even worse when the rest of the Allied Sovereigns arrive in June.’
Freddie waved this aside as an irrelevance. ‘She should be back at Frimley any day now, so I am on my way there to see her.’ He gave Tristan a boyish smile. ‘I thought I would stop off first and talk to you. I know that if you do not object, Mama will be happy.’
‘And how long do you plan to remain at Frimley?’
‘Oh, a week, perhaps two.’ He added, shyly, ‘I thought, when I return to Bath, I might take with me an invitation from Mama for Natalya to visit her at Frimley.’
‘I see.’
Tristan sat back and sipped his wine, digesting all he had heard. He was loath to dash Freddie’s hopes, but he was sure that his sister Katherine would be aghast at the idea of her only son taking a bride about whom they knew nothing.
He said, ‘I think it behoves us to find out a little more about the lady before you ask my sister for her blessing.’
‘Pridham is a gentleman and Lya is accepted everywhere in
