The Duke And His Four Wards

Chapter 3.2

   Their drive in the Park the next afternoon was engineered by the experienced Lady Hillsborough to be tantalizingly brief. As predicted, the sight of four ravishing females in the Twyford barouche caused an immediate impact. As the carriage sedately bowled along the avenues, heads rapidly came together in the carriages they passed. Conversations between knots of elegant gentlemen and the more dashing of ladies who had descended from heir carriages to stroll about the well-tended lawns halted in midsentence as all eyes turned to follow the Twyford barouche.

   Amelia, happily aware of the stir they were causing, sat in he maroon leather seat and struggled to keep the grin from her face. Her charges were attired in a spectrum of delicate colours, for all the world like a post of gorgeous blooms. The subtle peach if Margaret's round gown gave way to the soft turquoise tints if Sophia's. Maribella has favoured a gown of the most delicate rose muslin while Emma sat, like a quiet bluebell, nodding happily amid her sisters. In the soft spring sunshine, they looked like refugees from the fairy kingdom, too exquisite to be flesh and blood. Amelia lost her struggle and grinned widely at her fanciful thoughts. Then her eyes alighted on a landau drawn up to the side of the carriageway. She raised her parasol and tapped her coachman on the shoulder. "Pull up over there."

   Thus it happened that Sally, Lady Copper and Mary, Lady Bolton, enjoying a comfortable cose in the afternoon sunshine, were the first to meet the Fleming sisters. As the Twyford carriage drew up, the eyes of both experienced matrons grew round.

   Amelia notes their response with satisfaction. She seized the opportunity to perform the introductions, ending with, "Twyford's wards, you know."

   The information, so casually dropped, clearly stunned both ladies. "Twyford's?" echoed Lady Bolton. Her mild eyes, up to now transfixed by the spectacle that was the Fleming sisters, shifted in bewilderment to Lady Hillsborough's face. "How on earth...?"

   In a few well-chosen sentences, Amelia told her. Once their ladyships had recovered from their amusement, both at once promised voucher for the girls to attend Almack's.

   "My dear, if you girls attend, we'll have to lay on more refreshments. The gentlemen will be there in droves," said Lady Copper, smiling in genuine amusement.

   "Who knows? We might even prevail in Twyford himself to attend," mused Lady Bolton.

   While Amelia thought that might be stretching things a bit far, she was thankful for the immediate backing her two old friends had given her crusade to find four fashionable husbands for the Flemings. The carriages remained together for some time as the two patronesses of Almack's learned more of His Grace of Twyford's wards. Amelia was relieved to find that all four girls could converse with ease. The two younger sisters prettily deferred to the elder two, allowing the more experienced Margaret, ably seconded by Sophia, to dominate the responses.

   When they finally parted, Amelia gave the order to return to Mount Street. "Don't want to rush it," she explained to four enquiring glanced. "Much better to let them come to us."