Lori was not the only one carrying this thought of Wade's romantic entanglement. Alice Flinn was irritable and anxious and often wandered about the manor, spying on the young man with a longing look in her enormous eyes.
"When he speaks to me, he's as sweetly charming as ever, but... Oh, Ellyn! I fear I've lost at attaining his heart!"
"And how impolite of him to make his preference so obvious!" cried Poe, though she knew very well it wasn't true since he made time to take her hunting some days ago and what a riot they'd had! But do what she may, Ellyn could not comfort the distraught Alice who glared at Miss Brightley maliciously at breakfast each morning. Thankfully, the ever-observant Garin, who'd witnessed the tension one evening when he'd made one of his now rare appearances, mentioned the upcoming ball after dinner.
"It will be a sensation, no doubt," he said with a smile for the hostess. "Mr. and Mrs. Lambert's soirees were always an exciting event in Harwickshire. I've heard there hasn't been one to rival them."
"Garin hadn't had the pleasure of partake in our balls," Mr. Lambert informed everyone present as he took Lori on his knee. "He was always off somewhere—either visiting Mrs. Garin in London or relatives in Irkutskov."
Ellyn Poe, who was admiring Lori's delicate braids, let her surprised gaze wander towards the doctor.
"I had no idea you were wedded, sir. Why, darling Lori had said—"
"My esteemed mother also carries the family name, Miss Poe. She's a rather scrupulous woman and refuses to travel at any time of the year but mid spring in order to avoid the harsh winters there."
"Is that so?" she enquired further, grateful for the extended bit of information to cover her flushed embarrassment under his penetrating gaze. "And are the winters in Russia truly bitter, then?"
He smiled at some distant memory.
"That would depend on what one considers 'bitter' cold, Miss Poe. To my mother, however, it may prove too much, which is why she prefers the safety of spring. 'It is neither too cold to frost one's brittle bones nor too heated to roast one alive,' are her decisive reasonings."
Miss Poe and Mrs. Lambert laughed at the eccentricity of the doctor's mother, both curious about what the woman was like in person.
He leaned forward, lowering his voice. "I've often told her she wouldn't survive the colds in Russia, but she insists someday soon she'll travel with me for the satisfaction of having donned a papakha."
Everyone laughed except Lori, who turned in her father's lap to enquire of her mother what a parka was.
Mrs. Lambert, having supplied her daughter with an answer, turned to the doctor.
"You must convince your mother to come down for the ball, Garin, and if she should refuse, I'll schedule a time for her to visit us in mid spring. Why, Lori was two last time we were in London."
The doctor gave a half nod.
"I will endeavour to do so, Mrs. Lambert."
"Why were we in London, Mama?"
"Your father had business, dear, and we settled at Ruthing Hall to be closer. Now, no more interruptions, dear. The grownups are having a conversation now."
"Yes, Mama."
Wade poured his mother a drink before giving Lori a discreet wink, ignoring his father's displeased look.
"Thank you, Wade, dear." She savoured her drink with an expression of pure contentment. "Mary Abbott was telling me the other day that all seven of her sons planned to attend the ball this year. And she had quite the task of getting gowns for all five of her girls. The poor woman was a nervous wreck when I called on her!"
YOU ARE READING
Bride of Choice
Historical Fiction[Cover Design by Angel S.] Wade Lambert was known throughout the enchanting countryside of Harwickshire by friends and relatives alike to be the perfect epitome of trouble. And his handsome features and air of sophistication did not help matters as...
