A Season for Honour

Chapter 9

Alex glanced over at Lady Kendall. She was still talking to the austere Miss Sydenham, who was looking at him with disapproval. Of course, she had every right to look at him with daggers in his eyes, he had been laughing with the very beautiful Lady Kendall when she had entered the gallery a few minutes ago.

His lips twitched as he watched her stifle a laugh. No doubt she was getting a scold from the old dragon and was finding it amusing.

'Come Charles, Olivia,' he had heard her call out across the gallery, 'Miss Sydenham will take you upstairs, and I am certain that nurse will have brought you both up a glass of milk.'

'Oh, Mama,' Olivia said with evident disappointment in her voice, 'do we have to stop? I was having so much fun.

'Listen to your Mama, you scamp,' Captain Fallbrook said affectionately to her, 'we can always have another lesson another day.'

'Can we?' she said her frown turning to a smile, 'I would like that very much.'

'Then run along to the schoolroom,' he said jovially, 'and enjoy that glass of milk.'

Once the children had left, along with the dour-looking Miss Sydenham, he turned to face Lady Kendall. 'Shall we carry on with the lesson?' he asked her as he picked up one of the discarded foils and gave it to her.

'I thought we had finished the lesson,' she said, looking at him with surprise.

'We have only just started,' he replied mischievously, holding out the foil for her to take.

He saw her walk over to him slowly and gingerly take the foil from his hand. 'Here, put this on,' he said as he held out face mask.

'What did the austere governess say to you?' he asked as she was about to put on the mask.

'Oh,' she said rather hesitatingly, 'we were discussing the children.'

'Mmm,' he answered. He could have guessed what Miss Sydenham had been telling her: she had been warning her about him. But, he could hardly blame her.

'She is right you know,' he then said as he looked at her thoughtfully.

He saw a blush creep into her cheeks. 'She means well,' she replied.

'No doubt, she was warning you about me,' he said with a smile. 'I am dangerous.'

'You heard what she said?' she answered a little taken aback.

'Enough to hear you telling her that you can look after yourself,' he replied laughing at her.

'Well,' Lady Kendall said lifting-up her chin to look at him directly, 'I am six and twenty, I am old enough to look after myself.'

He was somewhat taken aback by what she had said. She was six and twenty, and her children were ten. How was that possible? She must have been sixteen years old when she gave birth to her children.

For the first time in years, he was beginning to feel pangs of guilt stabbing at him. The only reason why he had asked her to stay after the children had left, was to seduce her. When he had been forced to leave London, he had thought that the only possibility of relieving his boredom, would be to beguile the widow with his charm. But, as she looked at him with her big brown eyes, he was beginning to feel the first pangs of remorse. It was not a feeling that he was accustomed to, and he tried to suppress the growing sense of unease that was welling up in him. He was in no doubt that she had been ill-used by Lord Kendall and he felt that she deserved better than a cad like him. But, can a leopard change his spots? Of course not. Just like a man cannot change the darkness that resides deep in his soul. Once one had been exposed to the wickedness of the world and had partaken in all its immorality, it was difficult, almost impossible to stop. Anyway, why should he? She was, after all, a beautiful and desirable woman, and he had been celibate for far too long.