She had thought at the time that the code and the meetings made what they shared more special—keeping it private and between the two of them. But now she saw it for what it was—a means to keep the relationship clandestine until it was far too late for anyone to intervene. And when it had ended, she had been ruined, in the gutter, but he had remained a pillar of society.
‘You are misconstruing my words and their meaning.’
‘Am I?’ He raised his eyebrow higher and she felt the heat begin to gather on her cheeks.
‘Yes, I sought to explain why it would be impossible to meet.’ Louisa regained control of her body. She refused to be attracted to him. ‘I will send you the letter. There will be no need to meet after that. I will return to Sorrento and our lives will go on as before, our paths never crossing.’
‘A forlorn hope, Miss Sibson,’ Jonathon said. ‘You will not get rid of me that easily.’
‘Watch me.’
‘A challenge.’ He put his tea cup down. ‘Good. I love it when you issue challenges. Watch and learn, Miss Sibson. Afterwards, and in private, we can discuss how easy I will be to dissuade.’
Louisa shifted slightly on the sofa, feeling that she had played into his hands.
‘Miss Elliot,’ Jonathon said, giving a loud cough.
The entire room went still. ‘Yes, Lord Chesterholm?’
Silently Louisa prayed that Jonathon was not going to do anything untoward, not with Mrs Blandish in the room.
‘I understand that you spent some time in the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. Did you manage to collect any Roman cameos? My late great-uncle had a collection and, since his death, I have developed an interest and I am eager to learn more.’
Louisa stared at Jonathon. Since when had he become interested in cameos? He had been far more interested in racing and placing bets, living the life of an overly indulged son. She doubted if he could even name any of the Roman emperors.
‘My sister was a keen collector. It was how we first met Arthur Fanshaw.’ Miss Daphne waved an arm. ‘I am afraid I did not have the head for it. All Latin and Greek. Louisa is the woman to speak to about such things. In her last years, my late sister relied on Louisa’s eye.’
‘Miss Mattie and I travelled to inspect the diggings at Pompeii and Herculaneum.’ Louisa’s shoulders relaxed slightly. Jonathon had miscalculated. She could easily turn the talk to her travels. The days she and Miss Mattie had spent in Pompeii with Mount Vesuvius gently billowing smoke in the background had been some of the most pleasant of her life.
‘Are the ruins as good as they say?’ Miss Nella Blandish asked, sticking her face between Louisa and Jonathon. ‘Miss Milton told me all about them. How you can walk the streets. And how they have put the skeletons that they found in various places just as they would have been.’
‘With Herculaneum, you have to descend stairs and go underground,’ Louisa said, expounding on the theme. A few more minutes and the allotted time for a visit would be up. Jonathon would be forced to make his excuses and leave. ‘The guides carry torches. But Pompeii is exactly like walking a deserted street. They say that there’s over a hundred years of digging to be done. Miss Mattie found several pieces for her collection there, including a very lovely Psyche.’
‘And are they here?’ Jonathon asked, breaking into the conversation. ‘Or have they remained in Sorrento? I have heard rumours about certain Roman cameos that she might have had in her possession. I believe she outbid my late uncle on one or two pieces.’
‘Oh, yes, my sister did enjoy besting your late uncle!’ Miss Daphne clapped her hands. ‘And you are clever to guess that Louisa brought a few pieces with her, including the Herculaneum ones. Not the whole collection, just a few to show honoured guests.’
‘And Miss Sibson is now the expert.’ Jonathon wore a superior expression. ‘She knows the ins and outs … of the cameos.’
Louisa’s next remark about the delights of Pompeii died on her lips as Miss Daphne started frantically gesturing to her. ‘I will show the collection to Lord Chesterholm, Miss Daphne.’
‘That would be a good idea,’ Miss Daphne murmured with an approving glint in her eye.
‘May I come as well?’ Miss Nella Blandish asked. ‘I am going to be a lady explorer. Some day I am going to find a lost city. It will be much more interesting than being in society and marrying some stupid titled peer as Susan wants to.’
Mrs Blandish blanched. ‘No, Nella, you can stay here with me. You have done quite enough exploring for one summer. We had best be going. Susan will be attending the Assembly Rooms ball this evening and must make her preparations. Are you going, Miss Sibson?’
‘I am otherwise engaged … with the study of the cameos,’ Louisa said, banishing all thoughts of how Jonathon had once taught her to waltz.
‘Some other time. And the gentlemen?’
‘A pity that I am otherwise engaged,’ Lord Furniss said with a bow.
‘I shall be returning to Chesterholm in the morning and wish to make an early start.’ Jonathon looked directly at her. ‘Provided nothing detains me.’
‘I once went to Chesterholm as a young girl. It is a magical place with a Cedar of Lebanon in the centre of a maze,’ Miss Daphne proclaimed after the Blandishes had departed.
‘I was unaware you had a direct connection to Chesterholm, Miss Elliot,’ Jonathon said with an astonished look.
‘The cameos. You wished to see the collection,’ Louisa said quickly as she spotted a deepening gleam in Miss Daphne’s eye.
‘Louisa, be quick about showing Lord Chesterholm the cameos. Rupert, I want to speak to you about your mother’s letters.’ Miss Daphne made an irritated sound. ‘Honoria has written to me again about candles! I am not a blushing school miss to be reprimanded. I was once though, years ago when we went to Chesterholm. I suppose I shall never see Chesterholm again.’
Louisa sucked in her breath at the blatant attempt at securing an invitation. What was Miss Daphne doing? Not cause scandal, but matchmake. Miss Daphne had always proclaimed she was a dab hand at it. Louisa concentrated on the pug figurine. Any matchmaking tendencies had to be nipped in the bud. But she would redirect Miss Daphne’s attention later, after Jonathon had departed, chagrined and chastened.
‘This way, if you please, Lord Chesterholm.’ Louisa made a flourish with her hand. ‘The cameos I brought with me are in the library. It is reckoned to be as fine as any collection of cameos in Sorrento, if not the Kingdom of Two Sicilies.’
‘I await the collection with eagerness. My uncle felt the loss of a “Psyche undergoing her trials” cameo to Miss Mattie with particular keenness.’
‘I hadn’t realised you were interested in Roman remains, Lord Chesterholm,’ Louisa said as they started down the passage towards the library.
‘Chesterholm lies beside a Roman fort. Unfortunately, my late uncle had the remains of the Roman village swept away. He wanted an uninterrupted view down to the Tyne.’
‘And you disapprove.’
‘I have an interest in preserving the ancient. I am hoping to prove that the wall was indeed built by Hadrian.’
Louisa stared at him. The Jonathon she remembered had been interested in having a good time, drinking and pretty women. He had had little time for history, declaring it to be dull fodder for growing minds. And now he wanted to prove that the wall had been built by Hadrian.
‘Miss Mattie liked cameos—both the Roman paste type and the