“It’s a very long story,” Sophie explained. “But the long and short of it is, Lord Loudor has been stealing from my father in a positively reprehensible and revoltingly legal manner.”
“Well,” Mirabelle replied, clearly searching for something, anything, to say. “Well.”
As there was nothing intelligent she could add to that, Sophie turned to Kate. “Are you upset with me, Kate?”
Kate shook her head mutely but emphatically.
“Well,” Mirabelle said again. “Perhaps it would help if you told us the whole story.”
Sophie did just that. Well, not everything, precisely. Prudence dictated she keep the bit about spying for the Prince Regent to herself. But she told them everything else. There didn’t seem any reason not to. In fact, it would probably have been wrong to hold back, since she was going to ask for their help. And it felt so very good, as if she were easing a little of the burden onto someone else’s shoulders.
“I’ve gone over all my options,” she said, after reciting the day’s events, “and I think…I know, that the only solution is to marry, and marry quickly. By the terms, the ridiculous terms, set out by the courts, if I find a husband before the age of five-and-twenty, Whitefield falls to me.”
Mirabelle gave a thoughtful nod of agreement.
Kate, whose stunned expression hadn’t changed since she closed her mouth, let out an audible whoosh of air, blinked once, then said, “Well,” giving Sophie the impression that the poor girl was several steps behind in the conversation.
“Are you sure you’re not cross with me, Kate?”
“Oh, quite,” Kate replied earnestly. “I was just a bit stunned that’s all. But I’m fine now, really.” To prove her point, Kate reached for a clean cup and saucer and poured Sophie another cup of tea. “How can Mira and I help?”
Sophie felt like crying with relief and gratitude. There wasn’t so much as a whisper of uncertainty in Kate’s voice. She hadn’t hesitated a moment before offering assistance. She hadn’t even waited for Sophie to ask. And by Mirabelle’s expression, Sophie guessed her to be every bit as determined as Kate.
“I know,” Kate said, not waiting for Sophie to reply. “We can apply to my mother. She knows everyone, and this is just the sort of project she delights in, matchmaking that is. She’d find you a husband in a trice.”
“Perhaps,” Sophie mumbled evasively. Lady Thurston was a lovely woman, but Sophie wasn’t entirely comfortable involving Kate’s mother in her tangle of problems. “I had hoped the two of you might know of some suitable gentlemen.”
Mirabelle nodded and stood. “We’ll need to make a list,” she stated, crossing over to a small writing desk to retrieve paper, ink, and quill. “Best to keep your mother out of this for now, Kate,” she said handing the supplies to Sophie and resuming her seat. “I love her dearly, but the woman is a prodigious gossip.”
“That’s true,” Kate admitted. “Very well, whom do we know, or rather whom do you know, Mirabelle? As I’m not out yet and by all rights shouldn’t know any gentlemen.”
“Thanks to your mother, however, you know of every gentleman within a hundred-mile radius,” Mirabelle replied.
“Yes, but I learn the best bits from you and Evie.”
“Er, before we start,” Sophie began, hoping they were going to start sometime soon, “I think I should mention a few…requirements.”
Kate and Sophie looked at her expectantly.
“I know beggars can’t be choosers, but…”
Kate cut her off with a dismissive wave of her hand. “A girl needs to have some standards, of course. What are yours?”
Sophie stalled by clearing her throat. She only had one standard, but it was both demanding and nonnegotiable. “I intend to return to my father at the end of the season, next spring at the very latest. I need a husband who is willing to let me go.” She braced herself for their response.
“Oh,” Mirabelle replied quietly. Kate said nothing but shot a quick look to Mirabelle.
“I know it’s a lot to ask of a new husband,” Sophie continued, “but I have the town house and Whitehall as a dowry, and I am the daughter of a viscount.”
“It’s not that, Sophie,” Kate explained. “It’s just…we had so been looking forward to having you around.”
Sophie felt inordinately pleased. “That,” she said, “is quite the nicest thing anyone has said to me in a very long time. Thank you.”
Kate blushed adorably. “Well,” she said affecting a nonchalant air, “I am a very nice person.”
Mirabelle snorted. “You spend too much time in Evie’s company to be a truly nice person. Now, as much as I’ll hate to see you go, Sophie, I’d hate it even more to see you go and Lord Loudor stay in your house. We should start that list.”