Walter gave no response other than a nod of his head in acknowledgement, and then went directly to his study to be alone.
He had no thoughts of working. Too much was on his mind to even consider it. He couldn’t even decide if he was less uncomfortable sitting or pacing since any position seemed equally uneasy.
When he heard the carriage departing again, he decided he needed to get out of the house himself. There was no planned event taking place that evening, so if he went to Huxley’s and indulged himself in a few drinks, he could return home and sleep it off.
However, he didn’t want to ride the London streets at night on horseback, should he decide to stay longer, though he had no intention of drinking so much that staying upright on a horse would present a challenge. Therefore, he quickly arranged for a carriage.
Soon enough, he was in Huxley’s and sitting at one of the tables, his emotions swinging back and forth between hope and complete despair about Georgiana and whether she would agree to hear his apology.
He inwardly cursed the terrible rumor, as well as his own flaws, which had caused him to lose the love of his life. There was no doubt in his mind he would never love again as he had loved her.
Suddenly, his train of thought was interrupted. “Why, Walter? Fancy seeing you here again, lad.”
Walter turned to see his friend Henry taking a seat at his table. However, he was unable to properly smile to greet him, simply turning back to his glass and taking another drink.
“Oh, so it has been one of those days, has it?” Henry asked as he dropped his smile. “Do you want to tell me about it or distract yourself?”
After a moment’s consideration, he decided on the latter. “I think I need to place a little distance between me and my… problem. If you can even call it a problem. It is more like a colossal, ridiculous mistake which makes me doubt my own common sense.”
“Right, then. I can help with that. Just sitting here with a drink might be dulling your pain a little, but it is not going to really get your mind onto something else. So, come on,” Henry said, rising from the table himself.
“And where are we going? I truly don’t feel hitting anything will help on this occasion. I don’t want to hit anyone but myself at the moment.”
“Well, there are other options. Be my partner in a game or two of whist. That will force your mind to concentrate on something else,” he replied and led the way towards the whist tables.
“I don’t think I will make a very good partner just now. In fact, I can assure you we will lose.”
“Oh, I don’t care about that. It will be more glory for me if we do win. Sit down here and trust me to find us two people who are simply passing the time here, with no real desire for a challenging game.”
Walter sat as instructed, while his friend left to carry out his plan. There was only time enough to order another drink before Henry returned with two other gentlemen and a deck of cards.
Fortunately, no one seemed to expect him to partake in the light conversation the others kept up while the game was in progress, nor was there any offense shown the handful of times he played a wrong card. Walter found, after a while, he was able to think more clearly about his play.
A few more drinks and two games later, he had become quite interested in the game of whist. His playing improved as a result, and his mood seemed to benefit, as well.
Though he spent the rest of the evening drinking and playing several more rounds of whist, in the back of his mind, he never once stopped thinking about Georgiana. He wished he could turn back time and go home to her as his wife that minute, instead of trying to drown out the painful thoughts of her…
Chapter 17
Ambrose tried to hide his annoyance as the carriage finally took Jonas and himself back to Irvington Manor. If Jonas noticed, it was likely passed over as simply the result of a long day. But Ambrose felt much more than merely the fatigue of a long day…
Though he had learned quite a bit from listening to Georgiana as she had learned more about horses, they had never really held much interest for him.
Therefore, being all but forced to look at horses when he could have been spending time with Georgiana, had made the day one of the least pleasant of the week for him.
Finally, he saw Irvington Manor coming into view, and he shifted himself towards the edge of his seat in anticipation of being able to see how Georgiana was faring. While he hoped the day had gone smoothly for her, at the same time, he also hoped he had been missed at least a little.
As might have been expected, Ambrose was the first one out of the carriage, though he paced himself, so he didn’t enter the manor too far in advance of Jonas. He saw Adelaide there to greet them, but there was no sign of Georgiana.
She must have noticed his expression. “Georgiana is taking a bath I don’t know if she has finished yet, but she should be down for dinner in an hour. Will you be joining us, as well?”
“Thank you, I think I shall, though I should probably freshen up first,” he replied as he glanced down at how dusty he looked this time at the busy auction.
Adelaide laughed and then pointed at both him and her husband. “I think both of you could stand a change of clothes. Go on up to the room we keep here for you. I am certain we have some of your clothes here you can change into.”
Ambrose nodded and headed towards the staircase as, behind him, Jonas tried unsuccessfully to hug his wife, who refused to let him close enough and ordered him to change first.
Just as he reached the top of the stairs, his mind wandering to what attire he might have at the house appropriate for dinner, he paused at the sight of someone walking in his direction.
With a greeting on the edge of his tongue, his breath caught at the sight of Georgiana dressed in a pale blue evening dress, her hair still slightly damp, and a bright smile lighting up her face.
He pulled himself together enough to stop gawking at her, though his heart was still beating a rapid staccato. “You look incredible,” he told her, inwardly wincing at the amount of awe he heard in his own voice.
Georgiana seemed not to even notice, simply smiling more brightly, with no blush of self-consciousness, “Why, thank you, Ambrose. At first, I was simply going to put on something comfortable, but then I decided I felt like letting Lucy dress me up prettily.”
Ambrose felt his stomach sink as, once again, she took his compliment as one a brother might make. However, he did his best to swallow the feeling. “Your aunt told me I might not see you until dinner.”
“Perhaps the thought you and uncle have returned may have hastened my preparations for dinner a little. I did want to talk with you about today…”
“You have my full attention,” he said, leaning up against the balustrade.