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The Irish Duke (The Peer of the Realm Trilogy) - Softcover

Buch 2 von 3: The Peer of the Realm Trilogy

Henley, Virginia

 
9780451230508: The Irish Duke (The Peer of the Realm Trilogy)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0451230507 ISBN 13: 9780451230508
Verlag: Berkley, 2011

Inhaltsangabe

Lady Louisa scoffed when James Hamilton, Lord Abercorn of Ireland, asked for her hand. They feisty, black-haired beauty would have none of it...

James Hamilton, heir to the Irish dynasty, yearns for Lady Louisa. The finest beauty in all of England refuses everyone. But family scandal tests Louisa's loyalty-throwing her reluctantly into Hamilton's arms, with consequences she never expected...

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Virginia Henley is a New York Times bestselling author and the recipient of numerous awards, including the Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award. Her novels have been translated into fourteen languages. A grandmother of three, she lives in St. Petersburg, Florida, with her husband.

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Prologue

Montagu House, London

August 1894

“Wouldn’t you love to know?” Dowager Duchess Louisa winked at her two great-granddaughters who were whispering about her.

The pair blushed hotly when they realized Lu had overheard them wondering how many lovers she’d had in her eighty-odd years.

The trés grande dame was presiding over a levee of her one hundred and one descendants.

“After all, I belonged to the decadent Georgian era. You cannot expect me to even pay lip service to the rigid respectability of the repressed Victorians.”

“Is it true, Your Grace, that you declined the office of Mistress of the Robes to her Majesty the Queen?” Maud asked in awe.

Lu threw back her head and laughed. “Not once, but twice. One of my greatest passions is beautiful raiment in brilliant colors, such as red. Just the thought of Queen Victoria’s dull and dowdy garments gives me the shudders.”

“Her daughter-in-law Princess Alexandra has lovely taste in clothes,” Maud said.

“Indeed she has. It will be a most welcome change to have a queen who is fashionable. I cannot wait.”

The girls looked incredulous that the old girl expected to outlive Queen Victoria.

The corners of Lu’s lips lifted in a wry smile. “I’m not ready to stick my spoon in the wall for another decade. I fully intend to welcome in the next era with gusto.” She waved her crimson ostrich-feather fan languidly. “A little decadence never hurt anyone.”

The room fell silent as Louisa’s youngest daughter Evelyn, Marchioness of Lansdowne, read congratulatory letters from Her Majesty Queen Victoria and His Royal Highness, Edward, Prince of Wales.

The future Duke of Leeds, who was married to her favorite granddaughter, handed her a glass of champagne and kissed her cheek. He raised his own glass. “I drink a toast to the best-looking woman in London.”

“I’ll give you a toast an Irishman taught me:

Here’s to you and here’s to me,
And if someday we disagree,
Sod you . . . here’s to me!”

Louisa sat in the place of honor so that the speeches could begin. Her great-granddaughter Maud and her cousin returned, eager to learn all they could about their fascinating great-grandmother.

“What is it now, Miss Inquisitive?”

“I heard that you first met James Hamilton when you were a little girl. Is that true, Your Grace?”

Louisa’s mind took wing and soared back over the decades to Carlton House. “It was July 1819. . . . I remember it all as if it were yesterday.”



Carlton House, London

July 1819

“Lady Louisa, will you marry me?”

Louisa Jane Russell, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Bedford, stared at the boy who had planted himself before her, and saw the determination written on his face. “Who the devil are you?” she demanded.

Nine-year-old James Hamilton, needing to impress the beautiful seven-year-old, raised his chin with pride. “I am the Marquis of Abercorn.” He pronounced it Avercorn.

“Do you have a speech impediment?”

James drew himself up to his full height. “Certainly not!”

“Then why did you say Avercorn when your name is Abercorn?”

James hid a smile. He resisted the impulse to correct the dark little beauty and inform her that the letter ‘b’ in his title was pronounced ‘v’. “You may call me whatever you like, if you will consent to be my future wife.”

“Isn’t Abercorn an Irish title?”

“Yes, it is. My name is James Hamilton. I came into my grandfather’s title last year.” His heart was doing a jig just looking at her. “You haven’t answered my question, Lady Louisa. Will you marry me?”

She raised her lashes and stared at him. “Marry an Irishman with a speech impediment? You must be mad!”

Louisa joined her older sister, Georgy. She eyed the glass of wine in her hand and licked her lips. “Where’s Mother?”

“She’s in the scarlet drawing room with Jack and Charles. Our insufferable brothers have cornered Prinny and are asking all sorts of ridiculous questions about the decorations on his portly chest. Who was that handsome devil you were talking to?”

“His name is James Hamilton. His good looks are very deceiving. He’s actually quite stupid.” She dismissed him from her thoughts. “I’m ravenous. I was too nervous to eat before I performed my dance but now my belly is rolling.” Louisa could see that her sister wasn’t even listening to her. She was searching for someone in the crowd of young people invited to Carlton House for the children’s party. When Georgy darted into the throng of pedigreed youngsters, she sprang after her. “Wait a minute. Where’s the refreshment room?”

To Louisa’s consternation, her sister stopped before James Hamilton and began talking to him. She turned her back on them and was heading in the direction of the scarlet drawing room when she encountered the Prince of Wales.

“My dear, your Spanish dance was delightful.” He touched the red fringe on her shawl with a pudgy finger. “You have your mother’s exquisite beauty. What may I do to show you my appreciation?”

“Could you get me some ham sandwiches, Your Highness, and a glass of sugared wine? I’m very hungry.”

Prinny hid a smile and bowed gallantly. “Your wish is my command, Lady Louisa. I am always delighted to please a lady.”

Louisa decided to follow him and with every step she happily clicked the castanets she’d used in her Spanish shawl dance. She instinctively knew if there was food to be had, the corpulent prince regent would home in on it like a pig unearthing truffles.

Prinny took delight in Lady Louisa’s dainty appetite. “All the Russell children are most impressive. Your brothers are such fine young men.”

Her brows drew together. My brothers are young savages. She swallowed the last morsel. “Thank you for the sandwiches, Your Highness. It was a lovely party. I shall take my wine with me so I may savor it.” She sketched a curtsy and departed.

Louisa scanned the ranks of doting parents for her mother but didn’t see her. Her eyes, however, met those of a striking-looking woman wearing a white turban decorated with a large ruby. She recognized her as Princess Lieven, wife of the Russian ambassador.

Louisa smiled, and when the Russian noblewoman beckoned, she sat down beside her. “Are you enjoying the party, Princess Lieven?”

“I was overcome with ennui until I saw you dance, Lady Louisa.” She stroked the silk shawl. “Red is a bold color. Do you like it?”

“I love it . . . it makes me feel alive.”

“Red has a power all its own. You should wear it often. It is a striking color for a lady with dark hair and green eyes like yours.”

Louisa was enthralled. “Do you have Gypsy blood, Princess Lieven?”

“My blood is quite blue, I assure you. But I do have psychic power—the ability to see into the future. It is a gift or a curse, depending on the circumstances.”

“How fascinating!” Louisa sipped her sugared wine. “Can you see my future?”

Dorothea Lieven ran the tip of her tongue over her rouged lips....

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Verlag
Berkley
Erscheinungsdatum
2011
Sprache
Englisch
ISBN 10 
0451230507
ISBN 13 
9780451230508
Einband
Taschenbuch
Anzahl der Seiten
416
Kontakt zum Hersteller
Nicht verfügbar
Verantwortliche Person
Nicht verfügbar

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