How had she gone from hoping for a kind lover to teach her the intimate arts to disappointing a rogue?
The door opened again and when Arabella peeked up, a gray head of hair had poked through the gap. “An intriguing parting,” Lady Penelope Ford mused as she locked the door behind her. “Lady Penelope Ford, at your service. You may call me Pen if you like.”
Arabella gasped as panic gripped her. Lady Penelope Ford was supposed to be in the drawing room, taking tea and waiting to meet Merrick. There was no way to avoid a scandal now. She’d have heard them talking. She would know Merrick had just proposed and received no answer.
Lady Penelope looked around curiously. “So this is the bedchamber all of London will talk of in the coming weeks. Hmm, quite ordinary really for so scandalous a situation.”
Arabella held Merrick’s banyan a little tighter about her chest. “Lady Penelope. What brings you to Winslette?”
“Rothwell disappeared from London without warning. You also were reported missing. Is that not reason enough to become curious?” The lady shrugged. “Rumors have a habit of altering when it comes to my nephew. For instance, it’s been suggested he’d turned over a new leaf this season and become somewhat respectable. I see now the gossips were utterly wrong.”
Some of Arabella’s panic ebbed. She had to keep her wits about her. She was facing one of the most influential women of the ton. “Oh?”
“Hmm, yes. My nephew was known for his, well… there is no delicate way to put it. Merrick has always been considered something of a scoundrel around women, much as his father was in his day. He used them, and then he tossed them aside should they become too demanding of his affections.” Lady Penelope inspected her nephew’s room with a disdainful eye. “So many have thought an affair might lead to an offer of marriage, but he fooled them all. Now, of course, he’s set his cap too high. Many in the family thought he’d simply run out of ways to scandalize the world, but it seems he set himself a challenge in you.”
A tight pain filled Arabella’s chest. Lady Penelope believed Merrick’s past affairs had everything to do with her decision not to marry him. That wasn’t the case. Arabella doubted her own feelings more than his. “He’s nothing like what you suggest.”
Lady Penelope grimaced. “My dear, I do know what I’m talking about. I’m here to keep you safe from scandal that will follow this unwise affair. Why else would I come so far out of my way? We will say you were with me the entire time and no one need know my nephew seduced you.”
Arabella moved slowly toward the door and unlocked it. Lady Penelope’s behavior disappointed her. She’d condemned her nephew without cause and believed him a heartless seducer. Of course he had enjoyed many women before her, but he wasn’t a cruel man. What sort of rogue bedded a widow, found her a virgin, and then proposed marriage? Merrick was the best of men. It was Arabella who had been the disappointment and she couldn’t help it. “I have little desire for your help when you think so meanly of your own family. Why would I want your aid?”
Lady Penelope’s smile grew brittle. “I have always been eager to help you. Merrick is a man and has made it very clear that he can take care of himself. As they all will do. Being an unwilling party to the scandals my family has engaged in makes me aware of the value of a reputation and what it costs to have lost one.”
Arabella folded her arms across her chest. “Forgive me, but we are strangers to one another. I don’t know you.”
Penelope smiled briefly. “We are similar creatures. We accept the restrictions of our society but still suffer from them. I hesitated to offer my support in London when I came to Merrick’s town house, because I was not entirely sure he had you enthralled. I apologize for that. If you would dress in a more appropriate fashion, we can be underway.”
“I am dressed as appropriately as I wish to be in my own bedchamber. You are the uninvited interloper.”
“This is my nephew’s bedchamber, is it not, and you are wearing a man’s banyan, my dear.” Lady Penelope came closer and fingered the material of the sleeve. “I’m in a position to know it’s Merrick’s garment.”
Arabella held her ground. It was time to stop this now. “I think you should leave my home.”
The door flew open. “You meddling old sow,” Merrick growled. “What the hell are you doing here?”
When he faced the door to shut it, a brief smile crossed the older woman’s face. “Not one of your best, boy. Cool your heels a little longer. Lady Farnsworth and I are negotiating.”
Merrick made an angry, inarticulate sound.
“Always so stubborn and hot-tempered,” Lady Penelope chided. “His mother was a much calmer girl.”
Merrick was not hot-tempered at all. The only people Arabella had ever heard him disagree with were other Fords and her brother-in-law. She didn’t know everything about Merrick yet, but he seemed a reasonable man. He just wanted his family to leave him in peace. “There is nothing to negotiate besides the method of your leaving. As far as I can tell, you can leave under your own steam or with his help.”
Merrick snorted. “I see you’re employing your usual charm to win Arabella over.”
Lady Penelope’s eyes narrowed to slits as her gaze flickered between them. “So, you’ve decided to throw over good sense and discard propriety?”
It only took a moment to decide. “Yes, Merrick has shown me nothing but kindness. You are so wrong about him.”
Lady Penelope smirked. “So you will accept his proposal and become his wife?” She shook her head. “That should be a crowded affair, considering Lady Mary and Miss Milne both expect an offer of marriage immediately on his return to London. He’s been very plainly interested in both young ladies. So attentive to them both, but do remember he can choose only one to share his bed legally.”
“Hold your tongue,” Merrick snapped at his aunt, hands curling into fists at his side.
Arabella’s mouth fell open as it became clear Merrick couldn’t refute his aunt’s claim that he’d been courting two specific young ladies in Town. Likely while she’d been under his very roof. He’d gone in and out so frequently, but she’d never suspected anything had progressed to the point where a proposal was expected.
Her stomach turned over. He’d never said a word and then had the bad taste to offer a proposal she should not accept. Arabella was stunned that he hadn’t mentioned any of it. He’d had ample time and opportunity.
Lady Penelope smiled a little sadly. “It is always important to have all the facts. Don’t you agree, Lady Farnsworth? But I am here now, and I will do what I can to stem the damage. London is so rushed at this time of year that hopefully few should connect you both. Merrick has made a mess of this, but with my support any harm to your reputation can be restored.”
Merrick crossed the room and stopped close to her side. “I’d like a chance to explain.”
Arabella turned away, devastated that she’d blundered so badly into Merrick’s life. She couldn’t even blame him for seducing her when she’d all but thrown herself into his bed. “He did nothing. It’s my fault.”
Lady Penelope clucked her tongue. “Now, my dear, I’m sure that is simply not the case. I’m told kindness can often be mistaken for a deeper affection. You’re not the first to be duped.”
Arabella pressed her cold hand to her hot brow. “I was a fool.”
“No, you were not,” Merrick insisted, spinning her around to face him again. “Arabella, I never lied to you.”
When she looked into his eyes, Arabella’s confusion wavered. He seemed sincere, but how could he be? He’d led two young ladies on while dallying with her. He should have remained in London rather than escorting her here. Why hadn’t he? They’d not been intimately involved in London, and now things were even more complicated.