Annabelle: A Regency Romance (The Four Sisters' Series Book 2) Read online

  Lord Stannage smiled a genuine smile at his sisters; they both stepped down the two steps leading to the house to wait on the gravel for the carriage to stop. He turned to Annabelle, “Please let me introduce you to my sisters, Caroline and Susan.”

  Annabelle smiled at the women before her and dropped a curtsey. They both looked like their brother with their tall, slender frames and wavy chestnut hair. Both sets of eyes were the same colour blue. It was clear the affliction did not run through the family.

  Susan was first to step forward and wrap Annabelle in an embrace. “Let us forget this curtseying nonsense; you are one of the family: welcome.”

  Caroline smiled but did not move forward to embrace Annabelle; she moved the group inside. “Freddy, mother is waiting in the yellow sitting room with enough refreshments to feed an army. I hope you’re both hungry.”

  “Always for cook’s cakes,” Lord Stannage responded.

  Annabelle followed the group, trying to look at her surroundings as they walked. The house was made of grey stone. It had only the two small steps leading to the doorway not the grand staircase that Sudworth Hall had, but that did not mean that the portico was any less grand. It seemed to tower over the occupants with ornate decoration on almost every surface. The large glazed doors led into an entrance hallway where a butler took bonnets, hats and pelisses were taken from their owners.

  Caroline and Susan led the way into another hallway where the sweeping staircase separated on a half-landing then curved to either side of a galleried landing. A large portrait of Lord Stannage hung on the half-landing, something which took Annabelle’s attention. It was a lifelike portrait even showing the differing colour of the eyes. She paused only slightly not wanting to draw attention to herself staring at the portrait; she felt a hypocrite in admiring a handsome man when she had rejected his advances.

  The party walked around the foot of the staircase and under the galleried landing before Caroline opened a door. She led the way into a large room that overlooked the side of the building. It was decorated in yellow. Pale yellow wallpaper was warmed by deep yellow furniture and hangings, making the room seem bright and welcoming. The rich colour of the polished floor enhanced the warmth in the room. Annabelle smiled: this was a room decorated and furnished by someone with taste; her own mother would approve.

  A tall, slim lady rose as the party entered the room. She held her hands to her chest, looking tearful. She looked between Lord Stannage and Annabelle. “Oh my dear,” she repeated again and again to herself.

  Lord Stannage approached the woman and kissed her cheek. “Now, mother, come and meet my wife; Annabelle this is my mother, Mrs Hedley,” he said, smiling at the woman.

  “Oh, my dear,” Annabelle was grasped in a hug that almost took her breath away. “You are so very welcome here. I never thought I would live to see the day….but none of that; no mother could be more pleased to welcome another daughter into the family. You must call me Mama; you are part of our family now.”

  “Thank you, Mama,” Annabelle said hesitantly, feeling a little overwhelmed at the welcome.

  “Mother, let Annabelle sit,” Lord Stannage said gently.

  The group sat, and Annabelle was able to watch the interaction between the three siblings. They were very alike in features, something her own sisters were not. A resemblance between herself and Rosalind was the only likeness between the four Johnson girls. There was clearly a lot of affection between the three siblings as they bantered among themselves.

  Lord Stannage did not ignore Annabelle, but he did not involve her in any conversation until Caroline spoke. “Has Freddy told you of the arrangements here?” she asked.

  Annabelle shook her head, “No.”

  “Well, my husband Harold and I live in the house. My husband’s younger brother, William normally lives with us, but he is currently exploring the Continent on a tour with his tutor. We live with mother and Freddy when he decides to visit,” Caroline continued with a pointed stare at her brother.

  “I visit,” Lord Stannage smiled with a shrug.

  “Not as often as we would hope,” Caroline continued. “He doesn’t appreciate the real pleasure we get from bullying him while he is here. He may have inherited his grand title, but he will always be snotty-nosed Freddy to us!”

  Lord Stannage laughed, “And you wonder why I don’t visit. Don’t believe a word they say Annabelle; I have always carried a handkerchief.”

  Annabelle hid her surprise at Lord Stannage’s using her given name as he had not done so prior to that. She hoped it meant he was able to forget their first evening together. She smiled at him, appreciating the gesture; but he soon turned back to Susan, making her wonder if he was performing for his sisters, pretending that relations between them were better than they were.

  “I live with my husband Andrew and our child on one of the farms on the estate,” Susan explained to Annabelle. “It means we usually walk over each day, but I can’t promise you will see much of my husband; he lives and breathes the land.”

  “How old is your child?” Annabelle asked.

  “He is two and a handful,” Susan said with a smile. “Andrew hopes young Andrew will follow in his footsteps, and then they can have an even bigger farm between them.”

  “Andrew would take over the county if Susan let him,” Lord Stannage explained.

  “Luckily he listens to me when I say I would like to see him for at least half an hour a day; otherwise I’m sure he would remain outdoors.”

  “I have a younger sister, Grace, who loves the outside,” Annabelle said. “She can never walk through a garden without doing something that results in dirtying her dresses. Mother despairs of her.”

  “I have every sympathy for your mother,” Susan said with a smile.

  “Caroline, you must show Annabelle around the house,” Mrs Hedley instructed. “I need to spend time with Freddy; it has been too long: I need to know how he has been faring.”

  Lord Stannage rolled his eyes at his sister. “You’d better do as she says and do the tour with Annabelle; I could be here some time.”

  Caroline and Annabelle stood. Susan joined them. “I shall leave you all now,” she said. “Please drag Freddy to visit us; it is sometimes easier to receive visitors than venture out myself when dealing with life as a farmer’s wife,” she said with a smile.

  Annabelle readily agreed she would visit Susan and Andrew’s farm before following Caroline out of the room. The two women walked back through the hallway and into a ballroom at the opposite side of the house. The grand ballroom ran the full length of the house with windows bringing light into the room. The hangings and wallpaper were decorated in reds and golds.

  “Oh, this is a lovely room!” Annabelle said. She had been in the house only a short while and could see that whoever cared for the house had a real sense of style.

  “Yes, although it is wasted,” Caroline said. “We rarely hold anything here that warrants such a large space. We should make it into smaller rooms, but mother has always shied away from doing anything, ever hopeful that Freddy would start holding balls. It is a wish that will never come to fruition: he never will. I don’t know if you realise how little social activity Freddy takes part in; I’m afraid there won’t be constant entertainments.”

  Annabelle had the distinct impression she was being assessed. “I appreciate quality in my society more than quantity.”

  “Well said,” Caroline responded. “How did you and Freddy meet? He mentioned only the barest of details in his letter.”

  “At an assembly, funnily enough,” Annabelle said with a rueful smile. “It was my first assembly while visiting my sister, the Duchess of Sudworth.”

  “Ah,” Caroline responded.

  “Have I said something wrong?” Annabelle asked at the response she had received.

  “No,” Caroline said quickly. “You can probably imagine the reasons Freddy doesn’t spend too much time in company. We always know when the loneliness becomes too muc
h for him to bear; we hear of his attendance at balls. Unfortunately, all too soon he is back to his usual pattern of living or hiding as it is in reality.” There was a hint of bitterness in her voice at the injustice of society.

  “I’m not surprised he is lonely,” Annabelle responded sympathetically. “I’m surprised only that he spends so much time at the Stannage estate. I would have thought he would want to be with his family. I know I appreciated the noise of my own home when we were all in residence. I realised how much only after my eldest sister married and my youngest sister was away at school.”

  “He wants his independence. I suppose all men do. Here he is the baby, fussed over by us all, but he still needs to make his own way in life. I understand that; I just wish it had been easier for him.”

  “Yes, society can be very judgemental,” Annabelle said, reliving the verbal attacks against herself.

  “Well, enough of this maudlin mood!” Caroline said rousing herself. They continued to explore the house until Caroline showed Annabelle her bedchamber. “This is your bedchamber and Freddy’s, of course. We asked if he wanted to take the principle rooms: my mother and my husband and I all use the principle rooms; it seemed a waste not to when Freddy was here so little. As soon as I heard of his wedding, I wrote asking if he wanted us to vacate our suite, but he replied that he was happy with things as they stood. I hope you won’t find the suite too small.”

  Annabelle was shown a large bedchamber with a dressing room and bathroom off it. There was also a door leading to a small sitting room. There was nothing wrong with the rooms, but it brought the impending evening to the forefront of Annabelle’s mind. She had presumed they would have separate bedchambers; after the last few days, she had been hoping for it.

  “Freddy instructed the sitting room be used as your dressing area. He thought that you would prefer a little privacy whilst your maid attends you.”

  “That is very thoughtful,” Annabelle responded.

  They returned to the yellow sitting room where they found Mrs Hedley crying into a handkerchief. Lord Stannage looked appealingly at his sister. “I thought mother would be happy to see me married, but apparently she is still upset,” he said exasperated.

  “Mama! What is all this about?” Caroline said, her tone showing clearly that she would stand no nonsense from her parent.

  “Oh, I am happy, Caroline; I truly am,” came the answering wail. “I just never imagined my darling boy securing someone so beautiful, so pleasant and with all he has had to face. I feel quite overcome.”

  “I think it’s time we left Freddy and Annabelle alone; I may call you Annabelle?” Caroline asked.

  “Of course,” came the quick response.

  “Come, Mama, let us leave the lovebirds alone,” Caroline instructed, leading her parent through the door. “We shall see you at six; I hope you don’t mind the early hour we eat?”

  The door closed, and an uncomfortable silence descended on the pair. Annabelle quickly tried to dispel the atmosphere. “Your sisters seem lovely.”

  “Yes, they are,” Lord Stannage replied, feeling uncomfortable. He wanted to act the newly-wed lover he should have been; he knew Caroline left them alone for that reason, but he could not risk a further rebuff.

  “Your mother seems very welcoming; my mother is rarely interested in anything we do,” Annabelle continued. She decided she needed to do something; it was, after all, her fault the situation was so tense. “My Lord, please; can you forget what I said?”

  “Were the words untrue?” Lord Stannage asked.

  “They weren’t meant in the way you took them; I was speaking about myself not referring to you.”

  “So you didn’t feel ill when you thought of me touching you?” he asked with a slight sneer, the first time Annabelle had seen any such tendency.

  “No… well, yes, but it wasn’t because of you,” Annabelle said, rushing her words, trying to make him understand.

  “So, if I approached you now and kissed you as a husband kisses a wife, touching you as I wish, you would be happy?” Lord Stannage asked. He was being sharper than he should be, but he was annoyed that, throughout the hurt of the last few days, he had not stopped wanting Annabelle. He had cursed his weakness time and again, but it did not lessen.

  “I would try,” Annabelle answered honestly.

  Lord Stannage stood. “I don’t want someone to try and like me,” he said sarcastically. “That sort of affection I can happily live without.”

  He left Annabelle sitting alone, fighting the sting of tears. She did not know how to make it right but knew it was up to her to do so. The problem was that every time she convinced herself she could push her feelings aside and be a real wife, the images she tried so hard to forget loomed in her mind’s eye, and her reluctance returned.

  Mr Wadeson might not be able to reach her now, but the effects of knowing him would resound in Annabelle’s memories and nightmares for a long time to come.

  Chapter 3

  Annabelle sat at the head of the table. It felt very odd to be given the position of rank in the house, which was technically hers, but it did not feel like home. She supposed the property in the south of the county would always feel more like their home as it was the place Lord Stannage lived for most of the year.

  The party was joined by the two sisters’ husbands, and the chatter was noisy. Lord Stannage was seated opposite Annabelle with his mother to his left and Susan to his right. Harold, Caroline’s husband, sat between Susan and Annabelle while Caroline sat between Annabelle and Andrew, Susan’s husband.

  Caroline questioned Annabelle about her family, not showing surprise when Annabelle admitted her father had made his fortune in trade.

  “There is nothing wrong with earning an honest living; quite a few estates are struggling and being forced to look at ways of bringing in income,” Harold said to Annabelle’s acknowledgement of being a ‘cit’s’ daughter.

  “Some people feel we are polluting the bloodlines,” Annabelle admitted, referring to what she overheard at Rosalind’s ball.

  “Those are probably the same people who Freddy has suffered taunts from throughout his life,” Caroline said.

  “I imagine so,” Annabelle acknowledged.

  “I don’t know how people can be so cruel,” Caroline continued.

  “My Lord does deal with the stares and comments better than I could,” Annabelle admitted.

  “My Lord?” Caroline asked. “Why so formal Annabelle?”

  Annabelle flushed, “I don’t know; we haven’t discussed using other names,” she said lamely. They had hardly discussed anything she thought privately.

  Caroline turned to the head of the table and, ignoring the convention of speaking only to one’s immediate neighbours, spoke to her brother. “Freddy, what is all this? Annabelle is still using your formal title!”

  Annabelle flushed deeper as everyone’s eyes turned towards her. “It is his rightful title,” she said quietly.

  “Pah! It’s giving him ideas above his station,” Caroline said dismissively.

  Lord Stannage looked at Annabelle. “Use whatever name you are at ease with,” he said with a shrug.

  Caroline looked at her brother with a frown before turning back to Annabelle. “His given name is Frederick, but he has always been Freddy to us.”

  “Frederick is a nice name,” Annabelle said quietly. Somehow using Freddy seemed too intimate.

  “Use Frederick then,” Lord Stannage said, before turning back to his mother.

  Caroline looked at her brother for a moment or two, the frown deepening. Annabelle was thankful Harold took her attention; she had a feeling Caroline was beginning to realise there were problems in their marriage. She did not wish anyone to realise her actions had forced them into a marriage and then her behaviour had caused a rift to develop. She would always feel guilty at her husband’s being forced into a marriage he did not deserve. The shame of the situation made her hope no one ever found out the truth, although aft
er the last exchange, the likelihood of that seemed slim.

  *

  The days following the newlyweds’ arrival into the area saw a pattern quickly emerge: Lord Stannage was busy most of the day out with either Harold or Andrew. During the evenings the family gathered at the main house. Annabelle spent her time with Susan or Caroline, enjoying the more informal household at the farm. Some families from the surrounding area were invited to join the family during the evening, but they were restricted to those who had been good friends to Lord Stannage.

  Annabelle finished writing letters to her sisters at the end of her second week in Carlisle. She had agreed to a long stay with the family, and she liked them; but she felt restless. It was probably due to the fact she did not feel as if she knew her husband any more than she had when they first married. They were strangers who just happened to share the same bed.

  She sat back in the chair and looked out the window. She could see rugged hills in the distance, but the garden was formal around the house. The house was in a very picturesque spot: she could understand why Frederick and his family liked it so much.

  For a few moments Annabelle failed to notice Frederick’s entrance as she remained deep in thought, gazing out of the window. Frederick watched his wife with a slight feeling of constriction in his chest. He was being unfair to her; he knew that, and it did not rest easy with him. He wanted them to start again and try and have some sort of marriage; what they had now was little more than a farce. He would not normally spend so much time out of doors; he was avoiding her and the situation they had both created.

  Watching her now, he thought she looked lonely, and he wanted to change that. He was too well aware of what loneliness felt like. It was time he did something more akin to his normal character.

  Frederick took a step into the room which Annabelle heard and turned towards him. “Hello! Have you finished with Harold for the day?” she asked pleasantly, hiding the look that he had seen in her eyes just for a second.