It seemed the Duchess's plan had worked much to her satisfaction, Miss Hanson, after sitting through supper with Miss O'Mara, seen the both of them occupied mostly conversing with each other than anyone else at the table. Then it appeared Amelia had decided to take her under her wing for their remainder of their short stay.
She made a point of informing the Duke how Miss O'Mara admired his work, and suggested that he should also show her his private collection he kept, whilst she had the chance to do so staying under his roof.
Louisa, had not been expecting this, she felt her face redden and she became flustered as all attention now turned on her. She felt sure the Duke would not want to accommodate this request when she was almost the least important person in the room, and feeling Miss Hanson had perhaps overstepped the mark to make such a request on her behalf.
But that had not been the case, The Duke had looked down the table at her, with slight surprise to discover this, then he had smiled, "Why, of course, It would be my pleasure to do so. Its not often one of my wife's guest takes an interest in my work" he spoke up seeming more flattered than put out.
"Th-Thank you your Grace" Louisa managed to stammer in reply
Miss Hanson then turned her attention on the Duchess and Hettie, "You do not mind that we borrow Miss O'Mara tomorrow afternoon, I find we have much in common with her in a way, it seems we are both doomed to remain unmarried maidens, and as much as I know, she needs to be mostly at Miss Chapple's side, I am sure she will not mind doing without her for a few hours?"
"Well, I am sure it will be fine with Mrs Marshall," the Duchess spoke up, eyeing Hettie with a pleading look, before addressing Miss Hanson again " I imagine, It will be more agreeable for you having her company because I know, you will find our little ladies tea party tomorrow a dead bore and not want to attend"
"Exactly, so," Amelia Hansom replied, knowing the Duchess had no wish to have her in their company
"Well, yes, I am sure it will be alright, I can keep an eye on my niece for a while, and let Miss O'Mara keep you company as you wish" Hettie reluctantly agreed. She had some reservations about the woman and how Louisa might be influenced by Miss Hanson's unusual views. But she also realised that this was what the Duchess expected her to reply, and she could hardly go against her wishes.
"Good, then that is the matter settled then" Miss Hanson seemed much satisfied as she now turned to address Louisa, "So, Miss O'Mara, its seems we will enjoy each others company for a little longer before me and my brother leave tomorrow evening, how fortunate for us" she smiled with a mischievous twinkle in her eye
"Yes, I suppose it is," Louisa managed to murmur in reply, still finding herself a little stunned at this turn of events, and discovering she had an renewed admiration for Miss Hanson and her manoeuvring of events that she herself wouldn't dare try to make happen
***************************************************************
Alex Carstairs moved his horse at a steady trot along the roadway that led to his parent's Country retreat. At first had had not intended to leave London, being greatly occupied with try to get his Bill through parliament to help those less fortunate.
But it seemed that the majority of his peers came to the conclusion that to educate the poor working class, and giving them any sorts of rights, would mean they might get ideas above their station, and it could lead to some sort of revolution, which had occurred in France. So they showed great reluctance for such radical ideas to be put forward much to his frustration and anger, He realised he had to get away before he said something that would cause them to imply he was a revolutionary, and try and besmirch his name.
So, he had decided it was best to leave London and his political colleagues behind, to go and speak of his concerns, and seek advice from his Father, the Duke. He, unlike Alex, was an expert diplomat in dealing with such pompous people with great patience, which his son found he was sorely lacking right now.
It was going on for late afternoon, and the sun was sitting low between the trees along the road, and already he was feeling a little more at peace being away from the tense environment of London, and he idly mused that in truth, that seeking his father had not been his only decision for this journey. It had been made more enticing when he had discovered that Mrs Marshall and her company, which included Louisa, would be staying over.
Alex found himself wanting to speak and see her again, as they had not encountered each other from that day he had accidently ran into her in London, when she had almost been stranded. He had truly taken aback when he had discovered she thought his attention towards her had been down to some sort of pity, which was had happily been able to refute.
In truth, He wasn't even sure himself why he sought her approval, and company. Only that she seemed different from all the other women he had been acquainted with she seemed to have an unusual interest in life, beyond the usual confines of females in general, and she had certain hidden depths he wished to further discover.
He liked to think it was more out of empathy than pity .After all, they both had suffered from certain social scandals in their lives that had left them open to the gossip fodder and left them a little stigmatised in the society in London, so he understood a little what she was going through.
Now, he found he wanted to know her thoughts on his home, and if she was finding it comfortable there. He realised she would most likely be spending most of her time dealing with his younger brother, flirting with her pretty cousin He found himself hoping his company might prove some relief. for her. He knew her company would certainly provide him relief and a welcome distraction, after dealing with his political rivals, which made him quicken the pace of his horse, as he got nearer home.
When he got through the front door and a servant relieved him of his outdoor garments, the first person Alex encountered was his Brother Adrian, who had just been walking across the spacious entrance hall to head for the stairs, intending to go to his room to change to go riding with Miss Chapple.
Adrian's eyes widened at the unexpected sight of his brother, but then he looked pleased to see him, and now detoured from his route to the stairs to join his brother, "Well Alex, this is a surprise, we weren't expecting you to show up this week. I thought you had your hands full with all that parliament stuff" he then recalled.
"Too full, unfortunately" Alex replied dryly.
"Things not going as how you would like them to?" Adrian enquired sensing his brothers slight despondency.
"No, I am afraid not, which was why I decided to get away for a while, to recoup and speak with father, and see if he can help" Alex replied.
"Hmm, understandable." Adrian replied with as much sympathy as he could muster, not having an interest in such things as his elder brother. "I don't know how you can be bothered with all that political stuff, and worrying about poor peoples rights, you should give it a break and relax and have some fun for a change, that's what you need" he informed him.
"I will keep that in mind," Alex replied with slight bemusement knowing that his brother thought having fun should something one should do all the time.
"Speaking of which, you just arrived at a good time. We had some unexpected guests show up of Fathers, The Hanson's, but thankfully they were on their way this morning, and we are free of them again" Adrian then informed him cheerfully, which is just as well, as we are entertaining with a private ball tonight for close friends, and you know what that Amelia Hanson is like, she would just spoil it"
"Ahh yes, Miss Hanson, I have had some interesting conversations with her, now there is a woman who can make people listen, whether they like it or not" Alex recalled almost wistfully
"Oh, I can imagine" Adrian replied with slight disapproval, not taking this as a particular compliment. "It was as well for us, that Rosemary's cousin, Miss O'Mara, was able to keep her of our backs, and was happy to listen to her prosing on during her stay here. Amelia Hanson practically demanded that the poor woman keep her company, though still, I think Mother was glad of it, because her talk and actions don't really affect Miss O'Mara as the rest of our guests" Adrian then revealed
"Is that so?" Alex raised an eyebrow thoughtfully, taking this to mean because of Miss O'Mara's station in life, her opinion didn't particularly matter in the grand scheme of things, which irked him slightly
"Well yes, Rosemary explained to me that her cousin Louisa is bookish and likes all that stuffy educational nonsense anyway, so she would not mind as much" Adrian then informed him, "Though she did say her aunt Hettie was concerned about Miss Hanson's influence on Mrs O'Mara with her outlandish ideas, and she was glad to see them go in the end"
"From what you have told me, I think I have missed the most interesting part of the week" Alex exclaimed with slight disappointment
Knowing his brother well, Adrian sensed the slight mocking humour in his brother's tone, and he just grinned. "Well, never mind all that, mother will be glad you have come. I shall let her know, and you can go and get refreshed for later this evening"
"Thank you" Alex replied gratefully looking forward to having a conversation with the Duchess later about the Hanson's unexpected visit, and even more so, to get speaking with Miss O'Mara, and finding out her viewpoint on it all, when he had the chance.