Mr. Quincey's foot had no sooner trespassed the threshold of the Kingsleys' home that the two girls scurried down the stairs to greet him. Edward was quite surprised, and it must have shown from his expression for the girls regained their composure as soon as they came face to face with him in their small drawing room.
Edward bowed his head, and in return the two sisters curtseyed,
"Miss Kingsley, Miss Alice, I hope I find you in good health," the gentleman exclaimed, his voice so warm one could feel the sincerity in his tone,
"Thank you, Mr. Quincey," Catherine replied, nodding her head but slightly, "I hope your sister is fairing well,"
Edward nodded quite fervently, and a few moments of silence followed as each sought for an interesting topic to converse. This moment of deep reflection was quickly interrupted, however, as Mr. Kingsley entered the room to greet his guest.
"Mr. Quincey!" The old man cried, "How pleasant to see you at this time. I must say, sir, you are quite punctual,"
The young man smiled, thanking Mr. Kingsley, and soon after the two men began a very lively conversation about the upcoming shooting season. Mr. Kingsley, though his home was quite small, had very fine grounds and he invited Mr. Quincey to shoot on the second week of August. Mr. Quincey was very pleased to accept the invitation, and as soon as he did so Miss Kingsley intervened,
"How very nice that you should come and shoot on our grounds, Mr. Quincey. It is always such a pleasure to see other gentlemen taking part in such an honourable pastime as shooting,"
"Indeed," Edward bowed his head in agreement, "And it is an honour to be invited by very amiable and respectable company as yours,"
Miss Kingsley had, until then, been reading a book, and as Edward glanced at her he noticed its title,
"The Mysteries of Udolpho?" He read aloud, oblivious to Mr. Kingsley's astonishment, "Is it as terrifying as they say?"
Mr. Kingsley was quite nonplussed, for he had strictly forbidden such works to his daughters. Catherine, however, remained quite composed as she replied,
"It is not terrifying but merely strange. Enough to make our elders recoil in their disapproval,"
Edward was not accustomed to such literature, as his sister only read Cowper and Wordsworth, and he enjoyed the works of Scott, so he simply inclined his head, before adding,
"I find it quite fascinating to see the interests and passions of young ladies differ, and how they have evolved since I was a child. Nowadays, young ladies find a particular pleasure in the works of Byron and Coleridge. I do not believe my mother would have ever read the romantics had she been presented them in her day. And these gothic novels that are now in fashion amongst our youth, how very exciting that is!"
"Indeed," Mr. Kingsley replied, "You should not take my dear Catherine's reading as an example. For even though these trifling novels are in vogue nowadays, they certainly are very rarely permitted in this household. I would have been more pleased," he turned to his eldest daughter, "to see the works of Milton in her hand, rather than Mrs. Radcliffe's."
Catherine blushed, and was about to remark on the weather to change the subject when the butler entered the room to announce dinner.
"How very convenient!" Chimed Alice, for she was very hungry and quite tired of listening to the party's conversation about literature, a topic she abhorred.
Though there were only four courses, Edward genuinely enjoyed the dinner and gave his compliments for it. Mr. Kingsley was satisfied with this, and Alice, who had taken it upon herself to choose the menu, was exceedingly content and could not help but show it.
When dinner was over, the girls retired to the drawing room and Edward remained in the dining parlour with the host.
Both men spoke of their respective interests, found common grounds in several sports such as walking, horseriding and shooting, smoked in length and had an extensive discourse on the topic of the war.
The evening had been pleasant for Edward, to say the very least. His sister, who had not been conveyed to the Kingsleys and was exceedingly vexed about it, had decided to invite the three young Grant ladies for dinner at Redding.
"My brother will not be here for the evening, he has plans elsewhere... But please, do take a seat!" Magali chimed, greeting the girls with a curtsey.
"Mr. Quincey must be very busy," the eldest Miss Grant stated, "but it is an honor to be conveyed into your home for dinner. I am sure we will spend a lovely evening between ladies,"
"I must warn you," Magali exclaimed gaily, "I'm not one for gossip, but I'm certain Walter Scott will do for a great discussion, won't he?"
"My hope, my heaven, my trust must be,
My gentle guide, in following thee," quoted Julia with confidence. Magali smiled, pleased, and invited the three young ladies to sit.
Miss Quincey observed her three guests with great interest. The eldest of the Grants sat calmly down, politely looking at the drawing room around her as Miss Julia remained unseated, discreetly inspecting the small collection of books displayed for the visitors. Miss Jane walked about, happily chatting away and marvelling at the smallest things in the room.
"Aunt Meridith lives in London you see, and our little cousins are but this high, they're very smart for their age, too, are they not, Julia? Of course they are, of course— but oh, my! What a lovely statuette this is! A dove, is it? How pretty, and how cleverly made! I do wonder at the precision, how very extraordinary! Dear me, it certainly does fit in well, especially with the color of the walls, do you not think so, Matilda?
"Well, as I was saying, the smallest one is but five and he can already situate each country on a map. Isn't he very clever? Oh, how fashionable! Would you look at these draperies, Matilda? What a pretty colour, ind—"
"Well," Julia interrupted, tired of her sister's continuous chatterring, "Miss Quincey, I see you have here a very cleverly executed embroidery, you seem to be an expert!"
As Jane sat down, quite taken aback by her sister's response, Magali thought of a plan to bring up the subject of gentlemen.
She had a young niece, Henrietta, from London. Both of her parents were very respectable, but she had two older brothers and three younger sisters far prettier than herself. For although Henrietta was the eldest, and therefore the first to be presented into society, she had neither the beauty, the charm nor the manners to attract many respectable gentlemen.
For, though the family's fortune was quite consequent, the second daughter having come out at the same time was the one to attract the attentions. When the occasion presented itself, a respectable gentleman preferred the beauty and the fortune rather than just the fortune.
Magali decided to bring up the subject of her poor niece to help find a suitable match for herself, and if possible, for her niece as well.
"Indeed, I started very early and I can't seem to spend a day without working. But let us talk of a more exciting subject. The ball is but a fortnight away and I am so impatient to meet everyone.
Now, my niece, Henrietta, is to be invited and she is to make her way from London. She is seven and ten, you see, but only two gentlemen have ever asked for her hand, and I must say neither of them were very charming.
As her aunt, I believe it is my duty to secure her not only with the fortune she is accustomed to, but also with a gentleman who is truly polite and well-bred. There are too many in London who have taken to gambling and, well, other activities I daren't even think of!"
"Are you suggesting for us to... match-make, Miss Quincey?" Miss Grant let out. Her intonation was unclear, as Magali could not tell if it was one of wonder or rather a scornful one.
"Oh, dear, me, no! Rather, giving a few hints so that my niece may know who to interact with upon her arrival,"
"Ooh, yes, match-making!" Cried Jane, she skipped to Magali's side excitedly, "How very fun! I do believe your niece will find many a gentleman to her liking in Redding,"
"There is not a single suitable match here, Jane, you know that very well! They are either still in their mother's arms or married," Julia intervened,
"That," Jane exclaimed, very excited, "is quite false! For I have heard that our neighbours, Mr. and Mrs. Phillips, are expecting their cousin Mr. Hughes from Shropshire. He is a very bright gentleman of three and twenty, with a very large fortune,"
"Jane, Mama warned you about eavesdropping on the maids!" Matilda hushed, but Jane continued,
"I heard that he is to come with four or five friends, all gentlemen, and one of them is an Earl,"
"An Earl?" Both Julia and Matilda gasped,
"Pray, do you know his name?" Magali coolly inquired. Jane nodded with a broad smile and repeated by heart,
"Earl Moore, his birth name is Charles."
Magali's ears could hardly believe what they had heard. It couldn't be, but there was only one Earl Moore by the name of Charles she knew, and she knew him very well.
"When are they to come?" Julia asked,
"I believe they will be here for the ball," Jane answered, excitement in her voice.
Charles Moore was to attend the ball in Rushmore Park.
Magali could not let her brother know about this.