The Island Of Love

Chapter One ~ I883-2

Watching the Earl in the hunting field, she had thought that he should in fact be galloping towards new and distant horizons, rather than being confined, as it seemed, by the small English fields, the social life of the County or even that of London.

Only once had she dined in the same room with him and that was when he had come to dinner at Sir Robert’s house in London before a ball that was being given for Heloise.

As the most important person present, he had sat on her right and, looking at them sitting side-by-side, Lydia thought it would be impossible anywhere in the world to find two people who were each so outstandingly beautiful in their own way.

This she knew was a strange adjective to apply to a man.

Yet it seemed fitting because the Earl had so positive a personality and his whole being was far more arresting than that of any other man she had ever seen.

She had, however, learned more about him and what she heard was not altogether surprising.

At twenty-nine he had turned the heads of a great number of beautiful women and captured their hearts.

He was celebrated for being convincingly elusive and every ambitious mother had known even before they started the chase that they had no hope of catching him.

Because he was a great landowner and possessed some of the finest racehorses in England, as well as being an outstanding sportsman who held a great number of personal trophies to show for it, other men admired and envied him.

But it had never entered Lydia’s mind for a moment that he might marry Heloise.

Lydia did not herself talk very much, as nobody seemed to wish to hear what she had to say, but she was a sympathetic listener.

The Earl, because he lived near them, was a frequent topic of conversation in the County and in London his various love affairs were agreeable titbits of gossip.

Lydia learnt more and more about him, until she felt that she could write a book about the Earl of Royston and still fill another two volumes.

Everything about him was intriguing and perhaps even his nickname by which he was always known had added to the aura that encircled him.

The story was that when he was born his father was out hunting and a groom was sent from Royston Park to inform his Lordship that he had an heir.

Unfortunately, breathless from the speed at which he had ridden and also rather nervous of his Master, the groom blurted out the news that the Earl listened without a great deal of interest.

Then, as he turned away, the man asked,

“Is there any message for her Ladyship, my Lord?”

For a moment the Earl looked at him in surprise.

Then he said,

“Good God! Are you telling me that it is her Ladyship who has given birth? I thought it was one of my hunters!”

This statement was overheard by several of his friends who roared with laughter.

Then one of them remarked,

“If he is your son, undoubtedly he will be a good hunter and what could be a better name for him?”

The present Earl of Royston had therefore always been known as ‘Hunter’ and the more Lydia heard about him the more she thought that the nickname appropriate.

He hunted not only foxes but also beautiful women, although she had the feeling that once the chase was over, he was often no longer interested.

And yet now, although it seemed incredible, without very much of a run for his money he had hunted and caught Heloise.

“You are very lucky!” Lydia said aloud.

As she spoke, she wondered if in fact Heloise was as lucky as everybody would think she was.

Heloise was, however, so excited that she forgot for a moment her affectations.

“I am to be married, Lydia!”

She danced around the room, her full skirt swinging out, making her look so graceful and so lovely that she might have stepped down from Mount Olympus to bemuse poor mortals.

Then she sat down in a chair and said,

“I must start planning my trousseau. I shall have the most glorious clothes that any bride has ever possessed and, when my friends see them, they will be green with envy!”

“When do you think you will be married?” Lydia asked.

“As soon as possible!” Heloise replied.

Then she hesitated.

“What is it?” Lydia enquired.

“I have just remembered that the Earl will be in mourning for another three months.”

“Of course!” Lydia exclaimed. “I had forgotten that too.”

The Earl’s mother, who had never been very strong and therefore was seldom seen at any social function, had died nine months ago.

She had long been bedridden and so her passing had gone almost unnoticed, except formally in the social columns of the newspapers.

Thinking back now, Lydia remembered that her funeral had been private and had taken place in the small Church in the grounds of Royston Park.

Her father had not attended, although he had instructed her to send a wreath. It had been made up by the gardeners and a carriage had carried it to Royston Park early on the morning of the funeral.

Lydia had made the arrangements and then had not thought about it again.

Now she was aware that it would be considered incorrect for the Earl to marry until at least a year had passed.

That meant he could be married in April, as she said to her sister.

“A spring bride! What could be more perfect!” Heloise exclaimed. “I must have a gown that makes everybody think of spring and, if our family tiara is not big enough, I can borrow one of the Earl’s. The Royston diamonds are famous!”

She drew in a deep breath as she said,

“They have whole sets each of sapphires, rubies and emeralds! Lady Burton was always talking about them and saying that any woman would give her right arm to possess such jewels!”

“You are so lovely that you have no need of a great number of diamonds,” Lydia said.

“You must be mad!” Heloise contradicted her. “One of the reasons why I want to marry the Earl is because his jewels are so marvellous.”

It flashed through Lydia’s mind that she herself would rather have his horses.

Then, as if she could not prevent herself asking the question again, she enquired,

“Are you sure you really love the Earl, Heloise? I feel certain that it would be impossible to be married to any man unless one loved him.”

“You are talking utter nonsense!” Heloise snapped. “Quite frankly I think love and all that kissing and messing about is the sort of thing only servants do!”

“But – Heloise!” Lydia exclaimed in dismay.

She knew as she spoke that, when she heard about the Earl’s love affairs and married women spoke of him, there was a passionate look in their eyes.

She had even heard one of them say to another when she thought nobody else was listening,

“Hunter is a fantastic dream lover! You have no idea how lucky I am!”

The words had been spoken in her father’s house after dinner.

Because they were short-staffed Lydia had been carrying a coffee cup from a side table in the drawing room where the footman had overlooked it.

She was passing behind the sofa where two ladies were sitting when she heard one of them mention the Earl.

Hearing the Earl’s name always meant something to her because she was so interested in him. So she instinctively stopped to listen.

She was behind them and they had no idea that she was there as the other lady replied,

“You are so lucky, Daisy. I have always thought that the Earl is one of the most attractive men I have ever seen in my life, but alas, he has never looked in my direction.”

“I would scratch your eyes out if he did!” Daisy answered. “I am crazily wildly infatuated by him and it is only with the greatest difficulty that I don’t throw myself at his feet and beg him to run away with me.”

“Daisy!”

The exclamation was horrified.

“How can you say such a thing? Think of the scandal it would cause! The Duke would undoubtedly call him out!”

“I doubt it!” Daisy replied. “Arthur must be well aware that Hunter has fought a dozen duels already and has always been the winner.”

She gave a little laugh that had a note of regret in it.

“Anyway, there is no fear of that! I am not so foolish as not to be aware that Hunter’s affaires de coeur never last very long and I doubt if any woman could hold him once he is bored.”

“I cannot imagine anybody being bored with you, Daisy!”

Daisy gave a deep sigh.

“Thank you, dearest. But while I am ecstatically happy to stay in the sun, I am well aware how quickly the weather can change.”

“Then all I can say is,” her friend replied, “that I envy you more than I can express in words, and I hope that the sunshine continues for a very, very long time.”

“So do I,” Daisy replied, “for I know that never again will I feel as I do now.”

It was at that moment that the door of the room opened and the gentlemen joined the ladies.

Lydia hastily moved away from behind the sofa.

At the same time she could not resist a little later looking for Daisy to find out who she was.

She then recognised her as her father’s principal guest, the Duchess of Dorchester.

She was beautiful, there was no mistaking that.

Now looking back she remembered that she and her half-sister Heloise were not unalike, having fair hair, blue eyes and an exquisite complexion.

She was sure then that that was the type of woman the Earl most admired.

And yet she found it extraordinary, although she was too tactful to say so, that he should actually wish to marry Heloise.

‘I suppose he must be in love with her,’ she told herself.

She thought, however, although it might be unflattering to Heloise, that it was strange, when he had such a wide choice of other more sophisticated women.

“I will receive the Earl in the drawing room,” Heloise was saying, “and you had better arrange my hair a good deal better than you did last night.”

“But you looked lovely last night!”

“Yes, when I started,” Heloise agreed, “but halfway through the ball it came loose and untidy. It was your fault for not making it more secure.”

“If you dance the Lancers,” Lydia commented, “no hairpins are strong enough to compete.”

“Oh, don’t argue!” Heloise said crossly. “I shall make certain that you do my hair properly for this afternoon and I shall be wearing my new blue gown.”

She paused before she added,

“He said to me last night when we were dancing that my eyes were exactly the colour of the sky and he thought of me when he was out riding.”

“What did you answer?” Lydia asked curiously.

“I replied softly in the voice that always excites a man, ‘I am surprised that you should think of me, my Lord, but, of course, I am very very flattered’.”

She mimicked her own voice as she spoke and Lydia thought, as she had often done before, that Heloise was an excellent actress.

“What happened then?” she asked.

“His arms tightened around my waist and he said, ‘You know how I feel about you?’

“And I replied, ‘I have no idea, my Lord! You have never told me!’

“‘Then I will tell you,’ he answered, ‘but not here. May I call on you tomorrow?’

“‘I think that would be possible,’ I replied a little doubtfully.

“‘Make it possible!’ he said. ‘I have something important to say to you!’”

Heloise gave a little smile.

“I knew what that was, but I was far too clever to let him guess that I knew. I looked puzzled and stared up at him with my eyes very wide and my lips parted. Suddenly he said,

‘If you look at me like that, I shall kiss you here and now in the middle of the ballroom!’

“‘Oh no!’ I exclaimed, ‘that would cause a scandal and Papa would be very angry!’

“‘Then I shall wait until I see you tomorrow’.”

Lydia listened entranced.

Then she said,

“I think that was very clever of you, Heloise. I am sure that any other woman would have consented far too quickly and it would be a mistake to forget that the Earl is called ‘Hunter’.”

“I think that is a stupid name,” Heloise remarked, “but I suppose it means he likes to hunt.”