The Fire's Center Page 12

  Riona herself ate little, being too keyed up by day’s events. She also tried her best to be charming to Mr. Benn and the companion on her right, Mr. Charles Durance, one of the leading lawyers in the city, man who positively reeked of affluence and power.

  He was nearly as tall and broad as Lucien himself, but as fair as Lucien was dark, with flaxen blond hair, pale white skin and even pale blue eyes. His dark blue suit and blue embroidered brocade waistcoat set off his handsome looks to perfection, and Riona at first was quite intimidated by the way he continually stared at her silently.

  Then Riona wondered whether Mr. Durance might not, for all this wealth and power, be a trifle shy, so that she and Mr. Benn between them began to gradually drawn him out.

  Then he revealed his extreme intelligence. Riona was impressed with the fact that he possessed a genuine concern for his fellow humans. At last she began to relax and enjoy his company, and a rather lively three-way conversation began at their end of the table.

  Mr. Durance offered up many excellent suggestions for things which could be done to improve public health, which Riona wrote down in her little book.

  "But I’m keeping you from you dinner, Miss Connolly," Mr. Durance suddenly apologised when he saw her scribbling down notes in her book with one hand, and taking an occasional forkful of food with the other.

  "Not at all. This is one of the reasons why Dr. Woulfe invited you, to get everyone to meet and discuss things." She smiled up at him, causing him to stare at her wordlessly once again.

  Soon the men’s two nearest neighbours also joined in the discussion, so that Riona had little opportunity to observe that Mr. Durance was constantly gazing at her, with an unmistakable look of admiration in his blue eyes.

  Or that Antoinette was staring at her with unbridled curiosity, and undisguised dislike. Why hadn’t Quentin mentioned that Lucien had a secretary? And why on earth had she been supplanted as hostess, when she was after all Lucien’s sister-in-law, she thought resentfully.

  Her companions, Mr. Sturton and Mr. Norton did their best to try to entertain her, but Antoinette didn’t have the courtesy to look interested. At one point she didn’t even trouble herself to stifle a yawn.

  Quentin looked daggers at her, and tried to jolly along the flagging conversation in the middle of the table, made all the more apparent by the contrast on both sides.

  Lucien’s top of the table was also buzzing with conversation. Though he was delighted it was all going so remarkably well, dinner seemed to take forever to him with Riona so far away down the table, though it was only six courses.

  At last the cheeseboard and finally the sweet were served, and the men began to pass around the cigars.

  This was Antoinette’s opportunity to jump up and escape from the dull affair, as she considered it to be. She walked straight out of the room and into the drawing room without a backward glance.

  But as Riona was about to leave, Mr. Durance asked her to write down another idea, and Mr. Benn and the two other gentlemen also added a few more ideas to her list, until nearly every one forgot that by rights she should have withdrawn.

  They all began to puff their cigars contentedly as the port was passed around.

  When she looked up from her notebook for a moment, Lucien raised his eyebrows at her slightly, but she shrugged, and gave him a small smile.

  Since the cigar smoke didn’t bother her, she remained at the table, and took down notes as the conversation drifted onto the topic of the candidates for the four permanent doctors’ posts.

  Riona consulted her initial list, and noticed how skilfully Lucien and the others were trying to get most of the men they favoured onto the list.

  But some of the men were partial to impressive young Dr. O'Shea, while others argued vigorously for Dr. O’Carroll, mainly on the basis that he was personally known to themselves and came from a highly respected old Dublin family.

  Riona saw Lucien knit his brows as the arguments continued.

  "Just because a man is a friend, or the son of a friend, or has a title and wealth, does not mean that he would be suitable for this kind of work," he protested mildly, though Riona could sense his underlying tension.

  "But Dr. O’Carroll has the best credentials," one of the men sitting next to Lucien, Mr. Barnes, protested heatedly.

  "If that is true, then why does he wish to work for such a poor stipend at a charity hospital? Surely if he set up in private practice he would be one of the top young doctors in Dublin, if he is as good as he seems to be on paper," Lucien argued with a grim expression.

  Riona could see that he had indeed learnt some useful things about some of the candidates, that were perhaps particularly unsavoury, and not mentionable in public?

  "Surely, gentlemen, you will make the appointments on a month’s trial basis in any case?" Riona raised her voice to be heard above the debate.

  All of the men looked at her then, and Riona smiled sweetly. "After all, we're worried about them suiting us, but there might be very good reasons why our clinic might not suit them. It’s a case of the ideal not always matching the reality.

  "I'm sure all of the doctors have the noblest motives for applying, but some might not be cut out for the hard work, physically as well as emotionally. They are, after all, very young, some of them, and as I am sure Dr. Woulfe here will tell you, the real learning about medicine begins after you’ve left college."

  All of the men nodded at her wisdom, and the acrimony which had lurked just below the surface dissipated instantly.

  Lucien winked at her from across the table, his shoulders sagging in relief.

  Riona then rose. "Now gentlemen, there's coffee in the drawing room. I’m afraid we’ve abandoned poor Mrs. Woulfe in there on her own for quite long enough, so let’s all make a special effort to be gracious to her and drop all this business talk for half an hour, shall we?" Riona coaxed, with a dazzling smile.

  Mr. Benn escorted her into the drawing room, and she noted that three of the younger men sat down on the sofa next to Mrs. Woulfe.

  Riona herself went over to the coffee tray, and began asking all the guests how they took theirs.

  Riona then handed Lucien his black coffee with two sugars, and poured out a cup for herself. The fact that Riona did not need to ask Lucien how he drank his coffee was not lost on Antoinette, who was gazing at Riona narrowly, taking in the unadorned burgundy gown she was wearing, and the simple, almost severe hairstyle, which nevertheless were both extremely becoming.

  All right if you like that sort of innocent, child-like beauty, was Antoinette’s envious verdict as she smoothed her silk gown down over her capacious bosom and amply rounded figure.

  Lucien’s opinion was obviously different, as he took advantage of a lull in his conversation to move over to Riona after she had served all the guests.

  He stood close to her, and whispered intimately in her ear, "A stunning performance, my dear. You look lovely. They're all completely besotted by you. I never thought I’d see the day when we had Durance eating out of a lady’s hand. In fact, you’ve made a conquest of them all."

  "I’m glad you’re pleased." Riona smiled, lifting her sapphire blue eyes to gaze at Lucien, and for a moment it was as though they were the only two people in the room.

  "Was the dinner good?"

  "The best I’ve ever had," he praised sincerely. "And thank you for stepping in where the doctors were concerned. You may well have saved my life on that score."

  "Why, what’s wrong?" she asked worriedly.

  Lucien opened his mouth to tell her, when all of a sudden Quentin came up and stepped between them.

  "Now, now brother, go and mingle, while I look after this young lady," Quentin cajoled as he led Riona away by the arm with a grin.

  He had spotted his wife looking daggers over at Riona and Lucien, and she had just been about to launch herself out of her seat to approach them when Quentin had intervened.

  Quentin decided to take the enemy by surprise, so a
s he led Riona in Antoinette’s direction he said in a low voice, "I know it wasn’t your fault. We arrived late and then you were kept busy with our business discussion at the dining table, but may I please introduce you to my wife?"

  Since Quentin was already leading her over to the other woman’s sofa, she could hardly refuse.

  "My pleasure." She inwardly steeled herself for battle.

  "Antoinette, my dear, this is my cousin Riona from Donegal. Riona, my wife, Antoinette."

  "So nice to meet you. I hope you haven’t been too bored by all these business discussions," Riona said with a sincere smile.

  "No, not at all," Antoinette replied, but with an obvious yawn.

  Riona tried again. "I’m afraid Lucien didn’t want me to be the only woman present, but of course I'm also sure he was more than happy to have you and Quentin here as well."

  "I’ve never dined in this house before. It was an interesting experience. Please compliment the cook. I’ve never had anything quite like it," she drawled, in a tone which implied her opinion was anything but favourable.

  Riona could sympathise with Antoinette for finding the whole dinner rather dull, so she ignored the unfair barb, and asked, "How are the children, Neville and Lisette? Healthy, I hope, and doing well at their schooling, I trust."

  "I imagine so. I rarely see them," came the disconcerting reply.

  "No, of course not. At a great establishment like yours, you must have many servants. Well, with all of your leisure time then, cousin," Riona said perkily, "I am sure you are taking an interest in the charity hospital, organising garden fetes and teas and so on?"

  "I say, what a splendid idea," exclaimed Mr. Benn and Mr. Norton, also a happily married man, concurred.

  "I’m sure all the wives would love to help, wouldn’t they, Antoinette," Quentin said enthusiastically. "And we could even give a ball, couldn’t we, my dear? An all day outdoor event on the grounds, and a grand ball in the evening."

  Antoinette looked daggers at him. What could be more dull than inviting all of Quentin’s friends to a ball, she thought resentfully.

  But she was forced to assent when every person in the room proclaimed it an excellent idea.

  "You can count on my wife," Mr. Benn offered.

  "And mine," echoed Mr. Norton.

  Mr. Benn smiled. "Don’t worry, Mrs. Woulfe, you won’t have to do a thing except be hostess."

  "When shall we have it? The clinic is opening up next Friday already," Mr. Sturton wondered aloud.

  "Well, it could be the first grand party after Easter. That way everyone would be sure to come, and we could count on some good spring weather as well," Quentin thought aloud.

  He turned to Antoinette, who had still said nothing. "What about the first of May? That gives us a little over six weeks to plan things, my dear."

  "I’ll help of course, with the invitations and anything else that needs to be done," Riona offered. She won an approving look from Lucien, and a withering one from Antoinette.

  "I think the day events should be for everyone, don’t you, Quentin, and only the ball at night will need invitations," Lucien advised.

  "Of course, an excellent idea, brother. It will be splendid, won’t it," Quentin stated eagerly as he turned to his glowering wife.

  "Yes, of course," Antoinette echoed unenthusiastically, in a hard tone.

  But her spirit of trying to triumph over the auburn-haired beauty standing by Lucien’s side as though she owned him caused her to rise to the occasion. She would outshine the little chit if it was the last thing she did.

  "I know," Antoinette said suddenly. "What about a costume ball?"

  "Even more fun." Quentin applauded heartily, glad that his wife was finally joining in the spirit of things.

  But Antoinette’s only spirit was one of competition. She had seen a daring illustration in a ladies’ sensational magazine of a Venus in the waves costume.

  With her long blonde hair worn down over her shoulders, and a diaphanous gown, she couldn’t fail to be the centre of every man’s attention, especially Lucien’s.

  The rest of the evening was taken up with plans for the great garden fete, as it was to be called, with the gala costume ball in the evening. It would be a ticketed affair, and Quentin and Lucien would donate the money or secure donations from the shop keepers for all the food and refreshments, whilst the others would make further cash donations, and do their best to drum up more support.

  Riona took down all the notes, and reflected that her little notebook was nearly full, with lists of chores, volunteers, supplies, and so on.

  It never even entered her head to wonder what she was going to wear, for it never occurred to her that she would ever be invited.

  After all, she didn’t have the vast sum of ten pounds for a ticket, and the would be so much to organise behind the scenes anyway, that it would be impossible for her to get a minute to enjoy herself even if she did accompany Lucien.

  At last Antoinette grew completely disgusted with the subject, and insisted she and Quentin had to get home.

  Once they had taken their leave, one by one the married men admitted they simply had to go home and tell their wives the news, and the bachelors drifted away in twos and threes after a final cup of coffee and a brandy.

  As the door closed behind the last guest, Lucien lifted Riona up in the air and spun her around, before letting her slide down him to gently rest on the floor.

  He gave her a smacking kiss on the lips and exclaimed, "You were priceless, today, my dear. It couldn’t have gone better."

  Riona smiled shyly. "I’m glad you’re pleased."

  "Pleased? It’s a miracle! These are the men who would argue a black crow white, and yet everyone I know is now agreeing to work together for the good of the clinic. And the fete and ball idea was marvellous," he praised, with his arm still firmly around her waist.

  "Well, you have your brother to thank for supporting the ball idea."

  "I know, but he never would have agreed if you hadn’t mentioned it. And you're right, you know, getting the wives to help with bandages and so on might not be a bad thing," Lucien said as he led her back into the drawing room and poured them both a small snifter of brandy.

  Riona sat on the sofa next to him. "I think if we just start with them clearing out some of their wardrobes, and children’s old clothes, we could have a huge second-hand clothing stall for the more middle class ladies, and use the money to pay for sempstresses to run up some simple dresses for the women, shirts and trousers for the men coming to the clinic."

  Lucien nodded his agreement as he took a sip of brandy. "Speaking of dresses, we'll have to talk about our costumes. I was thinking King Charles the Second. I’ve always liked those long curls and hats the Cavaliers used to wear."

  "It would suit you, I think, but surely I couldn’t go. I haven’t the money for a ticket or a costume."

  "After the wonderful job you did today of taming that pack of lions, you deserve a treat. So you're coming to the ball as my companion, and there is no more to be said upon the subject."

  Lucien pressed one finger to her lips, before moving his head down to kiss her on the mouth.

  His arms went around her briefly, before he pulled away and observed, "You must be exhausted after the long day you’ve put in entertaining my family and friends. You head up to bed while I supervise the tidying down here."

  "No really, it’s part of my job."

  "I tell you what, we’ll both gather up the coffee cups and glasses then, shall we, so everyone can get to bed that much faster," he suggested, as he began to load the tray.

  Ben the manservant answered the ring, and gratefully accepted the tray of glasses from Lucien.

  "Now off to bed with you, girl. We will have an even more exciting day tomorrow seeing what those interviewees are like."

  "But I haven’t even written the letters yet!"

  "We’ll do it first thing in the morning together, and get the servants to go around to deliv
er them."

  Riona frowned. "Won’t it give them very little time to prepare?"

  "True, but it will also give them less time to try to dazzle us. Besides, if they are really keen, it wouldn’t be a problem for them to drop everything they're doing to come see me, now will it?" Lucien grinned.

  "You are a sharp one, Dr. Woulfe, I have to give you credit," Riona marvelled.

  "As are you my dear. Good night."

  After Riona had left the room, Lucien poured himself one last brandy. He was now suddenly feeling for the first time in his life that he could take on the world. And Riona had made it all possible.