Never Wager with a Wallflower by Virginia Heath

I have no idea what the bounder can be thinking to insult us so grievously.’ To leave us here, hiding in the vestry like common criminals, is beyond the pale, Lizzie. ‘It is the bride’s prerogative to be late, not the groom’s. ‘I shall give him a stern piece of my mind later! Be assured of that!’ For the second time in as many minutes her father snapped his pocket watch open and stared impatiently at the dial. A courtship which had made her the envy of her peers and now she was having the perfect wedding, too. Something he proved time and time again with his effusive compliments and daringly longing gazes. They were destined to be together for ever. Dowries were of no consequence when his heart beat only for her. The money meant nothing because he would happily take her with nothing. From their very first dance he had been the most ardent and attentive suitor, and although Lizzie came with a substantial dowry, he made it quite plain that he did not give two figs for the money. But as she was prone to point out whenever he was criticised-something which happened with annoying regularity-everybody knew rakes made the very best husbands once they found the right woman, and Lizzie was very definitely the right woman for him.ĭear Charles told her so every single day. Charles did have a reputation as a bit of a rake and had broken more than one heart before he had found his one true love. Many in society were surprised by the match, her own dear parents included. The beginning of her perfect, happily ever after, exactly six months on from her first meeting with the man she loved with all her heart. After all, she had been planning it all since she was ten, right down to the minutest of details because it was the most important day of her life. In fact, to her complete delight, everything about her wedding to the Marquess of Rainham was exactly as she had imagined it. Her wedding dress was embroidered subtly to match and her dainty bonnet decorated with beautiful silk replicas, scaled down to sit in a pleasing fashion. The air hung heavy with the fragrance of lilacs, Lizzie’s favourite flower, and tall vases and boughs festooned the aisle she would soon walk down.

No mean feat in a church as large and grand as this one, yet hardly a surprise when this was the wedding of the Season: the day when the darling of society, the beautiful only daughter of the Earl of Upminster, married her handsome peer.Įven the sun had come out to celebrate and was cheerfully streaming through the imposing stained-glass windows in an exceedingly pleasing fashion and causing a kaleidoscope of colours to decorate the floor. Prologue St George’s Church, Hanover Square-June 1815Įvery pew was taken.

Never Wager with a Wallflower by Virginia Heath