Free The Actor and the Earl by Rebecca Cohen

determined expression.
    “You can’t hide in here. All the guests have arrived. They’ve come to see the new Lady Crofton.”
    “Given that Earl Crofton can’t bear to spend more than a few minutes in my company, I don’t think I will be missed.”
    Miriam unlaced him, and he obediently lifted his arms when commanded. “Nonsense. I admit that Lord Anthony is being more stubborn than usual, but that’s no reason to let him get away with acting like a child.”
    “You told me to wait, that his mood would blow over.”
    “Well, I was wrong. And now you need to stand up to him or he’ll think he can get his way by sulking.”
    “It is his house. He always gets his way.”
    “Then he should know better. Listen to me, Sebastian, if he didn’t care, this would have been over by yesterday suppertime.”
    “Then it is because he cares that his pride has been wounded, not that he cares for me.”
    Miriam grabbed Sebastian by the shoulders. “You could be here for years. You can’t let him bully you this time, or he’ll always do it.”
    “How can I do that?”
    “By going to dinner and acting as if you own this house!”
    Even though he didn’t follow women’s fashion, Sebastian knew Miriam must have chosen his dress for the evening as an outward symbol that Bronwyn Crofton would be the most important person at supper that night. Its bold purple color and expensive material screamed wealth and status. Sebastian decided that if his sister had been here she would not have put up with Anthony’s behavior, so neither would he. Anthony had wanted him to play the role of his sister, and Anthony was going to get just that.
    Head held high, Sebastian walked along the corridor and down the staircase. A servant waiting at the bottom of the stairs bowed as he passed and then ran ahead to open the doors of the great hall. Seated at the long table were seven people. Sebastian only recognized Anthony, who was seated at the head of the table between a very pretty blonde woman and a man of the same age who looked like he could be the woman’s brother. There were two other couples, an older lady and gentleman sitting opposite a man and a woman who were closer to Anthony’s age than Sebastian’s.
    Anthony got to his feet. He didn’t look any happier than the last time they’d seen each other. “Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce you to my new wife: Lady Bronwyn Crofton.”
    Sebastian curtseyed and took the spare chair at the end of the table, opposite to Anthony. The older man who sat to his left was first to speak. “Lord Ashton, but please call me Richard, and this is my wife, the Lady Anne.”
    “My pleasure to meet you both,” said Sebastian politely before turning to his right, where the other couple introduced themselves as Lord Thomas and Lady Elaine Wellsworth. “May I ask who the other guests are? I do not wish to disturb their conversation with Earl Crofton.”
    “Lord Simon Bresner and his sister, Lady Eleanor,” said Thomas. “Their father owns the land to the north of the Crofton estate.”
    Sebastian watched as Anthony leaned in close and whispered something into Eleanor’s ear which resulted in a high-pitched giggle. “She certainly appears to be a spirited woman.”
    “That is one way of putting it,” said Elaine, and Sebastian saw that Elaine was heavily pregnant.
    A polite cough from Richard drew Sebastian’s attention. “We were unable to attend the wedding, with it being in London. Do you hail from there, Lady Bronwyn?”
    “Not originally. My family came from Portsmouth, but we moved to London when I was ten.”
    Richard chewed noisily as he listened. “Portsmouth, you say? Is yours a naval family?”
    “Yes, my father was Captain Geoffrey Hewel.”
    Sebastian saw the recognition on Richard’s face. “I had the pleasure of meeting him several times. He was a good man, a loyal man. Some of his strategies… well, they were brilliant.”
    “At sea and aboard ship, he was a master,”