Rendezvous by Amanda Quick Read Free Book Online Page A

eyes widened. He gulped his brandy and promptly choked on it. His face turned a deep, dark shade of crimson as he coughed and sputtered and flailed about with his hand. He appeared torn between stunned amazement and laughter.
    Harry calmly rose from his chair and went over to pound his host between the shoulder blades. “I know what you mean, Sir Thomas. It is a somewhat unnerving notion, is it not? I myself had a similar reaction when I first contemplated it. But now I have grown quite accustomed to the idea.”
    “
Augusta?
”
    “Yes, Sir Thomas, Augusta. You are going to give me your permission, are you not?”
    “Certainly, sir,” Sir Thomas said immediately. “God knows she won’t get a better offer, not at her age.”
    “Precisely,” Harry agreed. “Now, then, it occurs to me that as we are dealing with Augusta rather than Claudia, we must assume her response to an offer of marriage might be somewhat, shall we say, unpredictable.”
    “Damned unpredictable.” Sir Thomas looked glum. “Unpredictability runs in the Northumberland side of the family, Graystone. Most unfortunate trait, but there you have it.”
    “I understand. Given that lamentable characteristic, perhaps it would be more efficient if we simply made this entire event a fait accompli for Augusta. It might be easier on her if we take the decision out of her hands, if you see what I mean.”
    Sir Thomas gave Harry a shrewd glance from beneath his thick brows. “Are you by any chance suggesting I fire the notices off to the papers before you ask my niece for her hand?”
    Harry nodded. “As I said, Sir Thomas. It will be more efficient if Augusta is not called upon to actually make a decision.”
    “Bloody clever,” said Sir Thomas, clearly awed. “Brilliant notion, Graystone. Absolutely brilliant.”
    “Thank you. But I have a hunch this is only the beginning, Sir Thomas. Something tells me that staying one step ahead of Augusta is going to take a great deal of cleverness and an even greater amount of fortitude.”

“Y ou
sent the notices off to the papers? Uncle Thomas, I do not believe it. This is a disaster. “Tis obvious a terrible mistake has been made.”
    Still reeling from the stunning blow of her uncle’s offhanded announcement that he had accepted an offer of marriage on her behalf, Augusta paced the library. She was ablaze with a furious energy and she scowled fiercely as she tried to think her way clear of the dreadful situation.
    She had just come in from an afternoon ride in the park and was still wearing a dashing new ruby-colored riding habit trimmed in gold braid
à la militaire
. The matching confection of a hat with its perky red feather was still perched on her hair and she was still wearing her gray leather boots. A servant had told her that Sir Thomas had a message for her and she had breezed straight into the library.
    Only to be met with the shock of her life
.
    “How could you have done such a thing, Uncle Thomas? How could you have made such a mistake?”
    “Don’t think there was any mistake,” Sir Thomas said vaguely. Having delivered his announcement from his armchair, he had immediately plunged back into the book he had been reading before Augusta had arrived. “Graystone appeared to know exactly what he was doing.”
    “But there must have been a mistake. Graystone would never offer for me.” Augusta pondered the problem furiously as she paced back and forth. “Tis obvious what happened. He offered for Claudia and you misunderstood.”
    “Don’t believe so.” Sir Thomas buried himself deeper in his book.
    “Come, now, Uncle Thomas. You know you get quite absentminded on occasion. You have frequently confused Claudia’s name with mine, especially when you are working on one of your books, as you are now.”
    “What do you expect? You were both named after Roman emperors,” Sir Thomas said by way of excuse. “Bound to be the occasional mistake.”
    Augusta groaned. She knew her uncle. When