Page 48 of The Banished Bride
“Indeed not, sir.” Her eyes didn’t waver from his. “Actually I have become enormously fond of you, for I have come to the conclusion that you are no rogue at all, but rather a thoroughly nice gentleman. One who is intelligent, perceptive and witty, as well as kind and compassionate.”
For a moment he was speechless. Then a ghost of a smile flitted across his lips. “Are you flirting with me, Robbie?”
The older woman’s cheek turned a pink that matched the sash of her new gown. “Good Heavens, am I?”
He chuckled. “Have a care, my dear. If I were available, I might be tempted to see just how serious you are.”
They completed a series of twirls before she spoke again. “Are you not … available, Alex?”
Rather than answering right away, his brooding gaze sought Aurora among the other couples. He could swear that Jack’s gaze kept sliding down to her cleavage.
“Kindly inform your charge that she is not to order any additional gowns from Madame Mathilde.”
“I regret to inform you that in certain matters, I have absolutely no influence over Aurora.”
His mouth quirked. “I can well believe it. Having spent a week in my wife’s company, I am more than aware of how deucedly mulish she can be.”
Behind the glint of her spectacles, Miss Robertson’s eyes took on an appraising light. “And you would seek to train such stubbornness out of her, sir?” she inquired.
There was a long pause. “Miss Robertson, if I wanted a creature who obeyed my every command and answered to a cuff and sharp word, I would get a dog.”
It was her turn to chuckle. “As I said, sir, you are a most enjoyable partner. Especially as your legs have remained quite steady throughout this dance instead of threatening to fold like an overdone souffle.”
Alex had to choke back a bark of laughter. He would miss this delightful woman almost as much as Aurora when it came time for them to quit London. “Are my legs to be a constant source of amusement to both of you?” he demanded, trying his hardest to sound aggrieved.
“Aurora has commented on your legs?”
“Indeed she has. Found them a subject for mirth as well. I believe she referred to them as great, hairy—er, that is ....” To his acute mortification, he felt himself blushing like a raw schoolgirl.
Miss Robertson kept a straight face. “Well, she certainly has not mentioned finding fault with any other part of your anatomy.”
He gave a strangled cough, then maneuvered her through a series of spins and turns, hoping that the quickened pace might help account for the fact that his cheeks were turning a shade redder. Finally regaining some mastery over his voice, he made an abrupt change of direction in the conversation as well. “Tell me, Miss Robertson, does she truly find me as abhorrent as it appears?”
“Why do you ask, Alex?”
He drew in a deep breath. “Because I should like to know whether she might consider tolerating my company for more than just the coming few weeks.”
She took what seemed to him to be an inordinate amount of time to reply. “Hmmm. Well, as to your question, Aurora insists that you are the most odious, insufferable, overbearing man she has ever met.”
His face fell. “That bad?” Several more box step were completed before he gave a rueful grimace. “So then, it would seem that I have no hope in the matter”
An unladylike snort escaped from his partner. “Come now, Alex. I would not have expected a seasoned military man to surrender so easily. Do you mean to tuck your tail between those long legs of yours—hairy or not—and slink off, leaving the field to someone else?”
Her gaze made a pointed shift to where Aurora was gliding along in the viscount’s arms. Alex’s eyes narrowed and his fingers clenched tighter around hers, but he said nothing.
“She might forgive the first desertion, you know,” added Miss Robertson in a low whisper. “But I doubt she would look kindly on it happening again.”
He grimaced. “But if she hates me?—”
“I can see that despite your experience in the ways of the world, you still have much to learn about females in general and Aurora in particular. Trust an old governess when I say that, like many situations seen in the heat of battle, things may not be as grim as they seem. You must simply come up with the right tactics to turn the tide in your favor.”
His brow furrowed in thought. “Tactics, you say?” As he spoke, he looked once more in Aurora’s direction, and to his eye it looked as though the space between her chest and Jack’s elegant evening coat had lessened considerably. The pensiveexpression slowly turned into a scowl nearly as black as his friend’s well-tailored garment.
“Yes, tactics. And as on the battlefield, you must be willing to take some risk in order to achieve victory.” She cleared her throat. “And one other thing, Alex, if I may make so bold as to suggest an initial change in strategy. No lady in her right mind would feel encouraged to wax romantic over a gentleman who is constantly looking at her with such a glowering face.”
“Face? What face? I amnotmaking a face.”
“Yes, you are. And a very odious one at that. Your brows draw together in a most forbidding manner and your lip curls up at the left corner.”
