Page 21 of The Duke's Inconvenient Bride
Upset was more like it. He didn’t say anything, though. If Lady Emma wasn’t prepared to be honest with her family, it was none of his business.
Even if he had contributed to her distress.
Guilt churned in his stomach, but he did his best to ignore it. She wasn’t his problem.
“Fine.” Sophie pouted and disappeared back around the doorframe.
As they prepared to depart, Vaughan took Violet’s arm. She smiled up at him, but he couldn’t help thinking that it was missing some of the brightness he’d become accustomed to seeing from her.
“Will you be attending the Hampstead ball tomorrow night?” she asked, allowing him to guide her down the corridor, her mother following closely behind.
“I’m afraid not. I have business that I must attend to.” That “business” involved drinking brandy and thanking his lucky stars that his bride hunt was over and he no longer had to attend such events.
Violet huffed. “Then I shall have to entertain myself.”
His stomach rolled sickeningly at the recollection of how his mother used to do that. Preferably with handsome men, andoften right under his father’s nose. He hoped Violet Carlisle had more discretion than his mother.
CHAPTER 6
Sophie chasedafter Emma and Violet as Lady Carlisle hustled them out of Carlisle House and toward the waiting carriage.
“Three,” she called to Emma. “You promise?”
“I promise,” Emma called back. “I’ll dance with at least three eligible gentlemen.”
“I’ll make sure of it,” Lady Carlisle muttered, not loudly enough for Sophie to hear, but Emma understood her just fine.
Sophie waved. “Have a good time.”
“We will.” Violet laughed. “She’s going to be a handful during her season.”
“Fortunately, that won’t happen for another three years at least,” Lady Carlisle said.
A footman assisted her into the carriage, and Violet and Emma followed. The interior was unseasonably warm. Someone had probably placed hot bricks beneath the seats.
Emma smiled to herself as she looked out the window at where Sophie stood silhouetted in the house’s entrance. Her heart was light and hopeful. With Violet betrothed, Emma might finally have an opportunity to meet a suitor of her own.
“You look nice tonight,” Lady Carlisle said to Emma as the carriage jostled away. “Is that one of the gowns we ordered from Madame Baptiste at the start of the season?”
“It is.” Emma fingered the skirt, which was cream but trimmed with the palest green. She thought it brought more color to her face, and she hoped the men who’d be at the Hampstead ball would agree.
“Do you like my dress?” Violet asked, rearranging her skirt around herself.
“It complements your eyes perfectly,” Lady Carlisle replied. “It is almost the exact same shade of blue.”
“You look lovely too, Mother,” Emma said. It was true. Lady Carlisle may have silver hair threaded among her blonde, but she was an elegant woman. Emma hoped she aged as well as her mother had.
“Thank you, dearest.”
They’d timed their arrival so that the rush of guests was over. Therefore, their carriage was able to stop outside Hampstead House without delay.
Lady Carlisle whisked Violet and Emma inside, one of her daughters on each arm as she greeted their host and hostess.After Lady Carlisle finished conversing, and the three women moved into the ballroom.
Emma surveyed the ballroom, her lips parting as she took in the view. The walls were plain white trimmed with maroon, but dozens of gilt-framed mirrors reflected back the colors of dresses and suits as several pairs of partners engaged in a country dance.
The effect dazzled her.
A string quartet played, and despite the number of people packed inside, the space smelled like a garden. Of course, that might be due to the enormous number of shrubs that seemed to have been relocated inside.
