Page 36 of The Viscount's Unwanted Bride
A man approached the stage next. He played the violin much more skillfully than the first performer had. His movements were well practiced, and he made the strings sing like crystal.
There were nearly a dozen performances in total. Many of the musicians played decently well, and one, a female cellist, would have deserved a place in the national orchestra.
To Theo’s relief, he didn’t have reason to plug his ears again. Honestly, he was fortunate he’d managed to get through the musicale without anyone noticing he’d done so in the first place.
When Mrs. Harrod declared the musical portion of the afternoon to be at an end, servants carried platters of food into the room and laid them on tables along the back wall. The guests mingled and enjoyed refreshments among which were tiny sandwiches and biscuits.
He stood with Lady Katherine to the side of one of the tables while her mother fetched herself a drink. “Is there a reason why Lady Sophie isn’t in attendance?”
She laughed. “Sophie has no interest in performing. Her mother displays her talents plenty at home during calling hours, but she prefers to play only for herself.”
“Lord Blackwell, Lady Katherine,” a neatly dressed woman said, stopping in front of them. She had shrewd eyes that darted between the two of them. “Do I hear church bells in the distance?”
Theo glanced at Lady Katherine. He had no idea who this woman was, so he was uncertain how to respond.
Lady Katherine smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “If there are banns to be read, you’ll hear them, Lady Bowling.”
Lady Bowling’s mouth wrinkled like a prune. Apparently, she didn’t wish to wait to find out what, if any, arrangements between them had been made. She wanted to know now.
“I’ll keep my ears open,” she said, gliding toward Lady Drake—presumably in the hopes she might have better luck getting the latest gossip from her.
Theo lowered his head. “Would you like to get tea and cakes elsewhere?”
He knew that she wanted to further their acquaintance, and it would be difficult to do that if they were worried about everyone staring at them.
“Where did you have in mind?” she asked.
“There’s a small teahouse near Hyde Park that’s very pleasant.”
She nodded. “That would be most agreeable. Let me just rescue my mother first.”
A short time later, they entered the teahouse and placed their orders. The premises was decorated rather plainly, with none of the frills of the more fashionable establishments. He’d always liked this place because the staff were polite but not nosy, and for the most part, the patrons left one another alone.
Unfortunately, he seemed to have attracted more interest today than usual. Not only were a group of women at one of the tables glancing at them every time they thought no one was paying attention, but so, too, were a pair of elderly gentlemen in the corner. Their expressions suggested that they found his presence about as tolerable as dog shit on the bottom of their shoe. They kept looking from him to Lady Katherine as if afraid he’d either do away with her or start undressing her right in front of them.
He didn’t acknowledge either party because he didn’t want Lady Katherine and Lady Drake to feel uncomfortable, but he was sure they’d noticed of their own accord.
Briefly, he considered that it might be in both their best interests to play up his poor reputation to encourage Lady Katherine to refuse him—he really didn’t want to ruin her life by tying her to him—but for some reason, he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.
“Do you enjoy reading?” Lady Katherine asked after they were seated in front of the window. The shop owner was craftyenough to realize that their presence would attract attention from passersby and draw them in.
The back of his neck prickled, but he focused on her and did his best to ignore it. “I do.”
She smiled, and a jolt of lust shot through him. She was pretty no matter what she was doing, but when she smiled like that, she could surely entrance any man she wanted. It was strange that she’d entered her second season unmarried.
“The countess, Lady Longley, writes adventure novels. I live in awe of her skill and smarts.”
His eyebrows flew up. “She does?”
It was unusual for an aristocratic woman to pursue a career, even one in the arts. Lady Katherine’s eyes narrowed as if daring him to speak ill of the countess’s exploits.
“We’re all proud of Amelia,” Lady Drake chimed in, her sweet expression at odds with the steel in her spine.
“I’m sure it’s well deserved.” He’d have to find out what she had published. “I’m afraid I don’t recall hearing news of Lord Longley’s marriage. Which family is the countess from?”
If possible, Lady Katherine’s eyes narrowed further. “Amelia’s father is a businessman, Mr. Hart.”
Ah, that made more sense. She’d no doubt been raised to be industrious.
