Page 19 of The Truth about the Rogue
“I am grateful for your understanding,” came the reply with what looked like relief coming over Lady Faustine’s expression. “I will not be able to accept your offer, however, though I amsure that my dear friends would be glad to stand up with you. It was for them that I asked in the first place, you understand.”
Andrew smiled and turned his attention to the other three ladies, all of whom were smiling warmly back at him.
“But of course. Goodness, fortune smiles favorably upon me this evening, does it not, to be able to dance with three such beautiful ladies?”
He threw a quick glance to Lady Faustine, seeing the smile on her face fade just a little though, when he offered her a barely perceptible nod, it returned with its full glory. As he took in the three dance cards, however, Andrew’s attention snagged on something… or someone. With a start, he saw that not only was Miss Hawick gazing at him steadily, but that she was standing close enough to hear everything that he had been saying to Lady Faustine. Andrew narrowed his eyes just a fraction as if telling her that he was not about to be cowed by her stare and her clear dislike of what he was choosing to do, but Miss Hawick did not relent. Instead, she tilted her head up and kept her gaze steady, her lips thin and her eyes sharp.
It was Andrew who looked away first, recalling how quickly she had removed herself from his company, how eager she had been to step away from him instead of taking a turn about the park alongside Lord Glenfield and Miss Marshall. That should not be niggling away at him as it did and, much to his dismay, simply seeing her again made him recall that all the more clearly.
He scowled.
“Is everything quite all right, Lord Kentmore? You have not yet signed the dance cards.”
Andrew looked back at Lady Anna, smiling quickly.
“Indeed, all is well. The only thing that troubles me is how I am to decide which dance I am to take for all of you and, indeed, being disappointed that I can only take the one!”
This brought a bright smile back to Lady Anna’s face, and when Andrew dared a glance towards Miss Hawick again, she was no longer looking at him. Telling himself to forget about her entirely, Andrew returned his attention to the ladies before him and smiled warmly at Lady Faustine, knowing precisely what was waiting for him later that evening.
Much to his dismay, however, as he made his excuses and made his way back around the ballroom again in search of yet more company, his interest in Lady Faustine and his anticipation of the warm embrace she would offer him slowly began to fade. Indeed, it faded so quickly that it was as though something had punctured it, making it dissipate in only a matter of seconds. Scowling, Andrew rubbed one hand down his face and turned instead to watch the couples dancing the polka.
This is all Miss Hawick’s doing,he told himself, sternly.I need to set her aside, forget about her entirely, and thereafter, do all that I can to return to the life of the unrepentant rogue.
She still has not come.
Andrew let out a long breath and continued to pace up and down the parlor floor. Lady Faustine had, in a rather loud voice, informed her companion that she was soon to dance with Lord Dalton and, thereafter, would find herself required to go and rest, given that she was so very fatigued that evening. Andrew, fully aware that she had those words so that he would hear them, had quickly made his way to the parlor in expectation of her arrival. That had been some time ago, however, and as yet, she had not appeared.
Scowling, Andrew rubbed one hand over his face and then made his way to the door. This evening had begun badly, withhis thoughts of Miss Hawick lingering in his mind, only for him to then see her practically glaring at him as though she had any right whatsoever to judge his actions! Now, however, it appeared to have become much worse, since Lady Faustine had either chosennotto come to meet him, as she had made so plain, or had, mayhap, forgotten about the arrangement. It was not as though he was the only one that she spent time with - that he knew all too well – but, in the past, that had suited him, given that he had no interest in furthering his attachment to her either. At the moment, however, it felt as though he had been punched hard in the stomach, with the air thrown out of him, his chest tight and blood hissing in his ears. Pulling open the door, Andrew strode out into the dark hallway, a short distance from the ballroom, only for a gentle exclamation to meet his ears.
Relief flooded him.
“There you are,” he growled softly, wrapping his arms around Lady Faustine and lowering his head so that his forehead touched hers. “And here I was, thinking that you had abandoned me!” Without hesitating, without even thinking about pulling her into the parlor, Andrew lowered his head and kissed her fiercely, a little surprised at the reluctance he felt there. It was not as though Lady Faustine was pushing him away, only that she appeared to be a little… limp. Her arms had not gone around his neck, he had not felt her lean into him, had not had her tilt her head to deepen their kiss. Frowning, Andrew broke the kiss and lifted his head, hearing the gasp come from her and struggling to understand what the concern was.
“Charlotte? I think we have come the wrong way. I – oh, good gracious!”
Charlotte?
Andrew stepped back at once, shaking his hands as though he had touched something unpleasant and now sought to rid all trace of it from himself.
“I – I beg your pardon, I–”
“Whatever were you doing to my sister?”
In the dark hallway, Andrew could not make out the face of the lady who was speaking. Nor, much to his frustration, could he see the face of the lady he had held in his arms. His mind clung to the name, telling him that he did know who it was but, in his struggle, in his confusion and upset, he could not recall it.
“It was nothing short of a mistake, I assure you. You must forgive me.” A sudden realization of what might take place, should either one of these ladies demand that he make this situation right, slammed hard into his chest and he caught his breath, fear twisting in his heart. “Please, forgive me. I will take my leave of you now and–”
“I hardly think so!” The second lady strode forward, though the first caught her and held her back. “This is disgraceful!”
“It was a mistake, Lillian,” said the first lady, her voice barely loud enough for Andrew to hear. “Come, we should return to the ball. I–”
“Just who are you?” the second voice demanded and, much to Andrew’s horror, she picked up one of the nearby candlesticks and brought it close to him – and he could do nothing but permit her to see his face. “Oh, goodness!” The lady’s eyes went wide before she turned her head back. “Charlotte, it is Lord Kentmore!”
A slightly strangled sound echoed towards Andrew, and he closed his eyes, his heart hammering.
“As I have said, this was nothing but a mistake. I can do nothing else other than beg your forgiveness. Please, permit me to take my leave so that nothing more occurs.”
The second lady placed one hand flat on Andrew’s chest as he began to move away.
