Page 56 of The Viscount and the Vicar's Daughter
“He didn’t need to see you,” Gabriel chimed in. “He sensed it by your touch alone. The gentle lilt of your voice. The scent of you.”
“I smelled like my horse and I sounded like a Harpy,” Laurel insisted.
Alexander chuckled.
So did Graelem. “I loved ye at first sight, lass. Just goes to prove how smart I was.”
Lady Withnall pounded her cane on the carpet. “Stop gushing over your wives. It is quite unseemly, although I heartily approve. The point is to have Alexander find a lady suitable to be gushed over. I suggest you start with Lady Aurora.”
Alexander was instantly curious. “Why her?”
Lady Withnall cast him a beady look. “Is she not pretty enough for you?”
“They are all diamonds, Lady Withnall. What is so special that I must start with her?”
His mother groaned. “If you are at a loss to see her attributes, then I doubt she will be the one for you. Perhaps Alexander ought to leave her for last.”
His grandmother now chimed in. “No, do as Lady Withnall suggests. I think I see the logic in it. Lady Aurora is an earl’s daughter. Lady Alicia is the daughter of a marquess. And Lady Charlotte is the daughter of a duke. You are to take them in ascending order, is that not so?”
Lady Withnall nodded. “Indeed, this is precisely the reason. One must always work one’s way up.”
It sounded completely stupid and trivial to Alexander, but he merely nodded and went along. “Then I shall start with Lady Aurora.”
They all made their way to the parlor to await the rest of his guests as they descended for this first night’s supper. He could not wait to see what Viola had in store for them. Indeed, the girl was constantly on his mind.
But he had to concentrate on Lady Aurora this evening.
Well, how long did he have to spend talking to her?
Would it not be rude to ignore his other guests on their first night here?
He greeted each one with impeccable courtesy as they entered the parlor.
Now strolling in were Lady Aurora, her parents, and her brother.
“Ardley, I’ve missed beating you at cards,” the brother, Lord Gaston, said in jest and shook his hand.
“Ah, yes. Our notorious card games. But I fear you were the one who always lost, Gaston.” He chuckled. “Glad you could make it.”
He then turned to the sister, Lady Aurora. The girl was pretty, he had to give her that, but perhaps a little too…glittery. She wore a diamond necklace that could blind a man. She had golden curls and cat-like gray eyes, not to mention a heart-shaped face and pretty lips.
But her smile felt insincere.
He did not know why, it just did. “Welcome to my home, Lady Aurora.”
“It is charming,” she said without a jot of enthusiasm, looking thoroughly bored as she scanned the room.
Several footmen entered with more appetizing bites prepared by Viola, including those same miniature tarts she had set out for the earlier arrivals. His father had polished that first batch off before the other guests arrived. Greaves must have mentioned it to her, so she had now whipped up some more.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed his father attempt to dive on them. But his mother held him back. “None of your trousers will fit you if you keep this up,” she chided him.
Alexander squelched a chuckle.
He returned his attention to Lady Aurora and her family. “I hope you found your guest chambers to your liking. We tend to be informal here in the countryside, striving for comfort rather than residing among museum pieces.”
“No complaints,” her father said cheerfully.
“Nor do I have any,” her brother added. “I am heartily enjoying your stock of brandy. I hear Duke Nevins is here with his daughter, Lady Charlotte. I have not seen them yet. Have they arrived?”
