Page 76 of Sense and Suitability
Simon held her gaze, unwilling to fall into her trap. “How are you enjoying the play, Miss Hemston?”
“Ah, not quite the conversational partner you were hoping for, I take it?” Her laugh was light, but there was an edge to it. “Why continue playing this ridiculous game and torturing yourself longerthan you must? There is an easy, quite willing solution to all your difficulties, Lord Ravenscross. All you need to do is say the word.”
Getting caught in her claws was a terrifying prospect for any man. He tilted his head slightly, his eyes narrowing. “I’m assuming, then, that this comedy is not to your liking.”
Selena’s jaw tensed for the briefest moment before she took a step closer, her lilac scent filling the air between them. It was a scent he knew well—strong, potent, undeniably hers—carefully chosen to make her presence known. “I’m suggesting, Simon, that we both know you need not only money to save Ravenscross but someone with the fortitude to help you rebuild. I can provide both, and you know it.”
“I appreciate your magnanimity to my plight, Miss Hemston.” Simon offered a slight nod before stepping back. “And I am sorry to appear unobliging, but I do not believe we are well suited.”
“Why not?” Her fan flicked open with a flourish, the feathers brushing against her wrist with practiced elegance. “I come from a family of influence. My father is well known”—though Simon wasn’t certain of how well respected—“and with my dowry, you could more than secure your estate. Together, we could ensure your legacy. I have ambition, Simon, the kind that aligns perfectly with your needs.”
And with her own.
Simon’s jaw clenched against her offer. The very thought that a child born of their union would inherit Ravenscross, under the influence of her shrewd, coldhearted father, sent a chill through him. No, his family would never accept it—not even his astute Aunt Agatha would stand for such an arrangement. But he knew Selena well enough to sense her determination. The viscountcy of Ravenscross might not be the most powerful title in the land, but it carried with it prestige—prestige that Selena longed for to rise above her father’s shadow, to win his affection.
Well, if she was determined to be direct, then so could he.
“You seek a title?” Simon asked, cutting to the point. “To win your father’s favor?”
Selena’s eyes flickered with something unreadable. For a fleeting moment, the confident mask slipped and her smile quivered. “What of it?” Her reply took on a sharpness. “You think I’m the only one with something to prove? You need this just as much as I do. I’m offering a partnership. One where we both get what we want.”
“You want my title, and in exchange, I’m supposed to marry a woman whose loyalty is to herself, not my family.”
Her eyes flashed. “I am loyal—to my future. And if you think for a second that I wouldn’t be loyal to you, you’re wrong. I’ve always respected you, Simon. I wouldn’t be standing here making this offer if I didn’t believe you were the best match for me. We could be powerful together. Don’t you see?”
He saw it, all right. She was pragmatic, just as he was. Her offer wasn’t born from affection, nor from passion—it was a calculated arrangement, a way to rise, to secure power and influence. But ambition alone couldn’t sustain a life.
“I’m sorry, Miss Hemston.” He softened the edge in his voice and drew in a deep breath. “I cannot build my future on ambition alone, no matter the cost.”
“No matter the cost?” Selena’s expression darkened, her mouth tightening as she snapped her fan shut. “You think you’ll find something better? With Miss Clayton, or”—her lips curled—“a country gentleman’s daughter?”
Simon flinched at the mention of Emme, and Selena caught the movement, her eyes narrowing with a predator’s satisfaction. “You’re not as insensible as that, no matter your emotional entrenchment. Besides, rumor has it your dear Miss Lockhart has found a new interest of the clerical variety.”
Simon’s heart stilled at her words, and though he fought to keep his expression neutral, he could feel his features betraying him. Hersmile flickered, sharp and knowing. “Ah, I see you haven’t heard the latest. I’ve even witnessed their exchange of letters firsthand.”
Letters? Would Emme resort to such a breach of propriety? Unless there was some truth in Selena’s words.
He stilled against the swell of disappointment. But why shouldn’t she find someone else? He’d given her no reason to hope for him, despite every fiber of his soul praying for a miracle.
“I fail to see how Miss Lockhart’s personal matters have anything to do with me, Miss Hemston.”
“Of course not. But as afriend, I wouldn’t want your hopes to be misguided.” Her eyes gleamed with a knowing look. “Why do you fight my offer with such tenacity, Lord Ravenscross? No one else can give you what I can.”
The weight of her proposition pressed into his good sense. One answer would change his fortune forever.
But it would also ruin his life.
She leaned in ever so slightly, her voice dropping to a dangerous murmur. “If we both learn to play nice, as I know I am quite capable of doing, it may become more than an alliance. It could become a real connection.”
Simon steadied his expression and studied the woman’s face, nearly strangled by the urge to call her out for her forwardness, for her breach of propriety, for the fact that a marriage started on such animosity from his part and self-interest on hers had very little chance to be much more than indifference at best or utter torture at worse.
“Miss Hemston, I would encourage you to find someone who values the same things you do because I am not that man.” He dipped his head to leave. “Forgive me.”
Simon caught the glare she sent him as he turned, but he would not stay for more. Already, his extended conversation with Selena would likely raise some eyebrows, and if there was one thing Simonknew well, it was how easily the gossips could spin a simple conversation to their favor.
He was working hard to repair his family’s reputation, to restore the estate’s solvency with his own efforts, rather than relying solely on Aunt Agatha’s charity. The last thing he needed was anything that could complicate that. His family’s future depended on it.
Chapter 16
