Page 27 of A Sinful Viscount's Mistletoe Affair
“But then people would think we were courting and soon to be engaged!” Isabella spluttered. The first thought that came into her mind as she said the words out loud was that she did not want Sebastian to think she was engaged to the duke. But she knew she was getting ahead of herself, tying herself in knots thinking of all the possibilities that could come to pass during the course of the house party.
Lady Eleanor gave her a wry smile. “Well, what do you think the next step would be, my dear? He has already spoken to your father and told him that he finds you very charming. You might perhaps try to encourage him a little this evening and make him believe that you would welcome his proposal?”
Isabella had to look away to stop herself from rolling her eyes at her mother. This was almost too much to bear, but what could she do? The pressure from her parents would not go away, but she had not decided how to deal with it. The best solution, perhaps, was to go along with her mother’s plans for the evening and try to find a way to spend some time with Sebastian as well.
“Very well, Mother,” she replied. “Perhaps we should have games before dinner since it is getting dark so early now, and no one will want to be out of doors in the late afternoon.” At least that way, they could get charades over with sooner, she thought.
“A grand idea!” Lady Eleanor replied. “Now, if you could just write me down a list of things that people can act out. Remember, it should be a mixture of words and romantic tales. Do you think you can manage that?”
Isabella nodded and sat down at a small table in the corner where a quill pen and some sheaves of paper lay waiting. Her mother clearly had planned out this task for her.
She resolved to do her best and to choose a range of things for the party to act out. Who knew; perhaps the game would reveal more about the enigmatic Sebastian, even if Isabella was forced to play the first round with the duke.
***
Later in the afternoon, the sun was beginning to dip behind the trees, and the party gathered in the drawing room. The room was lit with candles in every corner, and festive greenery adorned each surface in large, ornate vases. There was a quiet hubbub of chatter amongst the guests as they waited for the fun to begin.
Isabella stood in a corner with Daphne, surveying the scene.
“And so your mother says that you must play the first round with the duke?” Daphne whispered, glancing over to where the Duke of Harbridge stood conversing with Lord Evermere.
Isabella nodded, trying to suppress the sense of disappointment that she was already feeling, even though the games had not yet begun. “My mother will not even allow me to choose the charade we must present; she said they must all be chosen at random.”
“But you know what they all are?” Daphne asked.
Isabella shrugged. “Of course. It is I who sat and wrote them all out.”
Daphne giggled. “I wonder if I will get the chance to be paired with Mr Sterling. I hope a good one will be chosen for us if we play together.”
Isabella smiled at her friend, feeling a slight pang of envy about how simple things appeared to be for her in relation to what appeared to be a blossoming romance between herself and Mr Sterling. “I am sure he will want to be partnered with you, Daphne. From what I can gather, he has barely been away from your side the whole day.”
“I think you are exaggerating slightly,” Daphne replied with a grin. “He insisted on walking next to me for most of our expedition around the estate grounds this morning. “But we were not together this afternoon. After luncheon, the men all disappeared to talk about their boring business interests.”
“Well, might I suggest that you try to pretend to be interested, at least a little bit?” Isabella said, glancing over to where Mr Sterling and Sebastian were standing chatting on the other side of the room. “That is what they appear to be here for, after all.”
Her heart had leapt in her chest a little when he had entered the room a few minutes ago, and she had hoped that he would come over and speak to her, but instead, he had looked at her, smiled, and then headed straight for his stepbrother. The two young men had been engaged in intense conversation ever since.
Daphne took a sip of her champagne and followed Isabella’s gaze across the room to where the two men stood. “I will try,” she said solemnly. “Although all this talk about Bath and hotels is desperately dull. It would perhaps be nice to go and stay in one, but all the details about buying the land, building them, and all of that, I really will have to work quite hard to pretend to care about it!”
Isabella laughed. “Well, I have heard more than enough about cargo ships from my father over the years, so I do know what you mean.” She paused and glanced back to where her father and the duke were standing.
“I suppose I should try and look a little more interested in the duke’s mills. Although I must admit that I was quite interested in the issues he was telling me about regarding his workers and how worried they are about any form of mechanization.”
Daphne looked at her incredulously. “You are strange, Isabella!” she exclaimed. “You say you have no interest in being a duchess and all the glamour and status that would involve, but then you confess to being interested in what the duke has to say about workers’ rights!”
Isabella raised an eyebrow. “Perhaps I am strange,” she conceded. “I know many young ladies in my position would be excited to be courted by a duke, but it is just as I keep telling you. There is something strange about him that I do not like, and I cannot resolve myself to the idea of marrying him.”
Before Daphne had the chance to reply, Lady Evermere stepped into the centre of the room and clapped her hands.
“Now, I hope you are all ready to enjoy yourselves!” she declared. “For the games are about to begin!”
Isabella could not help smiling a little at how excited her mother was for the games to begin. She had always been a wonderful hostess who enjoyed nothing more than seeing her guests have fun while eating and drinking their fill.
Isabella reflected for a moment on what Daphne had said about being a duchess; there would be a huge amount of entertaining and acting as the perfect hostess, and Isabella was not sure that she could even live up to her mother’s standards, let alone the standards expected of a duchess.
But she did not have long to think about it before her mother urged her forward. “Now, Isabella has composed all the charades, using her grand imagination, and she will be paired with the duke for the first round.”
There was a hubbub or chatter around the room as Isabella stood next to Henry, glancing at him surreptitiously as she did so. All the guests were watching them, and Isabella felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment. She saw that even Sebastian was staring at them, and while she felt glad that he was looking at her, she wondered what he was thinking in response to this very obvious move of her mother’s.
