Page 1 of Emma & Edmund

Chapter 1

Emma had failed for two months.

She refused to fail again.

At the same moment the invitation came to her door, Emma Thompson decided she would be leaving the party with a proposal.

The matter of who would be her future husband would be worked out later, with her father back in London. In the meantime, she had work to do.

She hadn't packed up her most precious, most beautiful belongings, stuffed herself into a booze-soaked coach for five days to whither under the pressure now. Especially not in the middle of an unfamiliar ballroom, glittering brightly with the twirling of gowns and smiles of handsome, rich men.

"Are you going to dance or not?" The brandied breath of the older Thompson sibling, Jonathan, hit her nose like a brick. "I didn't escort you all the way here to have you sit on the side like this."

Emma resisted snorting a laugh, knowing it was far too great of a chance someone would hear the ugly noise, packed to the gills as the room was.

"If I remember correctly," Emma said through a strained smile, "I asked Father to accompany me. As you’ll remember, the invitation came only for me."

Jonathan had no such restraint, his chortle grating on her ears.

"Yes, dear sister, you and every other girl in London. And this whole trip has perfectly explained why Father passed the opportunity to me."

"The 'opportunity' being Father agreeing to pay you for the trouble."

"Enough, both of you."

With cheeks red from dancing, Margaret Ingham, their traveling companion, must have noticed the siblings squabbling from across the room. Waving away her heart-eyed dancing partner as the tune ended, Margaret firmly planted herself at Emma's side.

Emma and Margaret had spent their childhood together, attending the same classes and clubs, learning the same lessons and beauty tricks side by side. Even as fresh marriageable women, Emma was loathed to go to any function where her dear friend wouldn't be in attendance.

Despite that, though, twinges of jealousy swirled in Emma as she looked upon her friend. The pair debuted at the same party within mere weeks of the Season starting, and the stunning blonde had already snagged several ardent admirers.

Margaret's success was hardly a surprise. Blessed with a narrow chin and large eyes, she was a veritable porcelain doll come to life. While Emma knew she wasn't repulsive, her auburn hair paled against her friend's vibrant blonde, and her grey eyes did not glow as brightly as Margaret's blue.

With the addition of the Ingham's wealth, it was destined she would reign supreme.

"Jonathan, even you know this is a wonderful opportunity. It is reasonable to assume the young lord's intentions are the same as every other who hosts a party. She has every right to thoroughly examine the situation, with a countess title on the line."

"You don't even know what the man looks like!" Jonathan fished through his coat pocket, withdrawing a freshly refilled tin flask. Its previous contents were likely still clinging to the fabric of the coach, having been spilled all over it not a day into their trip.

"The man could be an ogre, for all I care," Emma countered, "And stop your groaning; there was no point in staying in the city when the most eligible men were headed to the countryside. At the very least, it seems like it'll be a good party."

"With Countess Eastwood in attendance, it'll certainly be entertaining at the very least," Margaret agreed. "Besides, who cares what the man looks like when he comes with such title and fortune?"

"Only those who aren't as shallow as you."

"I should deem it shallower, to care so much about looks." Margaret agreed with Emma with a fervent nod of her head.

"We will see how you feel when a bridge troll strolls onto the dancefloor."

Even for all their speculation and hope, neither of the girls denied the oddity of the situation.

While being called away from the city in the middle of the Season would normally be the very last thing a young, unmarried lady would want, the occasion more than called for it. After all, when an elusive, heavily rumoredcountry earl sends an invitation to your door, it would be hard to deny under normal circumstances.

When the same invitation hits the door of seemingly half of society, rejection became wholly impossible.

Lord Edmund Lockhart brought London to him.

And yet, he was nowhere to be seen.

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