Edward muttered something under his breath that she did not catch. It did not sound complimentary.
Down the opposite wing to her bedroom, Edward rapped his knuckles impatiently on a bedroom door.
‘Ah, Edward, Kate, there you are,’ said a smiling Emily, as though she had been looking for her for ages.
Edward made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a growl, but there was nothing exceptional about Emily’s statement, so Kate must have imagined his reaction.
‘What can I do for you, my dear?’ Emily continued, completely ignoring Edward’s presence.
‘She has nothing to wear,’ snapped Edward. Emily glanced at the dress Kate was very clearly wearing. ‘For this evening’s meal.’
‘Oh, of course. Do not worry, I have just the thing. Come, you must try it on.’ Emily gestured for Kate to step deeper into the room. ‘We shall see you later, Edward.’
Edward barely had time to bow his farewell before Emily shut the door in his face. Kate wished she’d had a moment to thank him for his kindness this afternoon, but Emily was leading her away from the door, chattering about fabric and a dress she thought would be perfect and the moment passed unnoticed by anyone, save herself.
Chapter Eight
Edward tried to focus on what Elgar Barnhouse was telling him, something to do with politics and the state of the highways. Perhaps if the man, a gentle soul with a pleasing manner, had been talking about something else, Edward would have been able to keep his attention on the man’s face but then again, probably not.
Emily had somehow produced a blue dress for Kate. It wasn’t pale blue, but a rich, deep colour that showed off the creaminess of her skin and clung to her curves in a way that captured his attention and, infuriatingly, that of most of the other men in the room too. Her hairstyle accentuated her long neck and the loose tendril resting against her cheek was so enticing, his fingers ached with the urge to twine it around them.
‘You are staring.’ Edward jumped as Christopher spoke into his ear. He glanced around; Barnhouse had clearly noticed his inattention to the conversation and had moved on to talk with other people, who were responding to him, even laughing at something the man said.
‘I am not,’ he replied to his brother, although why he argued he had no idea. They both knew he was lying. ‘Do not be absurd.’
‘You cannot even face me when I am talking to you.’
Grunting in acknowledgement that he was guilty of what Christopher accused, he managed to look away from where Kate was making a married couple laugh with whatever anecdote she was regaling them with. Pride swelled in his gut; pride he had no right to feel. She wasn’t his and the only help he had given her hadn’t played a part in the evening yet. Holding her own in the conversation had nothing to do with him or any of his family.
‘Well done, you must have managed all of ten seconds of not looking at her then.’
Edward sighed, turning his body so he was facing his brother and not Kate. ‘Is this better?’
‘Not really. Your look suggests you want to eviscerate me.’
‘Because you are damned irritating.’
Christopher’s eyes gleamed in the dim light of the room. ‘It is what brothers do best. Do you remember how we treated Freddie earlier this year? How good those times were and how, although we are both overjoyed for him that he has married the love of his life, we are both a bit flat now he is happy and teasing him is not as easy.’
Edward nodded, not liking where this was going.
‘Well, now I get to do it again, only this time, Freddie is on my side.’
‘This is nothing at all like what happened with Freddie.’ Christopher had the audacity to laugh. ‘It is not.’ Freddie had been in love with their neighbour since he was a boy, a fact that had been blindingly obvious to everyone except the two people involved. Earlier this year, Freddie had finally managed to get her to marry him. Watching him make a fool of himself beforehe had finally won Emily over had been very enjoyable indeed. Edward and Christopher had really enjoyed the months during which Freddie had tortured himself, not missing an opportunity to make their older brother squirm.Thiswas an entirely different situation. ‘I am concerned for her welfare,’ he told his brother. ‘Do you not see how thin her wrists are?’
Christopher’s smile faded. ‘I did notice, yes.’
‘And did you see how hungry she was when we had cake together earlier? She could barely get it down her fast enough.’
Christopher shifted on his feet, the light in his eyes dimming. ‘She has obviously seen some difficult times.’
‘Quite.’
Taking a slow sip of the drink he was holding, Christopher asked, ‘So, you are feeling what… protective of her?’
‘Yes.’ The small hums of delight she had made when eating the sweet tarts earlier had made him want to make sure she had a lifetime of such simple pleasures. Not to mention the way in which her eyes had rolled back in her head when she had eaten the bread. He couldn’t remember if he had experienced bliss like that from eating, or from anything really. Never having faced true deprivation or experienced a prolonged period of abstinence, he’d never savoured anything in such depth. He wanted to watch her as she discovered new things and he also wanted to run in the opposite direction before he became too captivated by her.
‘I see. There was me thinking the way you were staring at her was for some other reason, attraction say, when you were merely watching in case she got hungry.’
