He could have told his brother of the potential for disaster his plan held, but at that moment his attention was diverted by the entrance of his Titania, and his brother’s problems fell from his mind like water sluicing over a smooth stone.
“Well, I think we are about to meet my intended bride,” Henry said.
He was so focused on the lovely vision of his garden fairy that it took a moment for his brother’s words to register. And then a few more seconds to follow Henry’s gaze to where she stood, surrounded by his mother, father, and an older woman he assumed was her mother. His gaze ricocheted between his brother and her, and his blood froze.
No, it couldn’t be. Fate could not be so cruel. This had to be a misunderstanding.All will be made clear when we are introduced later tonight.Surely she wouldn’t have kissed him the way she did if she were his brother’s intended bride?My identity will be revealed.Her words came back to taunt him.There’s no need to talk to my father.
Bloody hell. They were coming toward where he stood next to his brother, and she was smiling at him. Smiling radiantly, as if everything was well. Was this all a lark to her? Could she be so devious that she considered it a great escapade to conceal her identity and dally with her fiancé’s brother in the garden? Orworse, did she intend to take him as a lover after she married his brother? The mere idea made his gut roil.
He didn’t know what emotion was showing on his face, but if it was anything like what he was feeling, he must be wearing a thunderous expression indeed. She correctly interpreted he was not amused by whatever game she was playing and the sparkling smile slid from her face, but still a shy uncertain smile lingered in between nervous looks.
And then they were face to face. His mother was saying something. Performing the introductions, no doubt.
“Montfort, allow me to introduce Lady Josephine Everly.”
If he had not been looking at her, he would have missed the way she blinked and her eyes skittered between himself and his brother. Then the blood seemed to drain from her face when his brother bowed in response to the introduction. Her eyes widened slightly and every trace of a smile vanished from her face. The impression lasted only one second, immediately covered by a social mask, fake smile included. But he had been looking and saw the shock on her face. Had she not known his brother was her fiancé? She offered her hand to his brother, who obligingly kissed it, murmuring some pleasantry.
“Lady Josephine, this is my son Henry, Lord Montfort.” His mother went on, oblivious to the undercurrents going on between Lady Josephine and him.
After the first and most important introduction was performed, her mother turned to him.
“Michael, Lady Josephine, your brother’s intended. Lady Josephine, this is Lord Michael, my younger son.”
Younger son. The qualifier sounded like an epithet. He had never resented not being the heir. Had never coveted anything his brother had. Until this moment. He bowed over her hand, waiting for her to acknowledge their acquaintance. She didn’t, of course.
“Lord Michael,” she said, her voice strangled as she executed an elegant little curtsy. “A pleasure to meet you.”
So she was going to pretend they had never met before? He would let her… for now.
“The pleasure is all mine, Lady Josephine,” He intentionally emphasized the word pleasure, and was rewarded by seeing her squirm and blush. He was burning for answers, yearning to grab her hand, take her to a private spot and demand an explanation, but now was not the time. The butler announced that dinner was served, and he had to relinquish her to his brother, who led her to the dining room.
He watched her leave on Henry’s arm. Sit beside him at the table. Smile at him, converse with him. He could not tell what dishes his mother’s superb chef served them. He must have eaten some of it, but he barely tasted the food. Jealousy and resentment churned inside him, mixing with a sense of betrayal to create a dangerous potion. And when his brother smiled at her, he felt fratricidal.
He excused himself from the table as soon as it was polite to do so, and forgoing the port with the gentleman, sought refuge in the empty billiards room. Biding his time. Soon, he would confront his deceitful lady of the garden.
His brother’s fiancée.
Bloody, bloody hell.
CHAPTER 5
Whatanunmitigateddisastershe had created. This is what she got for scheming. His brother. The man she had kissed in the garden, the man who had awakened passions she didn’t even know she possessed, was her fiancé’s brother. Josephine looked down at her plate and tried to smile and make polite conversation with the man by her side. Good god, how could she marry him now? It had become even more unpalatable. Impossible.
She slid a sidelong glance at him. Lord Montfort was handsome. As handsome as his brother, some may say. Similar height and build, same dark auburn hair, the same profile. They were so alike that she had mistaken them based on that brief glimpse she had once caught of him. Yet while Lord Michael made her heart beat faster and her stomach flutter with anticipation and desire, Lord Montfort, the man she was supposed to marry, left her completely unmoved.
She never should have dallied in the garden. Her innocent plan to get to know her betrothed had backfired on her in the worst possible way. Her face flamed at the memory of their kiss. Kiss? It was so much more than that. She had wanted to crawl into his arms and never emerge. Now she had an enraged Lord Michael looking daggers at her, no doubt thinking she was a veritable hussy for deceiving him, and a potential catastrophe in her hands.
What if he told his brother and his parents of her indiscretion in the garden? She would be ruined. Her entire family would be ruined. Yet not even that scared her so much as the realization that, even after the shattering revelation that he was not her betrothed, her desire for him had not abated.
The dinner was the longest of her life. Having to sustain a conversation with Lord Montfort while trying her utmost to not let her attention wander to Lord Michael left her drained. Even so, she was acutely aware of his presence. Without having to look, she knew every time his gaze alighted on her, could pick out his voice among the din of conversation of the twenty some guests seated at the table.
It was a relief when the time came for the ladies to leave, and even more so when he wasn’t among the gentlemen who joined the ladies later in the drawing room. A reprieve, yes, but a temporary one. Soon she would have to face him. Explain. Apologize. And beg him not to expose her.
Were his silence and forgiveness what she really wanted, though? Could she go along now with the plan of marrying Lord Montfort? She tried to imagine a future in which Lord Michael was her brother-in-law and everything in her recoiled at the thought.
“My dear? You seem distracted.”
She realized the duchess was speaking. Something about a parlor game she had prepared to entertain her guests.
