Jessica was not quite sure she liked Mr. Rochford. Shewantedto. He had certainly seemed like the answer to all her prayers when she first set eyes upon him last evening. He was young, dazzlingly handsome, charming, amiable, and very eligible—or was about to be. He seemed in a fair way to becoming the darling of theton.Certainly all eyes had been upon him throughout the evening. And though he had danced every set before theirs, it had been impossible not to notice that she was the focus of much of his attention. She had been the focus ofallof it during their particular set, as Anna had just observed, even when the figures of the dance had separated them for brief spells. He had been visibly crestfallen when she had told him, untruthfully as it happened, that she did not have a free set to offer him for the rest of the evening after supper. When he left, he had succeeded in looking somehow tragic. Had it been deliberate?
What was it she had not quite liked? Oh, there was absolutely nothing. Perhaps for the first time in her life she was powerfully attracted to someone, was in grave danger of falling in love with him, and had taken fright. But no, that was absurd. That was not it. Whatwasit, then?
Was it his waistcoat? Would a plain ivory one to match his silk knee breeches have looked more elegant with the dull gold evening coat? Her own brother was known for his gorgeous attire, morning, afternoon, and evening. He was known for his elaborately tied neckcloths, for the copious and glittering pins and rings and fobs and quizzing glasses he wore about his person. But . . . Avery was never,evervulgar. Had that waistcoat crossed a borderline into vulgarity, then? But what a trivial reason to dislike someone—toperhapsdislike him. Ah, but then there was his smile. It was a spectacular smile, given the white perfection of his teeth, but did it always have to be quite so wide? He had worn it practically all evening except when he was leaving. Oh, and there was the studied elegance of his bow, which he had demonstrated for her several times. And the lavish and numerous compliments he had paid her.
She was being unfair, she told herself. He was new to London. He was new to the social prominence of being heir to an earldom, though his father was not yet the earl. Last evening had been his firsttonball. He had told her so. He had probably been horribly nervous and had overcompensated for that fact. She must give him a chance to grow more at ease in the new life that was about to be his. She would like nothing better than to fall in love with him and marry him and live happily ever after as the Countess of Lyndale. Thefuturecountess. She must not consign his father to the grave just yet, poor man.Orthe present earl, for that matter, though it was surely almost certain that he really was in his grave and had been for many years.
Yes, she would allow herself to fall in love with Mr. Rochford if she possibly could. But there was also thisbouquet. There was something undeniably . . . ostentatious about its size. Perhaps he had merely ordered it but had not actually seen it. Perhaps if he had done so . . .
“What is amusing you?” Anna asked.
“Oh, nothing,” Jessica said, startled out of her musings. “Though Iwasthinking that if that bouquet was divided up into smaller ones, we could fill every room in the house quite adequately.”
Anna laughed again. “It was a very generous gift,” she said. “Ah. Was that the door knocker?”
They both listened and heard the sound of the heavy front doors being opened below them. Visitors? They were not expecting anyone. But soon there was the unmistakable sound of the butler’s footsteps approaching the drawing room.
“Mr. Rochford, perhaps?” Anna said, raising her eyebrows at Jessica.
The butler opened the door after tapping on it. “Mr. Thorne wishes to know if Lady Jessica is at home to visitors, Your Grace,” he said, addressing Anna.
“Mr. Thorne?” Anna frowned and turned her gaze upon Jessica.
“Lady Parley presented him to me last evening,” Jessica explained. “The American, Anna. Sir Trevor Vickers’s godson. But how strange of him to call here today. He requested the introduction yet did not ask me to dance. Mr. Dean’s set was about to begin, but there were numerous other sets after that.”
“Ah yes, I remember the gentleman,” Anna said. “Someone pointed him out to us. For some reason he appears to have caught the imagination of theton.Perhaps because he is a fine figure of a man and there is some mystery about him.Areyou at home to him?”
He had disconcertingly dark eyes. They made her uncomfortable. In two brief encounters she had been unable to identify the color of those eyes. Blue? Black? How could they be both? Yet they were. They were very penetrating eyes and seemed to look not just into hers but through them. Why on earth had he come here?
There was one way to find out, she supposed. Besides, she recalled that last evening Mr. Rochford had not been the only gentleman who had piqued her interest. Mr. Thorne had too, though surely only because of that earlier encounter when she had mistaken him for a cit. That was not altogether right, however. Her interest had been aroused last evening even before she recognized him. He was handsome. Well, sort of handsome.Attractivewould be a more accurate word.Veryattractive.
“Jessica?” Anna prompted.
“Show him up, by all means,” Jessica said, addressing Avery’s butler—and then wished, too late, that she had sent him back downstairs with a different answer.
A minute later Mr. Thorne stepped into the room, looking, as he had last evening, the epitome of elegance, in a dark green, form-fitting coat with buff pantaloons and shiny Hessian boots, both of which garments hugged powerful, shapely legs. His linen was white and crisp, the fall of his neckcloth neat and simpler than it had been last evening, as befitted daytime wear. A diamond pin of modest size winked from its folds. He looked larger, more imposing, than he had looked either last evening or back at the inn.
And yes, Jessica decided all within the span of the first second, he was very definitely attractive. More so than Mr. Rochford. But less handsome—if the two men were to be judged by facial features alone, that was. Facial features were noteverything, though.
Anna had risen to her feet and was moving toward him, her right hand extended. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Thorne,” she said. “I am the Duchess of Netherby, Lady Jessica’s sister-in-law.”
“Your Grace,” he said, taking her hand and bowing over it—a slight bow, not a lavish one. He turned his eyes upon Jessica, who had also risen, though she had not moved away from her chair. “Lady Jessica.”
“Mr. Thorne,” she said, watching him as he took the seat Anna had indicated.
“I trust you enjoyed the ball last evening,” he said, addressing them both and holding up a staying hand when Anna lifted the teapot and looked inquiringly at him. “No, thank you, ma’am.”
“We did,” Jessica said. “Lord and Lady Parley must have been very gratified. They can boast in all truth today that their ball was a grand squeeze.”
“And I hope you enjoyed it too,” Anna said.
“Yes,” he agreed.
This, Jessica thought, would clearly be hard going. But he had come for a specific purpose, it seemed, and he got down to business without further ado.
“I wonder, Lady Jessica,” he said, turning his attention and the full intensity of that disturbingly dark gaze upon her, “if you are free tomorrow to drive out to Richmond Park with me. I have been told it is well worth a visit.”
Oh goodness.
