“That came out wrong,” Hannah amended. “You’d be a wonderful match for some other lady. I’m sure there must be plenty of women who’dloveto—”Oh dear.She was babbling. And now her face was turning red. “Never mind that. Just act like you’re in love with me, but then do something to make her hate you again. It shouldn’t be hard. Just swear a bit or spill a drink on her and this can all be over with before the evening is out.”
“So you want me to make a fool of myself.”
Oh dear.This wasn’t going well at all. Mr. Corbyn’s jaw was tight and his eyes had taken on an icy chill. She hadn’t meant to insult him. Surely he must be able to see that this was a matter of dire necessity, not a comment on his character.
“Of course not,” she tried to reassure him. “I’m not asking you to look foolish, only…”
Rude? Low-class? Completely unacceptable as a husband? Nothing she might say sounded any better.
Corbyn seemed to realize that she was at a loss, for he cut her off without compunction. “I expect you’re willing to pay?”
It sounded almost menacing when he said it in that low, even rumble.
But she didn’t have time to fret over Mr. Corbyn’s mood. Jane’s song was ending, and their conversation was about to be cut short.
“Yes,” she whispered. Then, in a louder tone, she issued a quick “Brava!” to her sister-in-law.
“That was lovely, Mrs. Williams.” Mr. Corbyn’s smile was tight. Without deigning to look at Hannah, he spoke in a low tone from the side of his mouth. “I want two hundred this time.”
She swallowed.
“What are you two whispering about over there?” Hannah’s mother had finally noticed their tête-à-tête, now that the music was no longer there to distract her.
“Nothing, Mama.” Hannah tried to look innocent, though she suspected she wasn’t doing a very good job of it. The truth was that her exchange with Mr. Corbyn had left her shaken. She was fairly certain she’d offended him with her clumsy instructions. Why had she worded it that way? If only there were some way to turn back time and do the whole thing over.
But of course there was no chance to explain herself, now that Mama had fixed her full attention on them again. Her gaffe with Mr. Corbyn had already done its damage. He thought that she looked down on him, and there was no way to persuade him otherwise.
“I don’t want to see any more of that sort of behavior. It’s time we had a frank talk about what I expect from you both if we are to proceed any further.”
Jane cleared her throat. “If you’ll excuse us, Mr. Corbyn, myhusband and I need to step out for a moment. We left our daughter at my cousin’s house for the evening so that she wouldn’t interrupt our dinner, but we need to collect her before it gets too late. Please carry on without us. We’ll be back in a quarter hour.”
No doubt they had planned things this way to give them some privacy. Eli and Jane looked perfectly happy to escape the awkward conversation as they hurried from the room.
Hannah sat up stiffly in her chair, bracing for the lecture to come. She had the absurd desire to hold Mr. Corbyn’s hand for strength, but caught herself before she could act on it.
Maybe you should act on it, a traitorous thought crept into her head.After all, you’re supposed to be pretending you’re in love.
She couldn’t. He was cross with her and she simply wasn’t brave enough. She would just have to ignore these troublesome impulses. Imagine what the weight of his hand in hers might feel like instead of reaching for it.
“Now.” Mama’s expression was stern as she looked from Hannah to her would-be suitor. “If you mean to marry my daughter, I expect you to do thingsproperlythis time. Half the ton heard about your…indiscretion”—her face soured on this word—“at my son’s club.”
“Jane’s club,” Hannah corrected softly.
Mama drew a swift breath at the interruption. “As I was saying, I expect you to repair the harm you’ve done to my daughter’s reputation. You will announce your engagement. You will announce your intention to join the military. You will make an appearance at a few social events where you will be on your best behavior and impress upon everyone your good manners and fitness to participate in polite society, and you will donothingelse to cause a scandal.” She paused for a moment, thinking. “We should perhaps make it appear that the engagement took place some time ago. People would be moreforgiving of what they observed if they believed you were already promised to each other when it happened.”
Mr. Corbyn spoke very carefully, lingering on each syllable. “You were beating me over the head with your reticule, madam.”
“Well, I didn’tknowabout the engagement yet, obviously,” Mama replied. “It was a love match, concluded in secret, but I’ve come around to the idea now that I can see what a fine gentleman you are.”
She was trying very hard not to grind her teeth, and it showed.
“What about Papa?” Hannah interjected. “Have you received any reply from him yet? Won’t he want to come here and meet Mr. Corbyn for himself?”
It didn’t feel right to agree to an engagement—even a fake one—without his blessing.
And if she could get her parents in a room together, why, they might find a way to make peace again! If Mama was too stubborn to return home, this was the only other way to repair the rift between them.
“He’ll arrive in town presently.” Her mother didn’t seem to feel the need to elaborate any further.
