Edwina cleared her throat. “We should probably go, Lavinia,” she said quietly. “Father will be looking for us.”
The reminder of their father was enough to make Lavinia realize that her sister was right. They needed to move on. It wouldn’t be good if their father discovered them here, if he saw her hand in hand with the duke like this.
She wondered briefly how her father might respond. Would he try to intervene, to come between her and the duke on the grounds that there was no real future for them? Perhaps he would believe that Lavinia was wasting her time in speaking to a gentleman she wasn’t going to marry.
Or maybe he would have a different response. Maybe he would like the idea of Lavinia with a duke and would try to push them together. Maybe he wouldn’t accept the fact that there was nothing romantic between them and would try to force it upon her.
Either way, Lavinia thought, it would be awful. She couldn’t lose control of her relationship with the duke like that. It would have to be kept secret from her father.
CHAPTER 11
In the late morning, the guests made their way outside for a picnic on the grounds of Harbeck Manor.
Seth positioned himself near to Lady Lavinia, though he did not attempt to join her. She was sitting with her sister and her father. After a short time, another gentleman joined them. Seth frowned watching them—had his plan really worked so well so quickly? Was this man expressing an interest in Lady Lavinia?
Why did that make him feel a surge of displeasure? It was what he had wanted. He had taken her shopping out of a desire to help her in this way, so there was no excuse for being unhappy if it was working.
Was it the man he didn’t like? He squinted, trying to see if the fellow was someone he recognized—if that could explain the way he was feeling.
No, he didn’t recognize him. Not exactly. But therewassomething familiar about him. Something about the eyes, and the way he held himself…
It came to him. He looked like a male version of Lady Lavinia. And as he observed the four of them sitting together on their picnic blanket, he realized that this newcomer must be Lady Lavinia’s brother. That was the only thing that made sense—of course that was who he was. Seth hadn’t realized that she had a brother, and he didn’t think the man had been at the party at all before today—he must have made a late arrival.
It surprised Seth to realize how relieved he was at this new understanding of who he was looking at. What difference did it make to him who Lady Lavinia sat with?
Shaking his head to clear it, he looked around, taking in what else was going on around the grounds. Other partygoers were laying out blankets, finding places to sit and enjoy their picnic, and he noticed almost at once that several gentlemen had claimed spots near to Lady Lavinia. People were looking at her. Noticing her. The new gown was having the desired effect.
Seth felt proud.
He was also filled with anxiety, as if he had started something that he knew he would not be able to control.
He was distracted from his worries by the arrival of Allan. His friend sat down beside him. “I’m glad the weather decided tocooperate with our plans,” he observed. “I worried it might be too cold for this.”
“It is pretty cold,” Seth said.
“Yes, but nottoocold. And at least it isn’t raining. Then we would have been forced to stay indoors.”
“You’re right,” Seth agreed.
“And you’re looking at her again. Do you think I didn’t see you?” Allan shook his head. “Go over and sit with her if you’re so interested.”
“I’m not interested. I already told you,” Seth said. “She’s wearing one of the gowns I purchased for her, that’s all. I’m just noticing how it looks on her.”
Allan looked at her rather appraisingly for a moment. “Well, I think it looks good,” he said. “I think you’ve made a very good choice. The blue is a good color for her—I wouldn’t have thought it, but it is.”
“Yes, it is,” Seth said. “I wonder why she wasn’t already dressing in blues.”
“She probably was, at least on occasion,” Allan said. “It’s not as if you’ve seen her whole wardrobe in the time you’ve known her.”
“But if she was wearing blue, she wasn’t doing it deliberately or with any thought about it,” Seth said. “That’s the part I wonder about. Someone in her life must have been able to tell her, somewhere along the way, what colors would suit her best.”
“Did you know blue would be a good choice?” Allan asked. “Was it a guess? Or did someone else advise you?”
“We had advice from the modiste, of course,” Seth said. “I don’t think I would have been able to figure that out on my own. I did guess, but her advice was what made me feel sure.”
“Well, maybe Lady Lavinia has never had someone who can give her advice like that,” Allan commented. “Her mother is dead, after all.”
Seth looked over at his friend. “I hadn’t realized that.”
