Matthew nodded. “All right,” he said. “Maybe that’s for the best.”
The two of them left the ball and made their way up the stairs. “He’s in his chambers,” Matthew said. “I told him I would escort you to him there.”
“What if I had refused to come?”
“I hoped you wouldn’t,” Matthew said quietly. “I understand how apprehensive you are about all this, Lavinia, but you must know that I want what’s best for you, at least.”
“I know you do,” Lavinia said. “Sometimes I think I’m only going through with all this for your sake, Matthew.”
Matthew frowned as if he didn’t like that idea much, but he didn’t argue. He knocked on their father’s door.
“Come in,” the marquess called.
Matthew opened the door and ushered Lavinia inside. She was only a few steps in when she registered that there was already someone in the room with her father.
A moment later, she realized who it was—Lord Hennington.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she was acutely aware that it was the very first time she had felt any sort of physical response triggered by his presence. She felt this way around the duke all the time, but Lord Hennington couldn’t make her nervous in this way. Even now, it was her father, not Lord Hennington, who was the real source of her anxiety.
The fact that Lord Hennington was here made her worry that her father knew something more than she wanted him to—that he was aware of her actions during this party beyond what she had intended him to see.
“Lavinia,” her father said. “I understand you’ve been spending time with Lord Hennington over the past few days.”
“We—we’ve got to know one another,” Lavinia said, trying to figure out what was happening. It made her feel nervous to admit to anything when she didn’t know what her father was building toward. But if he had been speaking with Lord Hennington, he must certainly already know everything that had transpired between the two of them. There was no point in trying to keep secrets.
“Well, I must confess, I’m impressed with you,” her father said.
That threw Lavinia for a loop. “You are?”
“I didn’t think you were going to be able to accomplish it,” he said. “I thought, at most, you would come to me begging for more time, perhaps telling me that you had your eye on someone but that you needed more time to win his attention. But Lord Hennington has let me know that you’ve done a marvelous job of catching his fancy.”
“I apologize to you both,” Lord Hennington said, his cheeks turning a bit pink. “This is all happening remarkably quickly, and I know it can’t have been what either of you expected. But when Lady Edwina let me know that Lady Lavinia was to marry at the conclusion of the party?—”
“Edwina told you that?” Lavinia asked.
“Lavinia.” Her father frowned. “Please don’t interrupt.”
“I quite understand,” Lord Hennington said quickly. “I would have questions too, Lady Lavinia, if I was in your shoes. Yes, your sister came to me about twenty minutes ago and warned me that I would need to move quickly if I didn’t want to lose my chance with you—and when she put it that way, I knew I had to act. I would be heartbroken if I lost an opportunity.”
“What are you saying?” Lavinia asked him.
“I came up here to ask your father for permission to marry you,” Lord Hennington explained. “And he’s granted it. Lady Lavinia, I know that we’ve only known one another for a short while, but when I’m around you, I feel as if I’m with someone I’ve known for a long time. It’s a quick thing, but I’m ready to choose you as my wife for the rest of my life, if you’ll have me.”
Lavinia glanced at her father, unable to believe that he would truly leave the decision in her hands.
Lord Hennington noticed. “I should leave the two of you alone to discuss matters,” he said. “But I want you to know, Lady Lavinia, that my feelings for you are real. I hope you’re willing to consider my proposal. I hope that you can return the way I feel, and that you’ll do me the honor of being my wife.”
He smiled at her tentatively.
Lavinia tried to smile back, but she felt sick inside. He was a good man. He was looking at her with an open, trusting smile, and she could see that he meant the things he was saying. He really did care for her. He wanted to marry her, not for status or to curry favor with her father, but simply because he admired her and liked spending time with her.
And she couldn’t bring herself to return his affections.
She wished she could. It would be so much easier for both of them, and he deserved it. But all she could think about was the duke and how different things felt when she was with him. Lord Hennington would never be the same.
“I’ll speak to you both later,” he said, and gave her a little bow. She watched him leave the room, at a loss for what to say, glad that he was leaving so that she wouldn’t have to solve that problem right now, at least.
The door closed, and she stood facing her father. Matthew watched them from his place beside the wall.
