That night, Edward did notlinger over his port. What was the point when Amelia was in the room adjacent awaiting his company? She had only left the dinner table perhaps five minutes before, but he could not wait another moment.
Setting aside his drink, he stood and walked to the drawing room doors. Her smile, sent his way as he entered, set his heart hammering out an uneven rhythm. He crossed to her.
“How are you enjoying your repose?”
She quirked an eyebrow in that way of hers. “It has been splendid. Verylongthough, wouldn’t you say? I feel as if I have been wasting away in here, awaiting your arrival.”
Edward chuckled, ducking his head. “I’ve only ever seen the tradition of men taking port after dinner as a way to avoid the women of the party. Being that I did not want to avoid you...”
“Well.” Her voice was light, teasing. “That may just be the most genuine compliment you’ve ever paid me.”
“That was hardly a compliment at all.”
“Exactly.” Her smile grew.
“If you claim to be a connoisseur of compliments, might you teach me your ways?” He sat beside her.
She tapped her lips in thought. “Yes. But only because you are sorely in need of the help.”
“Go on, then.”
“First, the compliment must be genuine.”
“Why of course. As mine all are.”
“Hmm, that is still up for debate. Secondly, the compliment must be specific to the receiver. A compliment that could easily be bestowed on any man or woman would never do. Such as, I do not know, something like, ‘You look exquisite, Amelia.’” She leveled a flat look at him.
He furrowed his brow in mock confusion. “I cannot say I know many Amelias, nor would I ever call a man exquisite. So, by your rules, that example is perfectly acceptable.”
She threw up her hands. “You, sir, are unteachable!”
“No, no, do not give up on me so easily. Perhaps I simply need a more specific lesson. Might you givemea compliment that demonstrates your rules? Something regarding my ears or nose perhaps?” He referenced her comments on the picture outside their bedchambers—a picture he would never look at the same again.
With a keen eye, her gaze swept him head to toe. “No, I do not think I could do that.”
He placed a hand over his heart. “But you wound me—you certainly know how to bolster a man’s confidence.”
“Not when that man is in no need of additional assurance!” She shook her head amusedly.
“And what if I told you I am indeed greatly in need of some bolstering?”
“Then you would need to seek that fortification elsewhere.” She was still smiling widely as she spoke. It was utterly entrancing.
“Perhaps I ought to return to my port,” he said, rising from his chair. But before he had taken even a step away, she grabbed his wrist, and warmth snaked from the spot, stopping him.
“Oh, very well, I promise to cease my teasing!” Her face shined with mirth, and he returned to his seat, unable to take his eyes off her—the way her eyes crinkled at the corners, along with the very top of her nose, when she smiled. The straight set of her teeth, excepting one on the lower group that was only slightly crooked. The clear green of her eyes. The slight turning up of her nose. The bow in her top lip...
He realized he was staring and coughed as heat climbed up his neck. “How did you enjoy this evening’s pickled vegetables? As much as it pained me, I asked that Cook add them into our meal for your benefit. But I admit you did not partake of very much. Or, now that I think on it, I do not believe you hadany.” He raised his eyebrows, leaning back into his chair in an attempt to regain some of the confident ease that seemed to flee whenever he was near Amelia.
Amelia’s lips pressed together, one corner of her mouth lifting higher than the other. “Imayhave exaggerated my fondness for the dish.”
“Ah-ha! I knew it. You do not like them either!”
“Well, they are not terrible.”
Edward narrowed his eyes at her. “Yes, I am sure that is why you neglected to eat any. Not a one.”
“That is not true! I had a small helping.”
