“Then I’ll try not to provoke.” She turned, ready to dash.
He couldn’t stop himself. “Try not to knock down any more invalids.”
“Try not to sneeze on any more innocent bystanders,” she called back.
And then she vanished—up the stairs, a hurricane in a breathtaking gown.
Sebastian stood frozen on the step, blinking after her.
Well.
He really had to stop meeting people like this.
But at least he wasn’t cold anymore.But was she truly just an innocent bystander now?
Chapter Five
Sebastian really didnot want to be here for this. A formal dinner, of all things, when what he truly needed was a quiet bed, a hot brick, and the right to wallow in peace. Soup in a plain cup. Tea with honey. Blankets. Silence. That was what a sick man required. Not polished silver, cravats starched within an inch of suffocation, and forced smiles across a sea of strangers.
But here he was.
Because Thomas was his best friend, and when your best friend summoned you to dinner with his fiancée and her friends, you showed up—even if you felt like death in evening wear.
He could feel the air stir with trouble. With eventfulness. With peace-disruptive, emotion-provoking nonsense.
He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He wasn’t made for this sort of evening. But he was here now, so he’d do what was asked of him. That was something, wasn’t it?
“Miss Madeleine Hunt.” Thomas pointed toward a familiar young woman as they took a sip of whiskey.
The name rang a bell, but it was the sight of her that hit harder.
Miss Madeleine. Of course. He remembered her from the Royal Ascot. But this time, she didn’t wear a big hat and her hair… not just that… there was something about her… Heat crept to his chest and he took a swig of the amber liquid. The burn was a welcome sting in Sebastian’s throat, but he didn’t care for the thin liquor. He preferred something velvety and rich altogether.
Speaking of velvety… she was just striking.
He hadn’t noticed it before—perhaps because she’d been too busy shooting him glares like twin pistols—but now that he saw her from a distance, without the full brunt of her disapproval, she was… arresting.
If she weren’t so clearly unimpressed by his existence, she might’ve even looked inviting.
His eyes stuck to her, a siren with a bosom that had Sebastian staring like a green boy.
Wham!
His friend elbowed him. “Ouch! What was that for?”
“This is Ashley’s friend. Stop ogling her bosom,” Thomas growled in a low voice.
Sebastian winced. Right. He was a guest, not a ruffian.
“If she didn’t want me to look, why did she put it before me then?”
Whack!
Linsey stepped on his foot with the precision of someone who’d been waiting for that moment all evening.
Excellent. Now he was cold, congested, and quite possibly going to be challenged to a duel.
He muttered something unintelligible and lifted his glass again, reminding himself this was not the time for mischief. He’d promised Thomas he’d behave. He could manage that—for an hour. Maybe.
