“No, I was never tempted to join it when that particular family duty didn’t fall on my shoulders. And then I went off to war.”
“And then you became a rake.”
“Guilty!” He grinned. “But let’s not forget my offer to give all that up for—”
“Shh!” she cut in, but she felt tears forming in her eyes so hurried back to the house before he noticed. He tempted her in every way, including his gallant offer to marry her. Reminders just made the weight she was bearing all the heavier.
Five days and as many social events later, Vanessa was convinced that she’d failed with Daniel. She hoped his mother was to blame for his failure to attend any of those events. Perhaps she was taxed from so much socializing. He certainly wouldn’t attend any parties without her. But for a whole week?! He’d even missed her third ball, but so had Monty—which had been even more disappointing.
But on the way home from the ball that night, Layla had remarked on Charley and Monty’s absence, and Kathleen had replied nonchalantly, “Our guests are entertaining, but you girls have your own agenda that doesn’t require their presence. I asked them not to attend tonight’s ball.”
Vanessa was infuriated but held her tongue until the coach stopped and the twins alighted first. Putting a hand on her mother’s arm to stay her, she demanded, “Why would you do that?”
“Because you’re smitten with Montgomery and he distracts you from your purpose. Daniel was jealous of him. I saw it at the second ball.”
“That was a deliberate tactic that obviously worked. Monty does happen to be aware of my goal and offered to help me achieve it.”
“Kind of him, but once was enough, darling,” Kathleen replied. “Too much help of that sort is known to backfire. But if you’ve changed your mind about who you want to marry . . . ?”
“My target has been absent, if you haven’t noticed, for a whole bloody week! Perhaps you should find out why.”
“I believe you already know the answer to that. You can’t threaten to shoot a man before he proposes. You could have at least waited until you’d married him. Instead, you have no doubt scared him off, that would be my guess.”
“Who told—?”
“Lord Albert, of course. He mentioned it before he left that morning he came here for your explanation. What were you thinking, making a threat like that?”
“I was thinking that I didn’t want to have sex on your desk, Mother,” Vanessa replied sarcastically.
Kathleen’s cheeks lit up. “Did he really try that?”
“Yes, so I let him know I was furious. But I didnotimply I was done with him, only that there would be no sex until the wedding night. I’ll handle this m’self and pay a visit to Lady Rathban tomorrow to find out why Daniel has been avoiding me. But he’s not scared of me. That would be ridiculous. If anything, he’s probably making me stew, to get even. That family is nothing if not vengeful—as you well know.”
Chapter Forty-eight
VANESSA HADN’T EVEN FINISHEDdressing the next morning for her visit to the Rathbans when she received a summons to that very house. The note was simply signed “Rathban,” so she guessed it was from Lord Albert. With eight days having passed since she’d seen his son and no further progress having been made in dragging Daniel to the altar, he was probably going to tell her that it was no use trying anymore, that Daniel was a lost cause.
She had mixed feelings about that. Should she accept defeat graciously or put up a fight? The possibility of defeat actually lifted her heart a little but not fully, not when her father would lose in the end. But the idea of putting up a fight didn’t appeal to her, either. Hadn’t she done enough fighting already? However, if Daniel had told his mother that he simply wouldn’t have her and she had then told her husband, how could she get around that?
She reminded herself that she’d met Daniel only two weeks ago. Courtships tended to take longer than that. And she had made progress, enough that he’d wanted her that night in Kathleen’s study. What had gone wrong? Had her rebuff wounded his pride? Had the reluctant groom run off to hide somewhere to lick his wounds and neither parent knew where he was now?
It was infuriating that all she could do was guess, so with the answers only a few blocks away, she picked up her pace to get there. She took a maid with her this time so she wouldn’t have to tell her mother about the summons yet. Not that the twins’ maid could bolster her courage, timid girl that she was, but she wanted someone with her in case tempers flared. And they might. She would insist that Rathban make good on their bargain, even though it hadn’t been completed, since she had made an effort, a great effort.
It was a gloomy house, too many grays, no bright colors other than a vase of flowers in the hall. Even the paintings were dull and uninteresting. Had she been too nervous her last time there to even notice how uninviting this mansion was in the daytime? It had been quite festive-looking the night of the ball with lots of flowers and candles lit everywhere. If she had married Daniel, she could have redecorated—and then gotten bored. What actually could she do with herself living with a man she didn’t love? But she was doing it again, predicting doom and gloom when anything could have been possible if she hadn’t burned that bridge.
She was shown to the parlor to wait, and that wait had better not be too long, she thought, or she would work herself into a fine snit. He was lying on the sofa, arms crossed. Sleeping? She cleared her throat. He sat up, his expression inscrutable when his amber eyes rested on her. No surprise that she was there? Hadhesent for her?
She turned to tell the maid, “Wait in the foyer for me, I won’t be long.” Then to Daniel as she took off her gloves, “If you’re going to apologize you should have come to me, not asked me here.”
Now he was surprised. “Apologize for what?”
“You were talking too freely in a crowded room on our last encounter. I only wanted privacy to finish our conversation, not for anything else.”
He snorted, even waved a hand dismissively. “That was nothing.”
Vanessa was trying to contain her own surprise. It hadn’t occurred to her that the summons had been from him. And apparently, wounded pride didn’t account for his conspicuous absence this past week. Was there some other reason Daniel had avoided her?
Carefully, she said, “I beg to differ.”
