“Why?” Garfield blinked, the question apparently blindsiding him. “Well, she’s an earl’s daughter, isn’t she? That’s certainly a prize worth striving for.”
Nicholas’s eyebrow ticked, and words formed in the back of his throat, but he swallowed them down. Losing his temper at this defenseless puppy would serve no purpose.
“There is more than one marriageable earl’s daughter,” he pointed out. “Why Lady Sophie rather than another?”
Garfield shrugged. “She’s nice enough to look at, and I’ve heard she isn’t overly prim and proper. I don’t want a wife who’ll try to turn me into something I’m not.”
Nicholas grimaced, still hesitant to offer any assistance. Both of the things Garfield had said were true, but he couldn’t help feeling that neither of them were good enough reasons to marry someone, and he wouldn’t see Sophie wed to a man who didn’t properly appreciate her.
He forced an awkward smile. “I’m sure you can think of possibilities just as well as I can. You’re young, but you must have had a few flirtations.”
Garfield’s face fell. “You won’t help?”
“That’s not very sporting,” Chisholm chimed in, his feedback completely unwelcome. “It’s not as if you’re going to marry her yourself.”
No. He wasn’t.
So why did the thought of her marrying Garfield make him want to toss his brandy in the other man’s face?
CHAPTER 7
Sophie cockedher head as she studied her reflection, wondering if her new green gown would attract the attention of suitors she may actually be willing to consider marrying.
There was no denying that it complemented her hair perfectly, even if her mother had worried that it might be too bright.
Fortunately, Lady Carlisle had yielded to Madam Baptiste’s assurance that Sophie would only catch eyes in a good way.
She smoothed her hands down her front and tilted this way and that. Her complexion wasn’t the one favored by theton—she was too freckled for that—but she did think the contrast between her fairness, the vivid colors of the silk, and her hair was rather fetching.
What would Nicholas’s opinion be if he could see her in it?
No,she chided herself.Do not worry what Nicholas would think. You can’t marry him.
Her heart sank and her shoulders dropped. What was thepoint of all of this if not to find love? Was she to settle for a man she could merely tolerate?
Don’t dwell. It will all work out somehow.
Lord, she hoped so. She didn’t think she could stomach the cold type of marriage many members of thetonaccepted.
“Are you ready to leave?” Lady Carlisle asked from the doorway.
Sophie turned away from the mirror. “In a moment.”
Betsy carried the emerald necklace over from the box it had been stored in, and Sophie tilted her head so that the maid could wrap it around her neck and do up the clasp at the back.
The necklace was beautiful. It had twenty small teardrop emeralds in gold settings hanging from a gold semi-circlet with tiny emeralds where each teardrop attached. It rested over her collarbone and matched the dress perfectly.
Sophie rarely wore ostentatious jewelry, but she wanted to make an impression tonight. She’d been assured that not only would Baron Sylvestor be in attendance at the Hathaway Ball, but that Colonel Moore would too.
Lady Carlisle glided over and extended her arm to Sophie. “You look exquisite, my dear. Shall we be off?”
Sophie took her arm and allowed herself to be led through the house, down the grand staircase, and out the front entrance to their carriage. The temperature outside was pleasant, neither warm nor cold.
The journey took longer than expected, as the streets were strangely congested, but as they drew nearer to Hathaway House, the traffic cleared. The ball was to be a relatively exclusive event, although Sophie had no doubt that Lady Hathaway would squeeze as many people into their small ballroom as possible.
Upon arriving, they descended from the carriage, greeted their hosts, and began to circulate.
As Sophie made polite chitchat with the other women herage, she continually surveyed the ballroom for any sign of the baron or the colonel. Before long, she spied Baron Sylvestor. Unfortunately, he was already on the dance floor, partnered with a pretty blonde by whom he seemed entranced.
