He had beat me in a smothered mate. That was even more embarrassing than an ordinary loss. How had I allowed myself to become so careless?
Alexander leaned back in his chair with an apologetic grimace. “Checkmate.”
“You cannot be serious.” I pressed a hand to my stomach. I had focused my attention on the wrong game. Those blasted pastries had seemed more important than Alexander’s bargain.
“I won the game,” he said. “And the bargain.”
I laughed, my voice shaking. “Surely the bargain wasn’t serious. There’s only one man at the party who would even want to court me. You wouldn’t be so cruel as to force me to court Lord Kirkham.” I stood, cringing as I held my stomach. Had the footman unlocked the door yet? I took a few steps toward it.
I shrieked with surprise as Alexander rushed around me, blocking the path. His eyes danced with amusement as he took me by the shoulders and backed me toward the table again. “You can’t escape until we discuss the terms of the bargain. Are you a woman of your word?”
“Yes,” I snapped. I scowled up at him, my heart racing. His hands held my shoulders, crumpling my sleeves, but all of that was buried under the sensation of his thumb against the edge of my collarbone. A string of shivers ran down my arms and spine, which only infuriated me further.
He stopped walking when I was a safe distance from the door, but his hands still held me still, as if he thought I would make a dash for the corridor at any moment.
“Please don’t make me court Lord Kirkham,” I blurted.
Alexander laughed, and his hands slipped away from my shoulders. “If I had any confidence that he could steal your heart, I would, but you have made your feelings about him perfectly clear.”
“I don’t like any of the men here.” I rounded my eyes with sincerity. “It would be a waste of time for me to encourage any of them. Not only that, but it would be unkind to pretend I was interested in one of them if I am not.”
“Do you actually know any of them? Have you ever had a conversation with anyone but Lord Kirkham?”
“Yes. Mr. Barnwall.” He was only in search of a mother for his six children, all of whom he rarely saw or interacted with. “I am not fond of him either.”
Alexander bit his lower lip. The brown of his eyes appeared more golden in the candlelight as he searched my face. “Perhaps you’re right. None of the other men here would suit you.”
The tension in my chest relaxed, and I nodded my agreement. “They wouldn’t.”
“However, you still must uphold the bargain and court someone of my choosing.”
I sighed. “Is that truly necessary? You just said?—”
“You may rest assured that I haven’t chosen one of them.” His smile quirked upward, and dread filled what little space was left in my stomach.
“Who did you choose, then?” My voice cracked. I guessed his reply before it escaped his grinning lips.
“Myself.”
CHAPTER 10
ALEXANDER
Ionly felt a small twinge of guilt as I watched the color drain from Anne’s face.
“You?” she scoffed.
“Yes, me.” I interlocked my hands behind my back. She had a pastry crumb above her upper lip, and I had been tempted to brush it away for the past ten minutes. I clenched my jaw against the laughter in my throat. The horror on her face at the prospect of me vying for her heart should have been offensive, but I took it as a compliment.
She must have thought I had the best chance at succeeding.
Her horrified eyes met mine. The green hues overpowered the brown, matching the pale green of her dress. “Are you trying to…steal me from Miles? Is this some sort of retribution?” The anger in her features only made her more attractive. I eyed the crumb on her lip again with a smile. No matter how threatening she tried to appear, she was nothing short of endearing.
Her concerns were valid. Courting Anne would be a delicate endeavor. If she thought the courtship was real, she would never agree to it. If I tried to poison her opinion of Miles, she would only put more distance between us. But I wanted to come to know her, to show her how she deserved to be treated—and that she was worth more than an occasional letter from the man who supposedly loved her. I stared down at her face.
Perhaps I did want to steal her from him.
“No,” I said. “It’s not retribution.”
