He raised his brows with a curious look. “What has been so eventful?”
I cursed my mind for instantly jumping to the kiss from the night before. My new inheritance was the most eventful part of the day, but somehow that kiss and Alexander’s words had felt just as significant. Just as world-shaking.
“Did you read anything about me in the papers this morning?” I asked.
Miles shook his head with a frown. “No.”
I wrung my hands together in front of me. “Not the gossip issue from Lady Teignmouth?”
“I haven’t read anything.” His brow creased with concern. “What did she write about you?”
I almost told him, but Lady Tottenham’s voice from the staircase made me jump.
“Who might this young man be?”
I whirled around. She held tight to the bannister as she descended the final few stairs. Miles stepped forward to assist her, extending his hand with a bow. “Mr. Miles Holland at your service, my lady.”
Lady Tottenham pressed a hand to the bosom of her vibrant yellow gown. “Holland? A relation of our dear Alexander?”
Miles nodded with one of his charming smiles. “Ah, yes. I am his elder brother.”
Lady Tottenham cast me a delighted glance. “Where is he now? Has he not come to greet you?”
Miles stepped closer to me. “I came to call upon Lady Daventry first and foremost.”
A crease formed in Lady Tottenham’s brow, but it quickly faded away. “Oh, you must have come to congratulate her on her inheritance.” She eyed the bouquet of flowers. “I will send a servant to fetch Alexander from outside.”
Panic set into my limbs. “That will not be necessary.”
“Why not? Mr. Holland ought to congratulate Alexander as well.” Lady Tottenham cast a smile in Miles’s direction. “Surely you must know that Lady Daventry has been courting Alexander throughout this entire house party. It is my hope that they will soon be engaged.”
She bustled to the nearest footman. My heart sank through the floor. I had already told her that the courtship had been fake. Why was she pretending otherwise?
Miles’s shoulders stiffened. His brow set in a deep crease, his mouth a firm line. I wanted to explain, but Lady Tottenham had already returned to my side. Her large green eyes never left Miles’s face. “Would you like to attend Anne’s congratulatory ball this evening? I have made arrangements for the finest food and music to celebrate my future heiress.”
Miles shook the confusion from his expression, replacing it with a polite smile. “I would be honored, my lady.”
CHAPTER 27
ALEXANDER
“You must read this,” Victoria said, running across the lawn toward her sister. She held a sheet of foolscap in one hand.
I had been shooting targets with the other men while Octavia and Mrs. Pike observed at the table near the rose bushes. Victoria slapped the foolscap down on the table beside them. No one had expected the announcement that morning. The guests hadn’t stopped gossiping about it for the past two hours. If I hadn’t been so interested in the subject, I would have retreated to a room in the house where I could be alone. But instead, I tried to eavesdrop as Mrs. Pike and Octavia read the sheet of foolscap at the table. They read in silence, but I awaited their reaction.
I hadn’t seen Anne since breakfast. Lady Tottenham had pulled her away, treating her like her new pet. I was desperate to speak with her about what had happened, not about only the shocking news of her inheritance, but the events of the night before. Kissing her had been a mistake, and so had telling her about Miles. I should have known she wouldn’t believe me about his intentions. Aggravation scratched at every surface of my skin.
I raised my bow and released an arrow. It flew past the target.
I dropped the bow, surrendering to my curiosity. I walked casually toward the table. “What is it?”
The women looked up from the foolscap. Victoria wore a devious smile. “The latest issue of Behind the Fan. You are mentioned.”
I pulled out a chair and sat down. My stomach sank as I read the article from start to finish, pausing on the final lines about the competition for Anne’s hand.
“Devil take it,” I muttered, forgetting about the ladies present.
Mrs. Pike gasped.
