Adelaide smiled, for in that moment Emma had never been more beautiful. She had a baby growing in her stomach, her face was lit with a love so pure and powerful and true that it almost glowed from within her. She had faith in the world, in her husband, in herself.
And Adelaide had never been so happy for, nor so jealous of a person all at once. With effort, she reached out to take Emma’s hand. “I’m not you, love.”
Emma caught her breath, and Adelaide could see that she wanted to fight that statement. Deny it. Force Adelaide to become something she knew she could never be.
But there must have been something in Adelaide’s face that stopped her. For Emma merely squeezed her hand and allowed Adelaide to collapse back against the carriage seat.
“When will he come?” Adelaide asked.
Emma frowned. “A bit before eight. For supper.”
Adelaide nodded. That gave her a few hours to prepare herself for him. For the fact that when he saw her, she would see the man she was starting to care for.
And he would only see the wallflower he tolerated.
Chapter Thirteen
Graham entered the foyer and handed his hat, coat and gloves to James’s butler.
“Their Graces and Lady Adelaide await you in the blue room,” the man intoned as he began to walk up the hallway.
Graham nearly tripped over his feet. “Lady Adelaide is here?” he asked.
The butler didn’t stop moving. “Yes, Your Grace. She is joining the family for supper.” He stopped at the parlor and opened the door. “The Duke of Northfield,” he announced, and stepped out of the way.
Graham took a deep breath as his world moved into half-time. Adelaide was in that room. Adelaide, the other half of his present dilemma. The other woman that occupied his mind. That she was here was providence.
Or a devilish coincidence that would only make things harder.
Perhaps both.
He stepped into the room. He knew he should look toward James and Emma, who were standing together before the fire. He didn’t. His gaze moved immediately to Adelaide. She had obviously been seated on the settee, but now she stood, her hands clenched before her, her bespectacled gaze focused on him.
She was nothing like what he had pictured when he thought of a woman who would capture his attention. But she had it. All of it. Even his obsession with Lydia faded when he entered a room with Adelaide in it.
“Good evening,” he forced his mouth to say.
“Good evening,” Adelaide responded, her voice shaking just a fraction.
Before Graham could analyze that overly much, James and Emma came across the room to greet him. “Hello, mate,” James said.
Emma reached for him. “I’m so glad you’re here, Graham, we’ll be a very happy foursome—my goodness, Graham, your hands!”
Graham glanced down. Without his gloves, his bruised and marred knuckles were very clear. Emma had gone pale as she looked at them, and even James seemed concerned.
When he glanced at Adelaide, he was surprised that she was staring at his face, not his hands. He cleared his throat. “Ah, yes. I, er…well, I suppose I have some news for you two. I don’t know if I should say this in front of Lady Adelaide, though.”
Adelaide’s jaw set slightly and she moved as if to leave the room, but Emma held up a hand. “Adelaide is my dearest friend. You may say whatever you wish in front of her. Come, let us sit.”
She motioned for the chairs and the settee in front of the fire. She and James took the chairs, and Graham’s heart began to pound. The only place left was the one next to Adelaide. She seemed to notice that fact the same time he did, for her cheeks darkened to a deep pink.
He smiled at the reaction, for it meant she was not as immune to him as she always pretended to be. She sat and he followed, not sitting too close, but close enough that he could feel just the hint of her warmth. Suddenly he felt it keenly. Smelled her soft, fresh scent. And wondered, with a powerful jolt, what it would feel like to touch her lips with his own.
He blinked the thoughts away and refocused.
“Sir Archibald is in London,” he said.
Emma’s reaction was immediate. She jumped to her feet, all color leaving her cheeks and stood staring at him. James followed, catching her arm to steady her as he, too, kept his gaze on Graham.
