Without waiting for him to reply, she lifted her skirts and practically sprinted in that direction, her heart pounding the entire way.
And not just from the approaching storm.
Chapter Five
JONATHAN WAS WALKINGacross the hall, adjusting the cuffs of his jacket, when a lilting melody stopped him mid-stride, the sound shooting straight to his groin. It wasn’t Mrs. Thomas playing a tune at the piano, but Miss Grouseman’s sweet laughter floating from inside the ballroom. On the heels of her merriment came the sound of another feminine voice, one he recognized as Lady Marwood’s, followed by a baby’s innocent giggles.
Apparently, Fanny and little Conner had just met.
Jonathan pictured her holding Elliot’s son in her arms, and for some reason the idea made him smile. But when he imagined her embracingtheirchild — his throat suddenly grew tight, along with other parts of his anatomy.
He shook his head, intending to push such dangerous thoughts out of his mind, but when he actuallysawthe reason for everyone’s merriment, he stopped in the doorframe of the ballroom and simply — stared.
Evelyn was standing off to the side and smiling, while Fanny hummed a light tune and twirled Conner about the room. Her gown flowed about her legs as she swayed with a lithe grace that had been missing the day before. She might claim to have no sense of coordination when it came to dancing, but her movements now would suggest otherwise.
She certainly entrancedhim.
He was so fixed on Fanny that he didn’t notice when Evelyn sidled up next to him. “Miss Grouseman is a rather amazing woman, wouldn’t you agree?”
Something in her tone compelled him to drag his eyes away from Fanny and glance at her. She attempted to appear innocent, but Jonathan knew Evelyn well enough that he caught the sly glimmer in her hazel eyes. While he had his own fantasies regarding Miss Grouseman, he didn’t need Elliot’s wife trying to play matchmaker.
“Indeed,” he murmured, adopting an air of boredom.
“Conner is quite taken with her,” Evelyn continued. “It’s obvious she has a natural motherly instinct. She would make a fine wife for some lucky man.”
He clenched his jaw. “I’m sure she will, but marriage is not really my area of expertise, in case you’ve forgotten. I’m only teaching her to dance. I have no interest beyond that.”
***
FANNY SLOWED HER STEPSwhen she overheard Lord Castleford’s deep tones. At the mention of her name, she walked over to join him and Lady Marwood. However, the moment she caught his last statement, she wished she could sink into the floor.
“I’m only teaching her to dance. I have no interest beyond that.”
His gaze suddenly shifted to meet hers, and while she pasted on a smile and tried to pretend that his detached words hadn’t stung, she was hurt. It was silly, of course, for they were only passing acquaintances. She had known that all along. There would never be any sort of understanding between them, so there was no point in thinking otherwise.
Besides, he was only speaking the truth so could she truly be upset with him for stating fact?
