She wanted to step on his foot again. “No,” she answered primly. “Branville is looking for a wife, and youare not.” She wanted to add,Are you?but that seemed the slightest bit too interested.
“But do you agree?AmI more eligible than Branville?” he prompted.
Delilah did not like this conversation. She didn’t like it one bit. It made her uncomfortable discussing Thomas’s potential eligibility with him. How had they even got into this—Oh, right.She’dbeen the fool who’d brought up what Lady Rebecca said. “Who am I to say which duke is more eligible than the other?” she replied, still doing her best to sound nonchalant.
The waltz ended, and Thomas bowed to her again before escorting her off the floor.
They’d barely made it to the sidelines when Lucy came floating over to them.
“Let’s ask the duchess,” Thomas continued. “What do you think, Lucy? AmImore eligible than the Duke of Branville?”
Lucy blinked as if momentarily surprised by the question. Then she narrowed her eyes and tapped her finger against her cheek for a moment. “Yes, without a doubt.”
“Lucy!” Delilah exclaimed, plunking her hands onto her hips.
“What?” Lucy shrugged. “I’m merely being honest. Thomas’s family is older, his estate is greater, and his looks are certainly comparable.”
“Only comparable?” Thomas asked with a mock-offended gasp.
“Depends upon whether one prefers the dark sort or the blond sort,” Lucy replied with another shrug.
“Ah, so you prefer the blond sort,” Thomas said to Delilah.
Delilah scowled at him. “Think what you’re saying.It’syou. I’ve known you since you were a boy. The Duke of Branville is…”
Thomas batted his eyelashes at her. “What? A blond god?”
“No.” She crossed her arms over her chest. She continued to detest this conversation. “I was going to say… he’s not my friend.”
Lucy fluttered her hand in the air. “Yes, well. I’ve come with news. I’ve had a chance to watch Lady Emmaline at work.” Lucy leaned in and lowered her voice. “She’s good. Quite good.”
Delilah bit her lip.
“I’m afraid we’re going to have to employ all the tricks of the matchmaking trade to accomplish this feat,” Lucy continued.
“Dare I ask what the tricks of the matchmaking trade are?” Thomas said.
Lucy used her fingers to count them off. “Being elusive, pretending you aren’t interested, and most important of all, employing a bit of competition.”
“I’m not certain I’ve got much competition, Lucy,” Delilah replied.
“Not at the moment, dear, but you will before I’m finished with you. By the by, these same methods will work for Lavinia’s match too.”
Thomas inclined his head toward Lucy. “I’m pleased to hear it. The sooner Lavinia is matched, the better.” He turned toward Delilah. “Now, I’d like you to introduce me to your friend, Lady Rebecca. Perhaps it is time I find my own match this Season.”
Once again, the tiny anvil sunk to bottom of Delilah’s belly.
CHAPTER TEN
“All right, everyone, gather round. We’ll begin with the scene where Nick Bottom turns into the ass,” Jane Upton called to the group at rehearsal the next night in Lucy’s library.
The center of the large library had been transformed into a woodland arbor at night, dominated by a foot-high wooden stage that Derek and Christian had erected. The furniture that had previously been in the center of the room had been moved out. The large desk had been pushed into a corner where it served as the location for the costumes. The other corner was filled with Cass and her canvases. There were small groups of players practicing their lines in groups of two or three throughout the room, while Jane stood in the center directly in front of the stage, raising her voice to be heard above the din.
It turned out Jane was a formidable stage manager and director. No one dared cross her, and she knew the textas if she’d memorized every word. Delilah secretly suspected she had. Jane kept everyone in line and on time for their rehearsals, and thanks to her excellent organizational skills and directorial talents, the production was coming together quite nicely.
The play was perhaps the only thing going well of late, as far as Delilah was concerned. She’d been out of sorts all day after spending the night tossing and turning, unable to erase the feeling of uneasiness caused by last night from her mind. First, the crowd of ladies surrounding Thomas had irked her. Thomas had never had a crowd before. Why did one suddenly appear last night? Then, Rebecca’s comments had made Delilah want to stamp her foot. It was ridiculous of Rebecca to say Thomas was the most eligible bachelor of the Season. Everyone knewBranvillewas the most eligible. Finally, after announcing that he might indeed be looking for a wife, Thomas had trotted off in Lady Rebecca’s direction, leaving Delilah no choice but to follow him and make the introductions.
The resulting scene had been nothing but awkward, with Rebecca nearly swooning over Thomas, and Thomas enjoying it like an ice at Gunter’s. Rebecca giggled and Thomas preened, and then the two of them went off to dance, leaving Delilah standing alone with her half-empty champagne glass and a frown on her face. Worse, she’d been forced to contemplate, for the remainder of the evening and the entire day today, why, precisely, she was so offended by the notion that Thomas was not only eligible, but seemed to be enjoying the company of other ladies for the first time in… well, forever. Not to mention the fact that he should have been trying to distract Lady Emmaline from Branville, instead of dancing with Lady Rebecca.
