“Fulton and his staff have done an amazing presentation.”
At the sound of the voice behind her, Brina turned and saw Zane’s sister, Mrs. Cranston, standing in the doorway. “Yes. It’s as beautiful as I imagined.”
“Indeed. Very sweet and reserved, Mrs. Feld. Much like you. It was clever not to try and top the extravaganceof the Duchess of Middlecastle’s table. She’ll be pleased it’s so simple.”
Brina wasn’t sure what to say about that, so she merely smiled and answered, “I’m sure Zane didn’t mean to—”
Mrs. Cranston’s eyebrows rose almost to her hairline. Brina immediately recognized her mistake.Zane. She had used his first name. She should have known it was bound to happen sooner or later. For most, it was an unforgivable error to refer to an earl in such a manner.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Cranston. I shouldn’t have referred to him in a familiar manner.”
“You don’t have to worry about slip-ups with me, Mrs. Feld,” she responded in a matter-of-fact tone. “I am all for you helping my brother any way you can. I do believe you’ve been good for him, and I wouldn’t mind having you in the family. I would have never believed anyone could help him settle down, but you seem to have. For a month, at least. Only time will tell if it will last any longer. It won’t be the first time we’ve thought he had changed only to find that he hadn’t. But, we’re always willing to hold out hope. Ah—I hear voices. Let’s go see who’s arrived. Perhaps by now even our host.”
Brina had been almost to the point of tapping her foot in frustration before Mrs. Cranston left the room. It was no wonder Zane felt his family was such a challenge.
They were! How could his own sister be so unbelieving in him?
As she entered the drawing room, Brina looked for Zane. His uncles had arrived. So had Viscount Mountgate, Julia, Adeline, and their husbands, but she didn’t see Zane. Thinking he must be greeting someone in the vestibule, she headed over to speak to her friends.
Other guests continued to arrive, but Zane was noticeably absent. Unable to stop herself, she’d glanced at Mrs. Cranston, who was in turn, glancing at her. The lastto arrive were the Duke and Duchess of Middlecastle. After they entered, Brina went in search of Fulton and found him standing by the door.
“Fulton, is the earl still in his chambers?”
“No, Mrs. Feld. I’ve already told Mrs. Cranston, he hasn’t returned home yet.”
Brina felt as if something had slammed into her body and it almost drove her to her knees. “What do you mean? He’s not home?” It was a foolish question, but nothing else would come to mind.
“That’s correct.”
“Do you know where he is?”
“The earl didn’t inform me of where he was going or when he expected to return.”
“Can you tell me how long he’s been gone?” Her breaths were so short, she could hardly speak. “All day? The afternoon? When did he leave?”
“More than an hour ago.”
Her heartbeat raced. “Then he’s coming back. He’s been delayed.”
“He said he would be back for the dinner.”
“Good. Thank you.”
Brina walked back into the drawing room on shaky legs. Chatter was lively, and if anyone was missing the host, it wasn’t showing to anyone but her and Mrs. Cranston.
Yet.
But the minutes passed. She began to think maybe he’d had a carriage accident. She knew how dangerously he could drive. He was excellent managing the horses, but what if— No. Then minutes later she was thinking perhaps he’d been attacked by footpads. What if he were lying hurt in an alley? Maybe she should ask someone to go look for him, but where would they start? Where would they go?
So, no. She wouldn’t ask anyone to look for him. He wasn’t an errant schoolboy. Anger was beginning to creep inside her. He knew where he should be.
“Have you seen Blacknight this evening?”
Brina turned to see both Zane’s uncles standing beside her. In the distance she saw Mrs. Cranston heading toward them. Brina’s heart pounded and her throat went dry. They were going to be looking to her for answers she didn’t have.
“Not yet,” she said calmly when she couldn’t have felt more tense as Mrs. Cranston stopped beside her.
Zane’s Uncle Hector stared at her and started tapping his cane on the floor. “I assumed he was in his chambers getting dressed, waiting late to make a grand entrance.”
