And that was perfectly fine.
It was by her choice, after all.
But as she was quickly discovering, choosing to be alone didn’t make you any less lonely.
“…entire summer kitchen went up in flames. To this day, Joanna refuses to take responsibility. But everyone knows it was her fault.” Grinning, Evie nudged her sister with her elbow as Brynne blinked and refocused on the conversation at hand.
They’d taken seats around a table with the two men across from each other, the Thorncrofts next to each other, and Brynne by herself on the far side with a wine glass for company.
“I moved the pot!” Joanna protested.
“Not far enough,obviously.”
“If we’re discussing faults of our past, should I bring up the time you slathered turmeric on your face and–”
“No one wants to hear about that,” Evie said hastily.
“Ido,” Weston drawled.
“Orange as a carrot for days,” Joanna said with a smirk. “She wouldn’t leave her room. Everyone thought she was deathly ill.”
Evie smiled brightly at Brynne, and, in a not-terribly-subtle attempt to shift the focus off her beauty mishap, she asked, “Do you have any interesting stories from when you and Weston were growing up? Anything embarrassing I should know about before we’re married? No detail is too small.”
“Our upbringing wasn’t nearly as…entertaining as yours, I’m afraid.” Brynne took a sip of her wine, a decadent port that lingered on her tongue. “By comparison, it was rather boring.”
Except for Lachlan,a tiny voice whispered.
She ignored it.
“That’s disappointing,” Evie remarked. “If you should remember anything enticing, you shall have to tell me at once.”
“I will,” Brynne promised. Then she rose to her feet. “It’s nearly past midnight, and I’ve had a long day of travel. Joanna and Mr. Kincaid, it was wonderful to meet you at last. I am looking forward to getting to know each other even more now that we’re all together in London. I take it you’ll be at the Duke of Oxford’s ball tomorrow evening?”
Joanna’s nose wrinkled. “I’ve found that large social events aren’t for me.”
“I’ll be there,” Evie said happily. “We can get ready together, if you’d like.”
Although Evie and Weston were engaged to be married, without the presence of a proper chaperone she’d been living with Joanna and Kincaid to uphold the appearance of propriety. Now that Brynne was here, however, she had shared her eagerness to move into the same house as her husband-to-be. In the bedroom beside his, naturally. Never mind that there was a door connecting the two chambers.
“I’d like that very much.” Brynne flicked a glance at Weston, and they shared an incredulous smile. Who would have ever thought that they’d be part of such a loud, boisterous family? From somber dinners at opposite ends of a long table to sitting on a terrace with a half-sister, and brother-in-law, and fiancée.
The only person missing was–
No.
Absolutely not.
She hadn’t left Lachlan behind to think about him every other moment.
“I shall see you in the morning.” Exiting amidst a chorus of “good night” and “sleep well”, she went upstairs to find her bedroom precisely as she’d left it. Her lady’s maid, a cheerful middle-aged woman named Ira, was already there waiting to help her undress, and doused the candles before she left, blanketing the chamber in rolling darkness.
Through sheer will and determination, Brynne managed to keep her husband out of her head…until that head hit the pillow, sleep wrapped her in its languid embrace, and there was nothing she could do to prevent him from entering her dreams.
“Isn’t it amazing?”Evie marveled as their town coach slowed in front of the Duke of Oxford’s estate, a spectacular Grecian-styled manor perched high on a hill overlooking the Thames, and joined the twisting black line of carriages reaching all the way back to Harcourt Street.
As one of the largest events of the Season, over three hundred of theton’selite were expected to attend. There’d be dancing, and gossiping, and drinking. Mayhap even a salacious scandal or two. It was the recipe for a perfect evening and Evie, as the newly minted future Countess of Hawkridge, was certain to have a fair share of the spotlight. Which, by all outward appearances, she seemed absolutely elated about.
Once upon at a time, Brynne would have shared in Evie’s enthusiasm.
