Page 75 of The Luckiest Lady in London

He took a deep breath—it still went against every grain of his temperament to concede such knowledge. “No. I became mortal and learned to live with it.”

She bit a corner of her lower lip, then reached out and touched his cheek. “Thank you, Felix.”

His breath caught. He had asked her to use his given name, but she never had, until this moment. He placed his hand over hers. “What for?”

“Now things actually make sense. I prefer a husband whose actions I can interpret and understand—at least somewhat.”

She nestled closer to him and kissed him on the mouth.

Later, when he kissed her good night upon leaving her bed, she reached up and touched his cheek once again. “Sweet dreams, Felix.”

* * *

They had meant to slip in and out of London undetected by Society, but Louisa could not refuse an invitation from Lady Balfour, who also happened to be in town, for an afternoon tea party held to celebrate a niece’s birthday.

Louisa arrived at the party by herself, with a promise from Felix to come as soon as he was finished with his solicitors. Not five minutes after she sat down, she looked up and saw someone she had never seen under Lady Balfour’s roof: Miss Jane Edwards.

“I do believe you have already met Miss Edwards, Lady Wrenworth?” Lady Balfour loved to call Louisa by her new honorific. “Miss Edwards and Mrs. Summerland have become rather fast friends, you see, since they met in the Ladies’ Literary Club.”

Mrs. Summerland was another one of Lady Balfour’s daughters. Louisa pulled together a stiff smile for Miss Edwards. Miss Edwards, however, shook Louisa’s hand most amiably. And she didn’t stride off after that convivial greeting, but stayed by Louisa’s side.

Lady Balfour left after a few minutes to greet a pair of late arrivals.

Miss Edwards leaned forward. “My congratulations on your marriage, Lady Wrenworth,” she said warmly.

Louisa had trouble believing this was the same icy woman she had once fancied for a sister-in-law. But then again, now that Louisa was married, she was no longer a competitor for Lord Firth’s affection.

“Thank you,” she said carefully, trying not to imagine what Miss Edwards and her half brother did in private.

“I would like to take this chance to apologize,” Miss Edwards said with great sincerity, “for my earlier rudeness. I hope you will forgive a sister’s protective instincts.”

Louisa kept her expression bland. “I’m sure I do not understand.”

“Please excuse my bluntness. But you see, Lady Wrenworth, for much of the past Season, I was worried that you might be after my brother only for his income, and not because you cared particularly for him. And for that reason, I’m afraid my conduct was less affable than convention dictated.”

Louisa didn’t quite know what to say, given that Miss Edwards was largely correct in her conjecture. “Well, I did think Lord Firth a very fine, upstanding man.”

She had, but no more.

“Yes, that he is,” Miss Edwards concurred proudly. “The finest man and the best brother there is.”

Louisa could only nod.

“The poor darling.” Miss Edwards sighed fondly. “He was heartbroken over your engagement, Lady Wrenworth. For days on end he lamented that he should have been more outspoken with regard to his sentiments and that he should not have decided to wait until the end of the Season to propose to you. And that was when I became terribly ashamed of my behavior. Perhaps he would have had a better chance with you had I been more civil.”

Louisa was less shocked by the revelation of Lord Firth’s matrimonial intentions than by Miss Edwards’s regret that they never came to pass. She didn’t sound the least bit jealous that her brother was in love with someone else. “I’m…I’m afraid I had no idea.”

Miss Edwards shook her head. “He can be too taciturn at times, my brother.”

She was about to say something else when a tall, handsome man came up to her with a cup of tea.

“Oh, thank you, my dear.” Miss Edwards clasped his hand. “Lady Wrenworth, may I present my fiancé, Mr. Harlow.”

Miss Edwards, engaged? But of course, he was the man Louisa had seen with Miss Edwards earlier. Louisa coughed up a line of congratulations.

“My aunt lives not very far from Huntington,” Mr. Harlow said. “In fact, we were in the area recently, visiting her. Beautiful place, but alas, the rain never let up the entire time we were there.”

While he spoke, Miss Edwards gazed upon him with what could only be termed rapture—a sight that made Louisa queasy.