Page 19 of A Courtship of Conspiracies
James offered pleasantries to those who acknowledged him and exchanged a brief nod with Lord Greystone, an oldergentleman with the sort of influence that never needed to announce itself.
Without warning, a large figure jostled his shoulder in passing.
“Brenton, I apologize. This crowd is abominable.”
“Lord Markham, I quite understand. Think nothing of it.” James offered the congenial gentleman a warm smile. He had been a close friend of his father’s.
“As it happens, Brenton, I have been meaning to speak with you about the upcoming vote. Why don’t you come by for a visit this week and we can discuss the details?”
“I would be honored, Lord Markham. I’ll send a note.”
The man offered him a friendly nod before they both continued on their paths. This time, James did not stop until he reached his friends.
William eyed him with a teasing glint. “I know better than to ask where you have been during this set, but the fact that Kate was absent as well tells me all I need to know.”
A jolt of apprehension struck him. “How did you know Kate was not in the ballroom?” The question came out too quickly.
A steady grip landed on his shoulder. Alex Drummond, tall and broad with a soldier’s build, gave him a reassuring look. “Dinna worry,” Alex said, his light Scottish brogue still coloring his words at times despite spending much of his life in England. “No one has said anything, and I do not believe anyone else noticed. Watching you stare at Kate while she dances with half of London has been the most entertaining part of our evening.”
“Nothing untoward happened,” James said, pretending nonchalance at having been caught watching her. At their amused expressions, he amended his claim. “Well, nothing terribly scandalous.” He could not keep his lips from curving upward at the memory. “I only hope that I have not permanently harmed my chance at persuading her to marry me.”
“Kate is an intelligent woman, my friend.” Nicholas joined them. “Your chances were never very high.”
James narrowed his eyes at Nicholas before letting his gaze settle on his friend’s brown hair. It lay in studied disarray, lending an air of effortless charm that James knew from their days at Eton actually took quite some effort to achieve. “Are you sure you don’t want to retract that, friend?” James lifted a threatening hand to Nicholas’s head.
Nicholas darted out of the way. The group broke into laughter.
“Besides, Nicholas, we have not all been blessed with your effortless charm and good fortune with the ladies,” James said, dropping his arm. “But I am not wholly without finesse. Have you no faith in my ability to court a lady?”
Nicholas quirked an eyebrow. “My faith in your finesse was shattered after we were caught swapping Edmund’s inkwell with tea in fourth form.”
James smiled at the memory. “Yes, well, had we not been discovered, you should never have gained such an excellent understanding of Virgil.”
“I would forgo the knowledge if it meant gaining back several weeks of tedious copying and far too many hand cramps.”
Perhaps the inkwell caper had not been his most carefully considered plan, but he had learned much since his school days. His instinct then had been to strike back at bullies who preyed on the weak. That conviction had never changed. He had simply grown better at executing his plans. James’s friends had taken up the cause alongside him back then, and though Eton was years in the past, the friendship between the five of them had remained unbreakable. James would trust any of them with his life. If only he were allowed to tell them all of his secrets.
“Not all of us can be the handsome Lord Haverly, theton’sfavorite flirt,” James reminded him.
Nicholas’s smile broadened, all easy confidence and practiced mischief. “It is a difficult title to live up to, but someone must take up the mantle, and I find myself well suited to the task.” His grandfather, a powerful man with a reputation for cruelty, left Nicholas few avenues of defiance. Adopting the air of an unserious flirt was one of them, though James suspected there was more beneath his friend’s carefree demeanor.
Alex rolled his eyes as William let out a laugh but covered it up with a fake cough.
“If you need help winning over your lady, James, all you have to do is ask,” Nicholas offered.
“I do not need your advice, my friend. I am fully capable of convincing her to say yes.”
“And what plan have you devised?” Alex asked. “What tactics will you use?” Of course the former soldier and aide-de-camp would expect courtship to be like a military campaign. Though in Kate’s case, it was possible he was not entirely wrong.
“Perhaps you should all attend to your own romantic affairs and leave mine be.” James avoided the question since he did not, in fact, have any sort of plan beyond winning her regard and keeping his darker secrets hidden.
“And let you muddle through this on your own? I am not certain why you finally proposed to Kate,” William said, “but we only wish for your happiness.” The others’ expressions made it clear William spoke for them all. “We have all known from the beginning that you and Kate were intended for each other, and based on how she looked at you when she was younger, we all assumed it would end in a love match.”
James let out a huff. “Trust me. Kate has no romantic regard for me. Why would she ask for a courtship instead of marrying straight away? Besides, it would be unfair to expect her todevelop affection for me when I have no intention of falling for her.”
His friends shared meaningful glances. He knew what they were thinking.
“Though Alex may disagree, love is not something you can plan for,” William said. “It happens when you least expect it. Love may find you, James, whether you want it to or not. ‘But to see her was to love her; love but her, and love forever.’”
