Page 40 of A Mismatch Made in London

And she displayed a curiosity about the museum that, he had to admit, was enjoyable to watch. She was obviously intelligent, and she possessed a sense of awe and wonder that was so appealing it made his chest ache.

Truly, if he hadn’t ruined his chance with her, he might have been interested in courting her. But there were many reasons why he shouldn’t try. She was his sister’s friend, first of all, andhe could not pay attention to any lady that he would wish to court while he was trying to watch over Juliet. His sister must be his priority now. Besides, Amelia Moore obviously disliked him, and she did not seem at all inclined to change her mind about him. And there was the matter of her family and lack of fortune. He had only met her aunt and uncle. What if her parents were unintelligent and without manners? Or worse, were not good people? But that seemed unlikely, based on Miss Moore’s gentility and obvious morality.

Oh, she was almost famous now for having country manners, but that only meant that she was not tight-lipped and insincere, which other more sophisticated ladies seemed to think was what society demanded. She said what she thought, which would not have been looked upon unfavorably if she were wealthy and titled and powerful. But for a poor girl, it was nearly unforgivable.

Besides, he could marry a great many girls who would be considered a much better match for him than Miss Moore from Buckinghamshire. In fact, he’d been thinking seriously of Miss Snowden. Her mother, Lady Snowden, had given him certain signals indicating she would welcome a marriage proposal from him for her daughter, and he had allowed himself to use that to secure an invitation to her ball for Juliet and Miss Moore, hinting to Lady Snowden that she would be helping him immensely if she also invited Mr. Shelley and Lord Gotthurst and that Juliet was being wrongly gossiped about and needed the approval of someone like her to help save her reputation.

Perhaps that had been wrong. He saw that now, as it would seem as if he were using Lady Snowden and her daughter, the very thing he had so abhorred in Miss Scofield and in Amelia Moore, though he’d been wrong about Miss Moore. But he truly had been interested in Miss Snowden—until he realized she was just as cold and unfeeling as most young ladies of her set. What a contrast she made to Amelia Moore.

But as he’d already acknowledged, courting Miss Moore was impossible. It would be best if they simply continued as indifferent acquaintances, connected only by their mutual love for Juliet.

11

The next day, Timothy Shelley and Lord Gotthurst walked Juliet and me to the park. Jeremy Beaumont accompanied us, of course. He never allowed us to go anywhere without him.

The weather was especially perfect.

“We should have brought some food for the swans,” Juliet said. Then quickly looked at me. “I should not have said that.”

“Why not?” Mr. Shelley asked. “I sense there is a story here.”

“Yes,” Lord Gotthurst agreed. They both stared at us, waiting.

Juliet cringed, giving me an apologetic look.

“It’s all right,” I said. “I don’t mind telling it. A goose bit my hand the first time Juliet and I walked in the park together. But it was nothing.”

“Nothing?” Juliet said. “Jeremy had to bandage her hand, it was bleeding so much.”

I felt my face coloring.

“I didn’t even know geese had teeth,” Lord Gotthurst said. “Was it a very bad cut? I’m very sorry.” He stared hard at my hand.

I pulled off my glove and held up my hand. “As you can see, it is all better now. There is only a tiny scar.”

He took my hand and held it close to his face, examining it.“It looks as if you were sliced by a knife.” He clicked his tongue and shook his head.

My heart leapt at his touch, even though he only held my hand for a moment. I couldn’t fully enjoy it, however; I was too aware of Jeremy Beaumont watching us.

Mr. Shelley was smiling as he led Juliet a few feet away, pointing at the lake. Jeremy turned and walked away too, with his usual grumpy frown.

“Miss Moore.”

Lord Gotthurst was standing quite close, staring into my eyes. I felt my heart flutter.

“Yes?”

“My mother and sister are coming into town from Yorkshire tomorrow. I wonder if I could introduce them to you sometime next week. I’d very much like for you to know them and for them to know you.”

Although my brain was slow to register his underlying meaning, I could see that he was nervous about asking me.

“Of course. I would be very pleased to know your mother and sister.”

“I am so glad,” he said as he released a breath. “I know they will love you instantly. My sister is about your age, and my mother has recently recovered from an illness and is eager to visit London.”

“I’m so glad she is recovered. I hope it wasn’t serious.”

“A bit, but the physician says she’s well now.” His expression was sober as he said, “It makes me very happy that you wish to know them.”