Page 54 of A Mismatch Made in London

“Ah, Harper,” Algernon said. “He’s a right good fellow. I see him at the club sometimes. Although I haven’t seen him of late.”

“So you know this Mr. Harper?” Mrs. Kendall said.

“I’ve known him for a few years.”

“And he is a man of honor and integrity, would you say?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“I suppose. He pays his debts, I know that. I’ve been to his estate in Lincolnshire, and we put on a theatrical there. Right good fun, it was. Harper is a good sort.”

What was I to make of what Algernon was saying? With Algernon’s penchant for drinking and gaming, how could I trust his assessment of anyone’s character? I determined to ask Mr. Harper some probing questions when next I saw him. After all, If I were to even consider marrying him, I needed to know his character.

The ball was finally here. After being with Juliet and Jeremy every day, it felt quite lonely and dull to be at Mrs. Kendall’s, though she was very kind to me. Algernon was always loungingabout, or leaving abruptly to go to his club, and I had to forgo my daily walk for the past two days because of heavy rain. But the rain had finally eased, and I was dressed and ready for the ball.

Algernon accompanied us, and his mother said, “Algie, you will ask some ladies to dance, will you not?”

“Mother, you know I do not like to dance.” Algernon sighed heavily as he looked at the ceiling of the carriage.

“Well, you never know what might happen while you’re dancing,” she said cheerfully.

“I’d much rather play cards.”

Our carriage arrived and we went inside, greeting the host and hostess. Mrs. Kendall found a place to sit and a cup of something to drink, and thankfully, I saw Juliet arriving with Jeremy Beaumont and Mr. Shelley. After greeting the hosts, she and Mr. Shelley came straight to me.

We were all smiles as Juliet and I embraced. I nearly cried, so grateful that she was happy to see me.

“I have missed you so much,” she gushed. “I think they just announced the first dance. Jeremy,” she said, turning around to speak to her brother, “dance with Amelia so she can be beside me.”

That was how I ended up dancing with Jeremy Beaumont the first dance, as we lined up beside Juliet and Mr. Shelley.

My stomach did a strange flip as I gazed across at him. Had he grown even more attractive, or was it only my imagination? His hair fell in such an attractive wave across his forehead. And his eyes were so perfect. One eyebrow was slightly higher than the other, which, when he was smiling, made him look mischievous, and when he was not smiling, made him look grumpy.

At the moment he was neither smiling nor grumpy but looking at me as if he wanted to ask me something important. Then the music began, and he held out his hand.

I should have felt flattered that the man my aunt had told me was the most sought-after gentleman of the Season was dancing the first dance with me, but now that I knew him, he wasnot the “catch of the Season,” he was Jeremy Beaumont, the gentleman who would dance with me simply because his sister asked him to.

“How was your visit to your sister?” I asked during a slow part of the dance.

“We had a good visit. She and the new baby are well.”

A few moments later he said, “Things have been dull since we returned to London.”

“Dull? With Juliet around?”

“She talks nonstop about you.”

I could hardly stifle my laughter. “Yes, that must be tedious indeed, a dull subject to be sure.”

“That is not what I meant. You are deliberately misconstruing my words.”

“Well, what did you mean, then?”

“I mean that Juliet and I missed having you to talk to, and it was tedious ... I am sure you know what I mean. Men do not care to talk of muslin and lace and ribbons.” He gave me a rare smile. “Juliet says that because you are no longer with her, she has no one to talk to when she retires for the evening, and Mrs. Wilson retires early. She says she is forced to plague me with her feminine conversation.”

I was pleasantly surprised that he was speaking in this way with me, though I wasn’t exactly sure why.

More importantly, I liked thinking that Juliet needed me, which, I suddenly realized, was a large part of the pain of missing home. My family often needed me, daily. And the past week I had missed feeling as if Juliet needed me.

When the dance was over, Jeremy Beaumont walked me back to Mrs. Kendall.