Page 129 of A Foolish Flirtation

Turning to a mystified Emmie, he said, “You’d better come along to dinner with us next week. Mina’s been waiting for you to call here first. She’s got some odd notion that springing an inn on you isn’t quite right and proper, but I think we can dispense with such ceremony between family, don’t you?”

“Oh y-yes, of course! Thank you for, well, for standing by and ensuring fair play,” she said, borrowing from his own vocabulary.

A smile tugged at his lips. “Well, it wasn’t exactly London Prize Ring Rules,” he said, eyeing Jeremy’s grazed knuckles. “But it did at a pinch.”

Lottie was waiting for them in the public parlor and to Emmie’s consternation was standing over the bloodied bowl of water whispering to Corin. As soon as she saw them, she hurried over, looking wide-eyed and excited. Emmie had a sinking suspicion that at least some garbled version of events would find their way to the servants’ hall. She only hoped she would not feature too harshly in the retelling.

Once outside, Jeremy saw them both into the carriage and mounted Cadmus. “I’ll see you back at the house,” he said briefly, and Emmie’s heart sank. Oh dear, oh dear, she thought and hoped he was not going to withdraw once more into icy politeness. Looking up, she saw Lottie watching her avidly.

“Reckon your old friend from London will be returning there pretty sharpish!” Lottie said with satisfaction.

“I expect so,” Emmie agreed.

“His lordship saw to that. Never seen him so irate. Mark my words, I said to Corin, soon as I saw him barging in, things are turning ugly! And then we hear the scuffle and Master Nye appears calling for hot water and brandy for the guest from room three. ‘What for at this time of the morning, it’s not godly,’ that old servant of his replies. ‘He’s already had his shave and the hour’s not decent for liquor.’ Then Master Nye he turns round and says, ‘His lordship’s knocked him down and bloodied his nose for him.’”

Emmie stirred in her seat, wishing her brother-in-law could have been a little more discreet.

“Funny, isn’t it?” Lottie rattled on. “Cos everyone always agreed his lordship had nary a jealous bone in his body, what with the way her previous ladyship used to carry on, and him never batting an eye!”

Emmie cleared her throat, unsure of how to reply. “He…he never showed any jealousy before?”

“Not one bit!” Lottie responded with alacrity. “Not even when she provoked him ever so! That tutor of Master Teddy’s, she used to embarrass everyone, the way she hung all over him! And then, there was that time she made a proper show of herself over Mr. Needham from Benham Hall. His lordship just looked bored. The poor gentleman took off like a scalded cat!”

Lottie settled back into her seat, getting comfortable. “Mrs. Cheviot used to say that mebbe that was what she wanted all along, for his lordship to defend her honor like, instead of simply looking the other way, but he never did. Not even once.” She shot a speculative look at Emmie. “And then today, you go to say goodbye to your old London friend and what does he do but up and draws his cork! Clean broke his nose, too, that’s what that old servant said. She reckoned he’d have two black eyes before long too!”

Emmie fanned her hot face with her glove. “It was all very unfortunate,” she murmured, at a loss how else to respond.

“It’s not as though he could have thought there was anything untoward going on, not when you took me with you as chaperone,” Lottie pointed out. “Maddened with jealousy, that’s what he was.” She nodded contentedly. “You mark my words.”

Arriving at the house, they found Jeremy already awaiting them. He opened the carriage door and helped her down. He had not changed, and she noticed his disordered neckcloth had flecks of blood on it. “I need to speak with you privately,” he said grimly as soon as Lottie had disembarked.

“Of course.”

“Upstairs.”

She nodded her acquiescence, and he drew her straight into the house and up the stairs. To her surprise, he led her to his rooms, to the adjoining sitting room she had glimpsed that very morning. Once inside, with the door shut, he turned to her. “Before I start, is there anything you want to say?” His tone was perfectly controlled and calm.

Oh God, he was going to be all polite again, and she couldn’t bear it. What should she do? Apologize? No, that would not suffice. If she went all polite as well, they would get nowhere. Right, it was clearly up to her. She squared her shoulders.

“Why did you do it?” she asked in a loud, clear voice. “Why did you kiss me like that, and then go and announce your engagement to Amanda Liversedge. That’s what I want to know. I’ve always wanted to know. Why?”

He blinked. Whatever he had been expecting her to say, it wasn’t that. For a moment, he did not speak. Then he simply said, “Wasn’t it obvious, Ballentine?”

“Not to me.”

He gave a short, mirthless laugh. “Then let me enlighten you. I announced my engagement to her because I was given strict instructions to. Our marriage was an understanding between our families for years. My father arranged the whole thing with Lord Tipton on my twelfth birthday, though I did not actually meet the lady until some years after that.”

“So then, you knew all along?” she said quietly. “The whole time I knew you, that you were unofficially engaged to another?” There was a heavy pause and then he swallowed and nodded. Emmie’s head swam. “Why was it such a big secret, then?”

“A secret?” He looked mildly surprised. “I don’t know that it was ever a secret, precisely. I never really spoke of it because, well, I considered myself damned lucky to get something of a reprieve. Her parents were content to wait for it to be made official, but no later than her twenty-third birthday. Amanda wanted the chance to flaunt herself as a debutante and I was damned eager to experience some of the delights of town before I was forced to the altar. I was two years younger than her, so that meant—”

“It had to be formally announced at the Hawfords’ ball,” Emmie uttered.

He breathed out. “Yes,” he agreed. “Lady Hawford was Amanda’s godmother. Why did you think it was a secret?”

“Because everyone acted so surprised and excited when you announced it, of course!” she burst out. “Talking about what a beautiful couple you made and how it must have been love at first sight! Also, I think it’s pretty obvious that an honorable man would not have dallied with me, and engaged my affections, when he knew all along that he was intended for another!”

“You’re right,” he agreed quite readily. “My actions were not those of an honorable man. Over the years they very rarely have been. But all the same, at that time the choice of bride was not mine to make. If I could have avoided it, I would never have announced it that night. I would never have married her at all. You must know that, Emmeline.”