Page 52 of A Perfect Engagement
She was through being nice to this awful woman for the sake of politeness. Nothing would be worse than to see Daniel married to this dreadful creature. Charlotte leaned in and spoke in a low but clear voice. “I would use every ounce of my influence to keep Weston from getting trapped into marriage with you. You’ll marry Lord Weston over my dead body.” Charlotte stood, still trembling with an emotion she couldn’t name. “Pardon me, I have some details to oversee before dinner.”
*
“You said what?”Susanna clapped her hands together in glee.
“I told her off. And I won’t be sorry. The thought of her being anywhere near Daniel makes my blood boil.” Charlotte saw the glance exchanged between Olivia and Susanna. She straightened her already perfectly smooth gloves. “I wouldn’t wish the awful Miss Thornton on anybody.”
“Of course not,” Olivia soothed. “Everything looks lovely this evening. I particularly like the bunting with the freesia woven through.” She expertly changed the topic.
Charlotte glanced around the drawing room. It did look quite nice with the additional decoration hung along the fireplace and over the windows. Tonight they had invited the musicians back for dancing. Everyone loved dancing, didn’t they? Her mother had invited many of the local families over for the evening, and the room was quite crowded with guests. She slid open the pretty blue silk fan that matched perfectly with her gown. The paltry breeze it created did not do much to calm her heated cheeks. Although if she were perfectly honest with herself, her flushed face had less to do with all the dancing and more to do with her irritation over Miss Thornton’s earlier statements. But she would certainly not admit that to her friends.
“Miss Grisham, would you care to dance?” a deep familiar voice asked from behind her.
Charlotte spun around to find Daniel looking dashing in his dark blue suit. Darn him for looking so handsome with his floppy hair and his chocolate-brown eyes that stared right into her soul.
“Good evening, Lord Hawksridge,” Olivia chirped from beside her. Both ladies dipped into small curtseys.
“Actually, this is Lord Weston. Lord Hawksridge is wearing black tonight,” she said over her shoulder. “And I believe I was saving my next dance for your brother.”
Daniel held out his hand. “Come now, Miss Grisham, I’m sure my brother wouldn’t mind. He would want us to get to know each other better.”
It would look terribly rude to turn down his request for a dance. Charlotte glanced around at the guests nearby who no doubt could hear every word being said. She laid her hand in his. “Of course you are right. I’d be delighted, Lord Weston.”
Daniel led her to the center of the room, and as if on cue the music began, a waltz. A firm hand snaked around her waist, and he pulled her toward him. She looked up at him accusingly. “Did you plan this? I know my mother would never have a waltz on the approved list.”
His lips twitched. “It seemed the best way to get you to talk to me. You have been avoiding me. Admit it.” He led them in the first turn about the floor.
“I have not been avoiding you. I have just been focusing my attention on my real fiancé.”
Daniel stiffened. They twirled for a bit in silence. Then he looked down at her, his eyes sad. “I can explain what you saw at Brooksdale.” He glanced around at the other couples that surrounded them. “But not here on the dance floor. Perhaps you could meet me in the gazebo tomorrow morning?”
Charlotte shook her head. “I don’t think that is a very good idea. You don’t owe me any explanations.”
This was a lie, of course. She desperately wanted to hear any explanation that would not make Daniel a philanderer. If he was involved with the woman in the wheelchair, then that made her the kind of woman who would kiss a married man. How had she let herself have romantic feelings of any kind for a man who was not her future husband? She was a horrible person. The guilt of that kiss, that bone-melting, extraordinary kiss, had been eating at her for the past two days. Tears threatened the back of her eyes.
“I do care very much what you think of me. Please, Charlotte, allow me to explain.”
“I don’t know.” She shook her head without meeting his gaze. “Can you escort me back to my friends please, Lord Weston?”
“No, let’s finish the dance.” He turned them in a tight circle and her skirts swirled around her ankles. “This might be the last time.”
“The last time?”
He leaned closer, and his warm breath caressed her ear. “The last time I can hold you and pretend that you are mine.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Daniel briefly closedhis eyes as he drank in her rose-scented hair. This woman should be his. The rightness of having her in arms tore through him, not like a beautiful song or a burst of sunshine, but more like a long, jagged gash that began at his heart. He quickly straightened. He did not want to cause a scene that would embarrass Charlotte. The guilt and hurt he saw in her eyes was more than enough to make him pause.
Too soon, the music ended. Daniel escorted her off the dance floor, and the first person they ran into was Miles.
“Miss Grisham, Daniel, glad to see you both enjoying yourself this evening.” His smile tight, he held out a hand to Charlotte. “Can I escort you to the refreshment table for some punch?”
“Thank you. That would be lovely.” And just like that, the two of them were gone, weaving through the guests toward the back of the room. He could use a drink as well, but not the kind you would find on the refreshment table.
“Weston, there you are.”
Daniel winced as he recognized his aunt’s voice. He turned to find her standing with two other ladies. “Weston, I would like to introduce you to Mrs. Lindow and her daughter Miss Ginnie Lindow.”
