He smiled and rose to his feet. “Of course, Lady Anna.”
She turned to watch him walk toward the refreshments, but her gaze wandered within seconds, drawn to a couple who were standing off to the side. A pairing she had not expected to see for a second time: Percival was deep in conversation with Caroline.
Is he… smiling at her?Anna had to rub her eyes to be sure.
There could be no mistaking it; hewassmiling at Caroline, and it was a true smile, too. No awkwardness or stiffness about it. He looked positively comfortable, and Anna could not take her eyes off the peculiar scene.
Even when Simon returned with her drink and tried to engage her in further conversation about the string quartet, she missed patches of what he said and had to ask him to repeat himself, for her attention kept drifting back to the whispering couple on the other side of the room. And each time she saw another smile from Percival, another laugh, another warm expression, it made her squirm in her seat and sent waves of uncomfortable heat through her veins.
“Are you well?” Simon asked, appearing more concerned than annoyed by her distracted demeanor.
Anna blinked. “Well? Yes, I think so.” She paused. “I wonder if it is rather too hot in here.”
“It is somewhat stifling. The glass, I assume.” Simon gestured upward. “We are, essentially, plants in a greenhouse.”
She fanned herself. “That must be it. I feel I… cannot breathe properly.”
She could not, for the life of her, understand the reaction. When she put her hand to her brow to check for a fever, she could not feel anything unusual, but she was not bold enough to ask Simon to check for her.
It must be the sun and the exertions of the day,she told herself. A sickness setting in.
“Would you care to take in some fresh air?” Simon put out his hand.
She was about to accept, when Beatrice moved to the front of the room and announced, “Ladies and gentlemen. Please, take your seats and the musicians will soon begin again.”
As Simon’s hand dropped and Anna assured herself that she could endure for a while longer, someone else sat down in the chair to her right. Expecting it to be Dickie, she turned to tell him that she might have to slip away if the heat became too much.
She barely got to, “If I leave midway—” when she realized it was not Dickie. It was Percival.
“If you leave midway—what?” he prompted.
“That is my brother’s chair.”
Percival nodded. “I know. I asked him to exchange seats.”
“Why would you do such a thing?” Her throat itched, as if it might be closing.
“Because I was sitting next to Lady Caroline, and Lady Caroline seemed more interested in your brother’s company,” he replied. “She may or may not have alluded to wanting to sit beside him, during the recess, so I did the decent thing and helped them along.”
Anna fanned herself more furiously, her skin so hot she wondered how no one nearby could sense it. “You…helpedLady Caroline?”
“What did you think I was doing?” He kept his gaze fixed forward, and for an impulsive second, Anna wanted to turn his face toward her, to have him look her in the eyes.
“Conversing. Testing the waters,” she replied weakly.
“For what purpose?” Percival shook his head, still refusing to meet her gaze. “I doubt I need to remind you, of all people, that Lady Caroline is in search of a love match. There is no reason for me to waste my time or hers.”
Frustration tightened every muscle, from Anna’s calves to the nape of her neck, making the simple act of sitting feel like a feat of endurance. “Well… you should be sitting beside another lady, then. Lady Joan would likely be glad of the company. Any eligible lady. Pick one and sit by her.”
“I might be mistaken,” he replied drily, “but it sounds as if you do not want me here, at your side.”
She huffed out a breath, lowering her voice to an even quieter whisper. “Youspoke of wasting time. That is what sitting beside me is to you, when this room is brimming with fine ladies who might make very pleasant brides.”
“I am enjoying a respite, like the musicians.”
“Theyhave time for a respite,” she replied. “You ought to be using the sympathy I gained for you by nearly knocking you out to your advantage. That bruise will not last forever.”
He smirked. “It feels like it will.” He peered around her. “Or is it that I am interruptingyourendeavors that you do not like?”
