CHAPTER 7
He really did have the nicest smile. That was the one thing that stuck with her the most.
He did not smile as much as she would have liked, but when he did, his whole face lit up. Verity had been absolutely captivated by that smile of his. Whenever she thought about it, it made her lips curl up as well.
The Marquess of Eilensdale… who was he?
She had never met him before, never seen him at any of society events, which only intrigued her more. Why was he so closed off? Why did he not want to show off his handsome face more? Verity was sure that he would have plenty of ladies eager to dance with him. She knew that she would be happy to say yes, if he were ever to ask her…
Verity kept trying to paint the orchids that she had seen in Kew Gardens, but it was truly hard for her to focus when she could not stop thinking about her short talk with him. Something about that chat had truly captivated her, it was almost as if nothing else mattered.
The sound of the door opening pulled Verity from her thoughts. Her mother slipped in the room with a warm smile and settled on the sofa in front of her.
“How is the painting coming along, darling?” she asked softly.
“Oh, it’s…” Verity sighed as she set down her paint brush. “It’s coming along…”
“Right, and how are you?”
That was a much harder question for Verity to answer. “I am not too sure what to say…”
“You know that you can tell me anything,” her mother insisted. “Anything at all.”
Verity bit down on her bottom lip.
She wasn’t too sure if she should be open and honest. But she knew that if she wasn’t, then her brother would get his own way and she could not stand that.
“Mother, I am concerned about Henry,” she finally announced. “And his insistence on a match with Lord Aldford. I don’t feel like it’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” her mother asked, evidently concerned. She had to understand since she had expressed her own concerns, even before the dinner.
“Because I don’t like his character, Mother.” Guilt flooded Verity as she said this, but she truly did need to be understood. “I think he is arrogant and bad mannered.” She swallowed hard. “Plus, his daughters have shown me nothing but distain. I can tell that Amelia and Cordelia don’t wish for me to be a member of their family.”
“I am sure that they will come to like you given time.”
“But I don’t think that I will learn to like them,” Verity confessed. “Any of them, but it’s not something that I can discuss with Henry. He will not listen to me.”
Elizabeth sighed heavily. “I will talk to your brother. See what I can sort out with him. I can not promise anything, but I will try my hardest to get him to reconsider the match. I do understand your concerns and will convey them as best I can.”
“Do you think that he will listen to you?”
“I will ensure he does, Verity. For your happiness is of utmost importance. If you have reservations, then I will make sure that he hears and understands them. You should not feel pressured to accept a proposal solely for the sake of securing your future.”
Before Verity could respond, a dark cloud entered the room.
It was as if she could sense her brother before she actually saw him.
Her blood ran ice cold when she spotted the flames of intense rage dancing in his eyes.
It was immediately obvious that he had heard far more than Verity wanted him to.
“Verity, sometimes I believe that you forget yourself,” he snapped angrily as he edged closer to her. “I am sure that you have forgotten the fact that you are a spinster these days, and a jilted one at that. You have limited options available to you.” He narrowed his gaze. “You should be grateful for Lord Aldford’s interest. I am sure that he could find someone younger, with less scandal following them if he wanted. But he has chosen you.”
A surge of frustration and despair rocketed through Verity. “But I have not chosen him, nor would I. You are making this match a priority over my own happiness, which is not fair. Henry, you are not even giving me a say in what is next for me.”
Henry scoffed, clearly unmoved. “You had your chance to find a love match when you were a debutante. It’s not my fault that things did not work out.”
“It’s not my fault either.”
