From the corner of her eye, she studied him. James and his brother, Derek, were notorious troublemakers in the ton. It was unclear why society tolerated them, but no one ever questioned their presence there. In fact, everyone just accepted them.
Belle knew the brothers through their assistance with Jo’s charity projects.
“They look happy, do they not?”
Belle followed James’s gaze to where Evelyn and Jo were dancing, enjoying a quadrille with their husbands. She barely refrained from snorting, and a soft unladylike noise escaped her.
“Ah yes, I am plagued by doting couples and doe-eyed stares.”
That did not mean she desired her dearest friends to be any less happy than they clearly were, but by the saints, couldn’t they at least limit their affections to the privacy of their homes or bedchambers?
Belle ignored James’s stare, which was burning holes in the top of her head. How odd that she sensed the exact moment when he frowned, not by stealing a glance at his face, but by the subtle shift of his body. Impossible to miss, even from the corner of her eye.
“You do not agree with me?” he asked.
“On the contrary, I’m waiting in utter fear for the inevitable match-making attempts.”
A chuckle met her statement, but he still appeared unconvinced.
“You are the last of your trio to remain unattached. Dare I ask for how long?” he hinted.
She cocked her head to the side. “I’ve yet to meet a man who can catch me.”
That earned her a loud snort. “I cannot understand why any lady would desire to remain unmarried, but I suppose I can respect it.”
Belle lifted her shoulders in a small shrug. It mattered little what James Shawthought. At least to her.
The music ended and she waited patiently for her friends to make their way toward them, their husbands breaking away and cutting another path to Westfield, who was paused at the edge of the door opposite to where she stood.
As if sensing that someone watched him, his gaze shot up and locked with hers from across the room. Belle’s cheeks warmed on contact and she quickly angled her face away, though she snuck another peak his way again from the corner of her eye. His gaze had settled on James, the lines on his forehead the only indication of his narrowed regard.
Belle shifted closer to James. Because it had to be done. It must never become known that one look from Westfield possessed the power to reduce her insides to rubble. To her relief, Evelyn and Jo appeared before her, effectively cutting Westfield from her line of sight.
“You should be dancing, Belle!” Evelyn exclaimed in excitement before glancing up at James. “Mr. Shaw, what a pleasure to see you attend such a romantic gathering.”
“With so manyunattachedyoung misses,” Jo put in with a wink.
Belle groaned.
“I am merely here to seek out your treasured company, Lady Jo.”
Her friend harrumphed. “You are such a scoundrel, James, and lucky my husband tolerates you.”
“I play to my strengths, Lady Jo, and St. Aldwyn is lucky to still have his ass attached to his—”
“Let us not get carried away,” Evelyn interrupted with a meaningful look their way.
“No, let’s,” Jo disagreed.
“You wound me, my lady,” James said with a smirk. “Alas, I am merely the messenger. My brother has called for a meeting to discuss an impending project.”
Apprehension returned to the in the pit of Belle’s stomach, but she remained silent, watching her friends with growing dread.
“Why not inform my husband of this meeting? You know how he overreacts,” Jo murmured, the sparkle in her eyes brightening.
James shrugged, his eyes flicking in the direction of the men. “I should have, but chose not to.”
“Oh, James, how terrible you are!” Evelyn admonished.
