He stopped talking, and Callum saw him run a hand through his hair. “I probably should not tell you this,” he said as his voice dropped to barely above a whisper.
“What is it, My Lord? Is it about Louise?” Catherine asked, a malicious smile already creeping on her face.
“It is nothing,” Felington replied, shaking his head, “I have already said too much.”
Callum was momentarily relieved that Felington would share information he should not.
“I promise you, My Lord,” Catherine said, “I would never tell anyone if you tell me about it.”
“I hope you do not as this concerns Emily and I just as much as it is about Lady Louise,” Felington said.
“You can confide in me, My Lord,” Catherine said, “you know I would never do anything that could harm my friend.” Felington sighed.
Do not do it!But Callum knew that Felington was not exactly the kindest person, and he would reveal a piece of information if he knew it would affect Louise.
“Callum is courting Louise because I told him to,” Felington said.
Catherine gasped, clasping a hand on her mouth. “I cannot believe it.”
“I feared that Louise would start a ruckus at my house party and I knew that the best way to stop this from happening was by providing a bachelor who would take up her time and make her forget about the fact that I jilted her,” Felington said.
Catherine smiled. “I could tell from the way Lord Langton looked at her that he was not as enamored by her as he pretended to be.”
“Lady Catherine, you have to make certain that no one hears about this. I only told you about it because I wanted you to know that Langton is, in fact, not courting anyone for now,” Felington warned.
Catherine shook her head. “Not a single soul would hear about this from me.”
Callum groaned inwardly as he watched the interaction. He was unsure who he considered more idiotic between Catherine, who believed that he would be interested in courting her, or the Earl, who somehow believed that Catherine, a young lady, would not leak the secret he had just told her the moment she had the chance to.
As Callum watched Catherine walk away, a spring to her step, he knew it was only a matter of time before she told everyone what she had just learned. Callum could not help but feel for Louise, who would be the butt of the joke if the information ever got it.
ChapterThirteen
Louise was in the gardens with her mother when the hunting party returned. She was quick to spot Callum, walking side by side with Felington. She had raised her hand, eager to wave at him, when she spotted Catherine just some feet behind them.
Louise slowly lowered her hand when she realized that Catherine had joined the hunting trip. Knowing that Callum was a notorious rake and seeing how Catherine had been throwing herself at him the past few days, Louise quickly concluded that Callum and Catherine had already been friendly with each other. Perhaps more friendly than she would like to admit. Louise yearned to confront Callum about it but remembered that what they had was only an arrangement. If anything, he was simply helping her out of her predicament, so he did not owe it to her to change his rakish ways.
“Louise, why don't we go get dressed for dinner?” her mother said.
Louise was happy as it meant she would no longer have to see Catherine hover around Callum as a butterfly does to a flower. “Of course, Mama,” Louise replied.
In her bedroom, Louise wore a blue dress that complimented the color of her eyes just fine. It fit snugly on her body, accentuating her curvy figure. Louise knew that she could not afford to abandon the pressing matter of getting a match to save her and her family from getting thrown out. And there was no better dress to catch the eyes of the eligible gentlemen than the blue dress. Soon enough, she and her mother made their way to dinner.
“Lady Louise, I have been looking to run into you,” Lord Pembroke said, his hand behind his back.
Louise turned in surprised and smiled. “Is that so, My Lord?”
“And I must say, Lady Louise, you look radiant tonight,” he said.
Louise blushed, “Thank you, My Lord. What is it that you wish to see me for?”
He stretched his hand toward her, a bouquet of flowers in hand. They were beautiful roses, and Louise could not help but smile genuinely. Bystanders did not hide the fact that they were staring at them, and Louise did not mind. In fact, the more witnesses she had to be courted publicly, the better it was for her. If there was something she had realized from her arrangement with Callum, it was the fact that gentlemen tended to find a woman attractive if a man of high prestige was courting her.
“These are pleasant, Lord Pembroke,” she responded as she collected the flowers from him.
“I knew you would love them, Lady Louise,” he replied.
It was at this moment that Callum walked into the parlor. Louise's eyes caught him immediately, and she watched as his eyes narrowed at the sight before him, and for a split second, Louise could almost swear that she saw his eyes harden. This reaction was quite strange as Louise thought that he would, in fact, be happy for her.
