Louise scoffed, “If I ever need to have my name soiled and be further humiliated by theton, I will certainly remember your offer.” Louise turned the doorknob and walked out of the dark room, hoping that no one would see her. Fortunately, there was no one in the corridor. She had similar luck because until she got to her appointed room, she did not encounter anyone besides the footmen and maids.
Slipping into her room, she was surprised to not have been accosted by her mother and her aunt who would be hellbent on talking to her about what she had just experienced.They must be asleep in the adjoining rooms.She had just settled in bed when the door to her room opened and her mother burst in.
“Louise,” she said, striding toward Louise, “I have been looking everywhere for you. Are you …”
“Mama, I do not wish to talk tonight,” Louise said.
“But, Louise! You…”
“Mama, please.”
“Fine,” her mother said, walking away. “We speak of this in the morning.”
Louise was grateful that she did not have to talk about the betrayal she suffered, at least for the night. For now, she was happy to go to bed, putting the humiliation at the farthest part of her mind and only thinking about the toe-curling kiss she had just had.
However, the more she tried to sleep, the more sleep eluded her. And with the lack of sleep, came the memory of the events of the evening. Louise closed her eyes in a bid to stop the intrusive memory, but they did not stop crashing down on her. It was when she seemed solaced in the memory of the kiss she shared with Callum that she began to realize the foolishness of it all.Did I really just kiss the most notorious rake in all of the ton?
Of course, it felt good at the moment, but now, Louise was not so sure it was a good idea anymore. She had descended from being the supposed fiancée of an Earl to one of the conquests of a rakish Marquess.
She closed her eyes in shame when she imagined what Callum would be telling his peers at the moment. She could imagine him telling them how he had found her in the middle of a dark room and she had surrendered herself for him to kiss.
She could imagine the Earl being gobsmacked at her immoral acts. At the moment when she had decided to kiss Callum just to spite the Earl, she had thought it was a good idea. But now that she thought more about it, she realized that the Earl would only see her as an easy woman now, further cementing his resolve that he had made a good decision by replacing her with her friend.
I do not care what the Earl thinks.Louise thought as she tried unsuccessfully to comfort herself that the Earl’s opinion did not matter. With a pang, Louise realized that even if she did not care about the Earl’s opinion, other bachelors of thetondid care.If Callum tells Lord Felington that he kissed me and Lord Felington tells the other bachelors, I would be ruined and no man would want to ask for my hand in marriage.Louise groaned in frustration. She could not help but be disappointed in herself. How could she have possibly allowed herself to kiss him?
Her mind began to race through several scenarios of her family being scandalized due to her foolish acts. How could she possibly face her family now when, instead of securing a husband and saving them from being thrown out of their home, she had simply decided to drag their family name in the mud?
ChapterFour
Callum picked up the glass of sherry that his friend, Felington, had just poured him. He took a swig and heaved a sigh. He loved good wine. His mind went back to the turn of events of his evening. He remembered the beautiful woman he had encountered and how the kiss they shared excited him like no other.
He had bedded a lot of women over the years but none of them excited him as she had. He was not sure if it was because she was the forbidden fruit or because she was not particularly as impressed with him but he knew that there was something special about her and her enamoring gaze. As he held her in his arms and kissed her passionately, he wanted nothing more than to pleasure her, to ruin her, to see to it that the primal side of her came out and she let loose. Just the thought of her was doing things to his body.
Callum shook his head in an attempt to drive the thought away. He should not be harboring such thoughts toward a woman that his best friend was involved with.
“What do you think, Langton?” Felington asked. He looked up at his friend who was currently pacing in his study and he realized that his mouth was moving.
Callum had been too consumed by the thoughts of Lady Louise to even hear what his friend had been saying. “I am sorry. I did not hear you,” he said.
Felington huffed in frustration before he stared at Callum in concern. “You have been pensive ever since you returned, my friend. Is anything the matter?” he asked.
Callum knew he could not possibly tell his friend that his thoughts were pervaded with carnal thoughts about a woman that Felington was involved with, especially since they had both had an agreement to never touch each other’s women. Even the ones they had not yet touched. So, instead of telling his friend what was really bothering him, he simply shrugged and lied, “It is nothing. I suppose I am just tired.”
Felington shrugged. “Langton, do you think what I did was wrong?” Felington suddenly asked.
“What do you mean?” Callum asked.
“Announcing my engagement to another woman when I had already had an agreement with Lady Louise,” he said.
Callum took a moment before he answered the question. Felington had done a horrible thing and he knew it, but Callum knew his friend was asking him so that Callum could make him feel better about himself. While he was vexed at his friend for his action, he decided to approach the matter in a sensitive manner for the first time in his life.
“I was not present at the ballroom to witness it but I heard of what happened, especially about the humiliation that Lady Louise suffered because of what you did. I think–”
“Were you not in the ballroom? I saw you eyeing that singer earlier in the evening. Tell me all about what you…” Felington’s eyes glinted with interest, “on second thought, I would rather not hear the lurid details.”
Callum laughed but his anger could not dissipate completely.
“I did not want things to work out the way they did,” Felington said, his face more serious. Callum could not believe that Felington was trying to make it seem like he was not the one who had done such a horrible thing to an innocent lady like Louise
