“Aha, but I believe my reasons would be quite different from your own. It is solely because I boast very few acquaintances and would be ashamed to walk around a drawing room such as this without anyone to speak with.”
Her eyes darted to his once more.
“We could not have that.” Benjamin smiled back at her. “Be assured, Miss Carshaw, that, if we are ever in a room together and you are seeking someone to converse with, I would be more than happy to do so.”
“I shall hold you to that.” Miss Carshaw beamed at him, and Benjamin’s heart warmed a little. “I must say that you are a very considerate gentleman, Lord Wiltsham, given that I was found in your townhouse without any real explanation as to why I was there.”
A twist of guilt knotted his heart.
“I will not hold anything against you, Miss Carshaw. However, I shall say that in my eagerness to remove you from the house, I did not care to hear your explanations, lest in the time it took, someone had come upon us. But I see no need to put any distance between us here, and nothing untoward has come from the situation, has it?”
“Again, that is most considerate.” Her arm tightened on his for a moment as she smiled and lifted both shoulders. “I am glad to have your acquaintance, Lord Wiltsham. Miss Lawrence told me that she thinks that you are the very best of gentlemen, aside from Lord Foster, of course, and I believe that her consideration of you is quite correct.”
Benjamin’s breath caught, and he felt a little surprised at her compliments, which sent a gentle wave of warmth up into his chest.
“That is very gracious of Miss Lawrence.” Struggling to think of what else to say, he cleared his throat quite rapidly. “Alas, I fear that I must take my leave of you, but I can see that Miss Lawrence herself has arrived. I should not wish to leave you without someone to converse with.”
Miss Carshaw took a step back from him, her hand sliding from his arm but her smile remaining.
“I thank you, Lord Wiltsham. You are very kind indeed. I shall make my way to Miss Lawrence directly, and I hope that you enjoy the rest of the evening.”
“I am certain I shall.”
Realizing that all thought about the other gentlemen on Lord Foster’s list had left his mind, Benjamin gathered himself for a moment, then turned away from Miss Carshaw. Striding across the room, he quickly made himself known to a group of gentlemen, trying to insert himself into the conversation, even as lingering thoughts of Miss Carshaw continued to run around in his mind. She had distracted him, certainly, but he had found himself saying things that he had never expected. Miss Carshaw was quite correct in her suggestion that it would be expected for a gentleman to put great distance between himself and a young lady who had behaved as she had done. Why then, was he almost eager to be in her company? Why had he offered to take a turn about the room with her?
“For having just been some time in the company of a beautiful young lady, you do appear to be frowning, Lord Wiltsham.”
Benjamin allowed himself a slightly wry smile, as one of the gentlemen in the group addressed him.
“I confess that I am deep in thought,” he admitted, as one of his acquaintances chuckled.
“No doubt you are wondering whether or not you ought to snare that particular young lady,” another one said. “She is very pretty indeed, but her brother is something of a…”
The man’s voice trailed off, and a glance ran around the small group of gentlemen, leaving Benjamin feeling as though he were entirely in the dark as to what they had been intending to say.
“I am afraid I have not become acquainted with her brother. If there is something about him that I should know, then pray, inform me of it at once!”
Another acquaintance cleared his throat.
“If you intend to court Miss Carshaw, then yes,” came the reply. “As much as I dislike speaking so about other gentlemen, he is the sort of fellow one must be a little wary around.”
“And why should that be?”
For what was the second time, an uneasy glance moved from one gentleman to the next, as though they all knew some great secret that Benjamin did not. He could well understand that they did not wish to speak badly of the gentleman, but if there was something of concern, then that was something that Benjamin himself wished to know.
But why should I be so concerned, if I do not care anything for the lady and have no intentions as regards our acquaintance?
“Permit yourself caution. That is all we shall say,” another said, prompting nods from many. “The man keeps matters close to his chest and for good reason. There’s many an ill thought in his head, I am sure. His character has worsened ever since he has taken on the title.”
“I am grateful to you for your consideration in warning me,” Benjamin stated as the other gentlemen in the group nodded sagely. He waited to see if anyone wanted to say anything further or anything more specific, but they did not. “Miss Carshaw is a very lovely young lady. It is a pity that her brother has put so many off furthering their acquaintance with her.”
“Ishall not be one who is so put off.”
Speaking with more fervor than he had intended, Benjamin swiftly looked away, suddenly unable to meet the eye of any of the other gentlemen present. He did not know where such determination had come from, but yet it grew within him steadily. That was what Miss Carshaw had said to him on the day he had discovered her, he recalled. She had been afraid of her brother and his schemes.
Her brother intended her to marrya gentleman of his choosing,he remembered suddenly… and he had brushed it off as though it were a small affair, telling both himself and her that any young lady should be glad to be offered the security of marriage. Now, however, given what his acquaintances had said of her brother, genuine concern rose in his heart for the lady. What sort of husband would this fellow choose for his sister? No doubt he would choose someone of similar character to himself, and if his character was not a good one, then what hope was there for Miss Carshaw to have a happy and contented marriage?
Realizing that he did not even know the title of her brother as yet, Benjamin tried to interrupt the conversation.
