A laugh escaped from Almeria’s lips, her face warming.
“Good gracious, what a fool I have been. I have been confused and mystified as to why my heart pounds so ridiculously when he is nearby. I have been all of a flutter, become overly distracted and, all in all, have struggled to comprehend myself. It is as though, in his absence these last few years, I have found my heart changing. Yes, he is a dear friend, but what if he has become more than that to me?”
Grinning, Miss Madeley’s eyes danced.
“What if, my dear friend, you have done the very worst of things and fallen in love with him? Would that not explain to you why you find yourself so earnestlyagainstintroducing him to me, why you dislike the idea of one of your friends becoming betrothed to him?”
Her breath spiraled in her chest, her eyes widening as she stared back at Miss Madeley. Surely it could not be? Yes, she cared for him but… was she in love with him? Closing her eyes, she waved one hand in her friend’s direction.
“It is not that I was disinclined towards any of you, but only that I…. that I…” Coming to a stuttering stop, she groaned and put both hands to her face. “I did not say a word about my disinclination to anyone. How did you know of it?”
Her friend trilled a laugh.
“Almeria, we have been friends for some years. I am very well able to tell when you are averse to something. You have a slight tilt of your lips that pushes them to a slant and, while you then go on to force a smile, it does not light your eyes. Your expression is always that way whenever you are not particularly enamored of an idea. I saw it when Lady Yardley mentioned introducing Lord Coppinger to your friends who still sought a husband. It was as though you did not want any of us to come close to him.”
“That is because it is precisely what I was feeling.” Shaking her head to herself, Almeria let out a broken laugh. “It is ridiculous, is it not? I could not understand why I was feeling such a thing, but now I see it. Now I realize that it is simply because I do not want Lord Coppinger to be courting any other young lady… but me.”
Her voice softened as she finished the sentence, the revelation so utterly astonishing that it took Almeria some moments to compose herself. It was as if she were walking into a place of bright sunshine but the light was so very vivid, it was overwhelming. She had never considered this before. Yes, they were the very best of friends, but that did not mean that her consideration of him could not change. It explained everything, explained why she had been so averse to even her friends becoming acquainted with him, for fear that one of them might then end up becoming betrothed to him.
She closed her eyes and shook her head, her lips curving gently.
“Do you know that I had an imagining where I saw you standing up in church with Lord Coppinger?” Opening her eyes, she smiled at Miss Madeley’s obvious surprise. “You cannot imagine how distressed I was at it, and then how distressed I was over my strange reaction! But then things became all the more confusing as regards Lord Penforth, and I suppose that I have put such thoughts to the back of my mind.”
“No doubt helped by the fact that none of us have been courted by your Lord Coppinger,” Miss Madeley quipped, with a chuckle. “Do you recall how furiously you responded to him when he mentioned Miss Tennant? I do not think I have ever seen your eyes flash with such fury!”
Almeria closed her eyes, smiling.
“Oh, pray do not embarrass me! I am already mortified to realize how little I know myself.”
“Pray do not be so.” Miss Madeley squeezed her hand but looked away, speaking quietly now. “I think love often disguises itself within us. Thus far I have seen three of my friends fall in love, and two of them are now married. I fully expect that you should be the third, of course, but all the same, I have recognized now that love does not come upon everyone in the same way. For some, it appears as a surprise, for others, it takes time to build, and for some….” Her gaze went back to Almeria, her smile, gentle. “For some, it has always been there, lying hidden and undiscovered. But now it has been unearthed, I am certain that you will think it the greatest treasure you have ever possessed.”
Chapter Fifteen
“You are aware that Lady Almeria intends to be with us?”
Lord Trevelyan shot Marcus a frown.
“I do not think that wise. I know that she asked to be so, but I did not think that we had agreed upon her presence here.”
Marcus grinned.
“Regardless, she will be here within the next few minutes.” Seeing his friend shake his head, he shrugged. “I am sure that you can understand that she is deeply engaged in this matter, particularly as regards Lord Penforth, so I did not want to refuse her. Lady Yardley will be present also, although I think that is mostly for propriety.”
Lord Trevelyan’s frown lingered.
“I suppose she wants to hear exactly what Lord Penforth said to Lord Wilson.” He sighed and shook his head. “Though I pray that she will not speak too openly, for it might discourage Lord Wilson from speaking honestly with us if she were to ask too many questions. From what I know of Lady Almeria, she is quite determined.”
“She can be,” Marcus smiled to himself, “but that is one of her finest qualities. She has known from the very beginning what it was that she sought in her marriage. She wanted a gentleman who would love her, and I am very glad to know that Lord Penforth is not such a gentleman.”
“But you are.” Lord Trevelyan chuckled, his frown gone. “Youaregoing to tell her very soon about the bouquets, I assume?”
Marcus nodded and was about to say more, only for the door to open and the butler to step inside. He was followed thereafter by Lady Yardley and Lady Almeria – and also by Lord Wilson.
“We arrived together.” Lady Yardley offered a brief smile to Lord Wilson who returned it, although Marcus noticed the flash of confusion in his eyes. “I assured Lord Wilson that we were meant to be present with you.”
“I did not think we would be taking tea together.”
Lord Wilson was a slightly older man with shoulders which rounded a little, a wobble about his jaw, and greying hair which was already slightly receding. Marcus did not recognize him, but from the look on Lord Trevelyan’s face, it seemed that he did.
