Adam blinked.
“I do not understand.”
“What is there to understand?” Lady Margaret laughed and ran one finger from his shoulder all the way down to his heart. “Surely you must see that I have no desire to attach myself to anyonegentleman. I thought I made that clear from the beginning of our acquaintance.”
“No, you did not.” Adam blinked rapidly, trying to take in this new situation. “I came here professing my love for you. I had every intention of…” His words trailed off as she fluttered one hand at him before going to sit down, leaving him standing by the fireplace. “Did you not realize thatthisis why your mother has departed? She is aware of my intentions.”
To his utter dismay, Lady Margaret, the young lady to whom he had given his affections for so long, simply laughed again and shook her head.
“You cannot be so foolish as to think that I would possibly be in love with you.” A teasing smile crossed her lips. “I do not give my heart to anyone, for that is foolishness. No, I shall marry a gentleman who has the very best of wealth and fortune and who holds the highest title. Let us see which gentleman can snare me!” Her eyes glittered, and Adam shrank back. “I only want the very best, and I am afraid that, at this point, you arenotthe very best gentleman of my acquaintance. I may, in time, decide to return to you – so do not fear that this is the end of our acquaintance.”
The carelessness with which she spoke had Adam’s heart burning with agony. This was not the young lady he thought himself in love with, was it? One who took his affections and laughed at them? Yes, it had only been three weeks since their first acquaintance but, since then, they had spent a good deal of time together. They had walked together, conversed together, taken tea together and they had already walked in the park on three separate occasions. He had found himself so enchanted that it had been difficult to look at anyone else. Then again, he had reasoned, why should he think about any other? If he had Lady Margaret, then he wanted no other.
Now, however, it seemed as though his consideration of the lady and his hopes for their future together had been nothing but foolishness. Lady Margaret did not love him, did not even care for him, and thus, he now knew himself to be a fool.
“As I have said,” Lady Margaret murmured, sniffing and turning her head away in a somewhat dismissive manner. “If you are a gentleman willing to wait for me then I might choose to return to you. In truth, it rests upon whether or not I can garner the sole attentions of oneparticulargentleman – the Marquess of Hadenshire?” She laughed again and Adam shuddered at the sound. “I know, you will tell me that you arealsoa Marquess and, whilst that is true, I believe that the Marquess of Hadenshire has a good deal more wealthandproperty than you, although your fortune is more than suitable also, of course.” Adam felt as if her words were beginning to press down upon him, pushing him lower and lower into the floor as they stole his hopes from him. “If it is that Lord Hadenshire can be persuaded to consider me, then Iamafraid that our acquaintance would have to come to an end in its entirety.”
Adam blinked, attempting to piece together everything that Lady Margaret was telling him. It was not at all what he had expected from her. It was astonishing, overwhelming, and deeply distressing, sending a pain through him that he had never anticipated for even a moment. How could she be so dismissive, so cruel? The lady he had doted upon, the lady he had dreamt of taking as his wife, had decided to pull his heart from his chest and stamp upon it with her delicate feet until there was no hope for its recovery.
“I do hope that I have not injured you in any way.” With a small sigh, a brief smile, and another sigh, Lady Margaret rose from her seat and gestured to the door, stating clearly – without words - that their meeting was at an end. Her voice was measured and steely as she said, “It certainly cannot be any great affection, Lord Seaton, for it is only three weeks since our first acquaintance, and I am certain thatanysort of affection takes a good deal longer to evenbeginto bloom. Besides,” she finished, with another wave of her hand, “I am not at all inclined towards affection. I think only of practicality and my requirements. And I require the very best of gentlemen – and I hope that Lord Hadenshire will prove himself to be so.”
And thus, with those words chasing him, Adam was forced to take his leave, with the sound of her voice ringing in his ears.
Just like that, he was dismissed from her presence, and pushed away from her company. Their meeting was at an end, his discussion with her concluded. There was nothing else for him to say, nothing else which she wouldpermithim to say, for even his protests that he loved her desperately and could not bear to be separated from her had brought no change. Nothing had been offered to him in response. She could only laugh and wave one hand at him, dismissing such grand feelings as being nothing more than a jest. She claimed that his feelings were not particularly strong and that she had not given him an impression of affection, while he felt very certain that shehaddone so. Why else would she have been eager for his company? Why had she accepted everything he had offered her without question? It made very little sense.
Striding from the house, he dismissed his carriage with a wave of his hand, stating aloud that he intended to walk. The coachman nodded and pulled away without another word, leaving Adam to stride forward alone. He could not abide the idea of sitting silently in his carriage with Lady Margaret’s words haunting him. No, he was much too angry. He needed now to walk until his upset dissipated.
How could Lady Margaret treat him like this? His affection had been profound, his professions of love had been speaking the truth from his heart but, instead of responding in kind, she had rejected him with a laugh, as though his heart were not about to break by her dismissal. He waited for anger to lick across his skin and, though it came, something more came with it. Was it grief? Sadness? Mortification that he had been so easily deceived? Had his heart truly been so gullible?
Mayhap I was a little hasty.
Having only been to London for part of the previous Season, and none of the two Seasons before that, due to estate matters taking up all of his time, he had been delighted to fall in love so quickly. It had not originally been his intention to be gone from society for so long but, since taking on the title upon his father’s passing some years ago, he had been required to work through a great many wrongs and solve complex difficulties, for his father had not dealt well with the estate in his later years. With such things now concluded, and the estate running tolerably well, he had decided that what was next required was to find himself a wife. She would have to be a young lady of excellent character, genteel, from a suitable family, and someone who would accept the affections of his heart. Last Season, he had permitted himself some joviality and the like, but had also been considering every young lady he met. This Season, however, he had settled upon Lady Margaret and, due to her interest in his company, he had soon found himself deeply drawn to her. Now, however, it appeared that any indication of affection or even interest on her part had been words only, words which, no doubt, she shared with many a gentleman, given that she had not been spending time only inhiscompany.
I am a fool.
Rubbing one hand down over his face, Adam blew out a long breath in the hope that a modicum of those feelings would soon leave him but, to his frustration, they did not. Instead, the emotion lingered, her words spinning around his mind, her laughter biting into him so that his mortification and anger grew with every step he took. He had no doubt that Lady Margaret would tell others of his profession of love, for she was not a young lady inclined to keep such things to herself. This meant that, very soon, thetonwould know of his expressions of affection and, thereafter, of her subsequent rejection. No doubt there would be many who would laugh at him, would mock him both within his hearing and out of it, for it did not matter how much pain or embarrassment he felt, thetonwould be more than willing to add to it.
“Goodness! Do watch where you are walking, good sir!”
Adam stumbled back, stammering an apology, his thoughts shattering in every direction.
“I do apologize!”
“Gentlemen ought to be watching their steps, making sure to remove themselves from the path of others. The streets of London are not provided solely for yourself!”
“Yes, yes, of course. My humblest apologies.”
There was nothing else for him to say, for yes, hehadbeen at fault. He had not been watching where he was going, being lost in his thoughts and, being so distracted, had almost walked into a young lady and her mother, the latter of whom was speaking to him with such firmness that it was as if she were scolding an errant boy. Heat climbed into his face, and he dropped his gaze, somewhat disconcerted as the lady continued berating him.
“I expect gentlemen of society to behave in a manner which evidences their gentility,” she continued, throwing one hand about. “You might have trodden on my daughter’s toes or torn her dress, and then where would we be? You could have knocked her backward and she could have suffered an injury! We all walk upon the same street, sir, and gentlemen obstructing ladies, such as ourselves, in such a fashion is neither respectable nor considerate.”
“Mama, you are a little too harsh.”
At this remark, Adam allowed himself to look at the young lady in question, having given her barely more than a glance thus far. She was not looking at him but rather had dropped her gaze to the ground between them as if she could not bring herself to look into his face.
“Ido not think so.” The lady shook off her daughter’s hand and her concern. “When we first set foot out of doors this afternoon, it was with the expectation that every other member of thetonwould behave just as they ought, rather than acting with such inconsideration.”
“Yes, of course.” Hoping to put an end to the tirade, Adam inclined his head and spoke with firmness. “You are quite correct in everything which you have said. I was not paying even the slightest bit of attention to my steps and could very well have walked into you both. For that, I can only apologize.” Lifting his head, he put out both hands. “Might I enquire if you are both quite well after our near collision?”
