“Next in line?”
“Yes.” Lord Dartford waved a hand as though to dismiss her words and her irritation, which Joy had attempted to make more than evident by the sweep of her eyebrow. “You have three elder sisters do you not?”
“Yes, I do.” Joy kept her eyebrows lifted. “All of whom are all now wed and settled.”
“And now you must do the same.” Lord Dartford chuckled, but Joy did not smile. The sound was not a pleasant one. “Unfortunately, none of your sisters were able to catch my eye and, alas, I do not think that you will be able to do so either.”
“Dartford!”
His mother’s gasp of horror was clear, but Joy merely smiled, her stomach twisting at the sheer arrogance which the gentleman had displayed.
“That is a little forward of you, Lord Dartford,” she remarked, speaking quite clearly, and ignoring the way that her mother set one hand to the small of her back in clear warning. “What is to say that I would have any interest inyourcompany?”
This response wiped the smile from Lord Dartford’s face. His dark eyes narrowed, and his jaw set but, much to Joy’s delight, his friend began to guffaw, slapping Lord Dartford on the shoulder.
“You have certainly been set in your place!” Lord Falconer laughed as Joy looked back into Lord Dartford’s angry expression without flinching. “And the lady is quite right, thatwas one of the most superior things I have heard you say this evening!”
“Only this evening?” Enjoying herself far too much, Joy tilted her head and let a smile dance across her features. “Again, Lord Dartford, I ask you what difference it would make to me to have a gentleman such as yourself interested in furthering their acquaintance with me? It is not as though I must simply accept every gentleman who comes to seek me out, is it? And I can assure you, I certainly would not accept you!”
Lord Falconer laughed again but Lord Dartford’s eyes narrowed all the more, his jaw tight and his frame stiff with clear anger and frustration.
“I do not think a young lady such as yourself should display such audacity, Miss Bosworth.”
“And if I want your opinion, Lord Dartford, then I will ask you for it,” Joy shot back, just as quickly. “Thus far, I do not recall doing so.”
“We must excuse ourselves.”
The hand that had been on Joy’s back now turned into a pressing force that propelled her away from Lord Dartford, Lord Falconer, and Lady Dartford – the latter of whom was standing, staring at Joy with wide eyes, her face a little pale.
“Do excuse us.”
Lady Halifax inclined her head and then took Joy’s hand, grasping it tightly rather than with any gentleness whatsoever, dragging her away from the gentlemen she had only just introduced Joy to.
“Mama, you are hurting me!” Pulling her hand away, Joy scowled when her mother rounded on her. “Please, you must stop–”
“Do you know what you have done?”
The hissed words from her mother had Joy stopping short, a little surprised at her mother’s vehemence.
“I have done nothing other than speak my mind and set Lord Dartford – someone who purports to be a gentleman – back into his place. I do not know what makes him think that I would haveanyinterest in–”
“News of this will spread through London!” Lady Halifax blinked furiously, and it was only then that Joy saw the tears in her mother’s eyes. “This is your very first ball on the eve of your come out, and you decide to speak with such force and impudence to the Earl of Dartford?”
A writhing began to roll itself around Joy’s stomach.
“I do not know what you mean. I did nothing wrong.”
“It is not about wrong or right,” came the reply, as Lady Halifax whispered with force towards Joy. “It is about wisdom. You did not speak with any wisdom this evening, and now news of what you did will spread throughout society. Lady Dartford will see to that.”
Joy lifted her shoulders and then let them fall.
“I could not permit Lord Dartford to speak to me in such a way. I am worthy of respect, am I not?”
“You could have ignored him!” Lady Halifax threw up her hands, no longer managing to maintain her composure, garnering the attention of one or two others nearby. “You did not have to say a single thing! A simple look – or a slight curl of the lip – would have sufficed. Instead, you did precisely what I told you not to do and now news of your audacity will spread through London. Lady Dartford is one of the most prolific gossips in all of London and given that you insulted her son, I fear for what she will say.”
Joy kept her chin lifted.
“Mama, Lady Dartford was shocked at her own son’s remarks to me.”
