“I do not know,” he said, letting out a slow breath as frustration began to build within him. “I have no answers. None. All I wish to do now is to find out the truth - and that means I must first go to Bath.”
“To find your brother,” Lord Elmsford put in, as Hugh nodded. “But what if he is not in Bath? What then?”
“I do not know!” Exclaiming furiously, Hugh threw up his hands and then shook his head, letting out a hiss of breath. “Forgive me, Elmsford, but I am lost and confused, and deeply,deeplyconcerned that what I fear will be proven true. At the same time, I find myself in love with Miss Simmons and want nothing more than to spend all of my time with her so that we might plan our wedding, but instead, I must resolve this! Believe me, it is not what I want to do, but what I must do.”
Much to his surprise, Lord Elmsford did not appear to be in the least bit upset by this exclamation. Instead, he only chuckled and, walking across the room, poured himself a drink and then a measure for Hugh also.
“I am delighted to hear it.” Handing him the glass, Lord Elmsford chinked his glass against Hugh’s and then took a sip. He laughed aloud and slapped Hugh on the shoulder. “Despite your struggles, I am very glad indeed to hear that you have found such a happy match with Miss Simmons. How fortunate you are!”
Hugh took a breath and then let it out slowly, some of the tension fading from him as he thought about what Lord Elmsford had said.
“Yes,” he agreed, after a few moments, “yes, I suppose I am very fortunate.”
“Certainly, you are! It is not every gentleman who finds themselves with such affection! I presume that the lady returns it, given how happily she looks at you?” A slight flush creptup Hugh’s neck as he nodded, though his friend only grinned. “Capital. Then you shall surely be very happy indeed, no matter what happens as regards your brother and his wife,” Lord Elmsford declared, making Hugh’s smile grow. “Is that not so?”
“It is,” Hugh replied, his shoulders loosening and the remaining tension leaving him as he thought about the kiss he had shared with Miss Simmons, only an hour ago. “And that is what I shall think on, regardless of what I discover: the happiness which I have – and shall have – with the wonderful Miss Simmons.”
Chapter Fourteen
Rachael looked around the ballroom, her fingers twisting together as she sought out any sign of Lord Blackmore’s presence. He had not yet left for Bath, though his note to her this afternoon said that he had every intention of making his way there by the end of the week, and thus he expected to be at the ball this evening.
“Standing there worrying will do nothing.” Lady Frederica put one hand to her arm, and Rachael started, having quite forgotten that Lady Frederica was there. “He will come.”
“I know. It is only that I fear what will be said.” Rachael closed her eyes and tried to push her worries away, aware of what swept through her. “There is a great deal of gossip at present, over his current standing, and whether or not he trulyisthe Earl of Blackmore… and I dread hearing yet more whispers.”
“And yet, they will come,” Miss Fairley murmured, sympathetically. “You will not be free of this yet - not until something is said – or done – that will either blow away all of the gossip and reveal it to be the chaff that it is, or something else is put in its place. While I hope it will be the first, I fear it will be the latter. However, that does not mean that you cannot continue to move through society, as we have all been trying to do. It issimply a matter of lifting one’s chin a little higher and proving to theton,as we have been attempting, that we will not be set back by their loose tongues and idle gossip.”
Rachael nodded, though her heart continued to plague her with ongoing concerns.
“Look.”
Rachael turned her head, just in time to see none other than Lady Alderton, accompanied by the lady she had seen with her when she had overheard their conversation about Lord Blackmore.
“Lord Blackmore must be informed that she is here. He still has not said anything to me, about what he knows of the lady or how she is in any way connected to him, but there was a deep worry in his eyes when I spoke her name.”
As if the lady had overheard Rachael talking, she looked directly at her, and though Rachael swiftly tugged her gaze away, a white-hot heat ran straight through her, and she flushed.
“It may be nothing,” Lady Frederica murmured, though she coughed quietly thereafter and nudged Rachael lightly. “Though it looks to me as though Lady Alderton is coming to speak with you.”
The heat in her frame curled into her stomach, leaving Rachael feeling almost nauseated as she glanced again in Lady Alderton’s direction, once more catching her gaze and then looking away.
“Why should she want to speak with me?”
It was a question that no one could answer, and within a moment, Lady Alderton had come to stand directly in front of Rachael, a challenge in her brown eyes.
“I hear that you are betrothed to Lord Blackmore.”
Rachael blinked, having not expected this to be the first thing that the lady said to her.
“I beg your pardon?”
“You heard me, I am sure.” Lady Alderton narrowed her eyes a fraction. “I said, you are betrothed to Lord Blackmore.”
Rachael opened her mouth to confirm this to be true, only to see Miss Fairley standing just behind Lady Alderton, her expression one of frustration. Catching her friend’s eye, Rachael saw how Miss Fairley shook her head and, taking that as a warning chose to give an entirely different response.
“Forgive me, but we are not acquainted. I am not at all inclined to answer questions from those I do not know.”
Turning her head away, she shifted her whole body so that she was now at an angle, facing away from the lady, but she practically felt the instant anger radiating from Lady Alderton.
