“Leave her alone, Eve,” Celeste said, looking up from her book at last. “She’s had a hard enough time of it as it is.”
“Thank you, Celeste,” Leah said, smiling gratefully at her middle sister before turning back to Eve with narrowed eyes. “As for you, if this is the way you gossip after one simple musicale at our home, then it is clearly a very good thing that you are not out yet! I should hate to think the way you tease people and gossip about them if you were at a real ball and witnessed all the different comings and goings of the ton.”
Even shrugged. “And so what if I do gossip about people after a ball? Isn’t that what the ton does?”
“You’re probably going to be writing in one of those gossip sheets someday!” Leah said, shaking her head. “You’re incorrigible.”
“The lady doth protest too much, methinks…” Eve muttered, making Leah redden even more. She turned to Celeste.
“This is why I don’t fit into the ton,” she complained. “I don’t care for all this gossip.”
“Just ignore her,” Celeste said, casting an amused look at Eve. “She’s just jealous because she wishes she were out and had such a handsome Duke to dance with.”
Eve folded her arms. “Well of course I’m jealous! Who wouldn’t want to dance with the Duke of Nottington!”
“He’s not exactly marriage material,” Leah said.
“Who said anything about marriage?” Eve raised her eyebrows. “I said dance with.”
Leah couldn’t help but laugh. Her younger sister was certainly a character--although she did worry a little about her. Was she going to be too wild when it came her turn to debut on the ton. But she couldn’t think about that right now. She had too many other worries to deal with.
There was a knock at the breakfast room door, and the butler came in, an anxious look on his face. Leah’s stomach dropped at once.Is it Lord Dubois? Is heback?
But the butler wouldn’t be in here if he were back--he would have gone to Lucien, who would have called the Bow Street Runners.
“My Lady,” the butler said, bowing before Leah, “there are several gentlemen here to see you. As well as flowers.”
“Flowers?” Leah repeated. “What do you mean?”
“I mean that the entire city’s worth of flowers seem to have been delivered to our door just now.”
Leah, Celeste, and Eve all looked at each other; then, at the same time, they all leapt to their feet.
The sisters hurried out into the corridor, where, indeed, they were greeted by the sight of about a hundred bouquets. And what bouquets they were!
In every color, every variation of flowers, from simple ones that looked as if they couldn’t have cost very much, to elaborate arrangements that stretched a yard wide and had to have cost a fortune. Leah’s mouth fell fully open as she stared around the entrance hall.
“And these are all… for me?” She asked, turning to the butler with wide eyes.
“Yes, My Lady. And the gentlemen are waiting in the parlor. I told them that you would be a few minutes. All of them except His Grace, the Duke of Nottington. He said you would want to see him.”
“I--yes, of course.” The butler nodded behind her, and Leah turned to see Nottington walking toward her down the hall, grinning from ear to ear.
“Lady Leah,” he said, bowing to her and kissing her hand. He then turned and bowed to her sisters as well. “And Ladies Celeste and Eve! How lovely to see you both.”
“What are you doing here?” Leah breathed, not aggressively, just genuinely out of shock to see him--and all the flowers.
“Well, I was at the florist this morning, buying you flowers.”
“Me?” Leah asked stupidly. “Why?”
He tilted his head to one side and gave her a lopsided smile. “Because of what we discussed. The more men who pursue you, the more desirable it makes you. And people would be suspicious if I didn’t buy you flowers after dancing with you last night.”
Behind her, Leah heard Eve giggle, and she blushed.
“Anyway,” Nottington continued, “when I was at the florist, I was intrigued to discover that at least a dozen other gentlemen were there to buy you bouquets. Our plan, it seems, is working! So I thought I would accompany my own flowers and see just how many gentlemen plan to stop by today to court you. Then we can decide which is the best for you to pursue--who is the most likely to propose and quickly.”
Leah was speechless. There were so many questions brimming in her mind and she didn’t know where to start.Six gentlemen were buying me flowers? How did you manage to pull this off so quickly? Which do you think is most likely to propose?And, most startlingly,You’re going to stick around all day to help me pick the best one?
