Alesbury chuckled. “I shall be sure to hasten them along.”
A teacart was delivered to the parlor, and when all the ladies had a cup in hand, Courtney turned to Violet. “Violet, might you be willing to entertain us on the pianoforte this evening?”
“I would love to.”
“Emma, no hiding in the corner this evening,” Lavinia said to her middle daughter, who’d taken a seat in the corner of the parlor.
Emma opened her mouth to respond, but quickly closed it and moved closer to the group. Violet wondered how her dinner conversation with the duke had gone. She’d looked at her sister a few times during the meal, and it’d seemed she was having a lively discussion with him. She hoped Emma had enjoyed dinner as much as she had.
Fifteen minutes later, the gentlemen joined the ladies. Her mother had been sitting next to her on the sofa, but got up when the duke approached. “Your Grace, pray take my seat.”
“Lady Edgerton, I wouldn’t dream of it. Besides, I’ve been sitting all evening and could use a bit of exercise.” He turned his attention to Violet. “Miss Bainbridge, would you care to take a turn around the room?”
“She would be delighted,” Lavinia said before Violet had a chance to answer.
Seeing no other choice, Violet stood and slipped her hand in the crook of his elbow. As they walked the perimeter of the room, she took a deep breath to fortify herself before speaking her mind to the duke. “Your Grace, I’m most flattered by your attention of late.”
Richmond looked at her. “Miss Bainbridge, do I hear a ‘but’ coming?”
Violet chuckled. “Indeed, Your Grace. As I was saying, while being in your presence is most pleasant, I must tell you that my affections are engaged elsewhere.”
It was Richmond’s turn to chuckle. “Miss Bainbridge, you must not trouble yourself on my behalf. I would say Alesbury is a very lucky man.”
“You know it’s Lord Alesbury I was talking about?”
“Of course. Whenever you look at him, your eyes light up. One would have to be blind not to see he holds your affections.”
“I do hope you’re not offended, Your Grace. Any young lady would be honored to hold your interest.”
Richmond looked over at Emma. “Does that include your sister?”
ALESBURY STOOD BESIDE THEfireplace mantle and watched as Richmond escorted Violet around the room. When he saw her chuckle, his breath caught. Was she enjoying his friend’s attentions? Alesbury would have liked to be the one taking a turn with her. He looked over at her mother and saw the smile on her face—she was clearly pleased with Richmond’s attention to her daughter. When Violet rubbed his knee at dinner, he’d thought she was signaling her interest in him. Had he misinterpreted her actions?
The entire time that Richmond and Violet made their circuit of the room, Alesbury watched closely to see if there was any spark between them. What was he to do if Violet preferred the duke to him? The one thing he knew was that he wouldn’t give her up without a fight. She was the perfect woman for him—no other woman held a candle to her.
“Violet, would you play for us?” Courtney asked when Richmond returned her to her mother’s company.
“Of course,” Violet said and headed to the pianoforte.
It was just the opening Alesbury needed. “I’d be happy to turn the pages for you, Miss Bainbridge.”
“Thank you, my lord. I’d like that,” Violet said, giving him a dazzling smile.
That was all the encouragement he needed.
While Violet played, Emma watched with trepidation as Richmond approached and took a seat next to her.
“Do you play, Miss Emma?”
Emma shook her head. “Very badly, I’m afraid, Your Grace.”
“Well, that makes two of us,” he whispered in her ear.
It was so unexpected that Emma couldn’t help but giggle. “Is that so? I thought dukes were all-powerful and did everything well.”
Richmond rubbed his chin. “Perhaps my brother was one of those men, but I took every opportunity I could to escape outside. Seeing as how my life has taken such an unexpected turn, it probably would have served me better to pay more attention to my lessons.”
“You couldn’t have foreseen your family tragedy, Your Grace. There’s no point in regretting things you cannot change.”
