“I see. Well then, I enjoy romances. Tales of adventure and all that. Gothics, when I can find a good one.”
Her answer appeared to surprise Lord Brightwater. “Truly? I did not take you for the fanciful kind.”
Yes, that had been by design, for Augusta purposefully spoke little of her enjoyment of books. Most in thetondid not care for the habit in a woman at all, and others did not care for the content that she preferred. It had always been best to keep it between herself and Ginny.
“I always enjoyed a story that could take me somewhere new,” she said, figuring that now that her preferences were out in the open, she might as well be honest about them. Maybe it would make Brightwater rethink whatever it was he was doing right now if he believed her to be flighty. “There are a great many ordeals I enjoy reading about rather than experiencing.”
Lord Brightwater looked at her with a curious expression as she spoke. As though he was assessing her, and she was passing muster.
Damn.
“Well, perhaps one day I shall have to read one of your favored tales of adventure.”
The conversation, Augusta decided, required a shift.
“Will you be in attendance at the musicale?”
“Yes. If there is dancing, can I expect your hand for the waltz again?”
“Of course.” She did not bother to say that she would keep it open for him; they both knew that her dance card did not need aid in remaining open. “Whatever pleases you.”
“Excellent,” Reginald said. Augusta flinched slightly, as she had forgotten that he was in the room with them. “And the Haversham ball - I can presume you’ll be in attendance, Brightwater?”
“Of course. It will be a great way to finish out the season in good company.”
Ah, yes. In a fortnight the season would be over, and then the cycling social calendar would end, and they would enter the season of peace. For all the discomfort that Lord Brightwater’s sudden attention had brought her, Augusta was relieved to remember that it would likely be short-lived. Once the parties ended and access to her was less convenient, surely Brightwater would give up the chase.
“Well,” she conceded. “I suppose a calm evening is a fine end to an uneventful season.”
“Uneventful? I wouldn’t be so certain, Miss Browning. A fortnight is a very long time.”
Chapter Six
Sebastian did not think that bravado was a particularly attractive trait. Despite this, he spent the day leading up to the musicale feeling, for all the world, like the cat who had eaten the canary.
There had been so few causes of joy in his life since his father’s passing. Indeed, nearly all the news had been bad. Some of it had even been devastating. He had carried it alone, ensuring that no word of it ever reached his mother or Georgiana.
But pursuing Augusta? Despite his tawdry reasons for doing it, Sebastian found himself thoroughly enjoying the chase.
His visit with her yesterday had been illuminating into her countenance and character, most important being the fact that she absolutely did not want him to be anywhere near her person. She could not have looked more desperately at Browning to put an end to the exchange in the drawing room.
Browning had not. Rather, he’d shared an approving look later as he’d accompanied Sebastian to the door.
“Perhaps I misjudged your compatibility with certain young ladies of theton,” his friend had said quietly. “If you were to come again, you might even get a smile out of her one day.”
A smile. Apparently that was what Sebastian was fighting for now.
To his mind, this had said several things about AugustaBrowning. Namely, that she was neither a title chaser nor a dim woman, for she had so quickly seen Sebastian’s intentions. There had come a moment yesterday wherein Sebastian had realized that Augusta was deeply resistant, and his determination had only grown stronger for it.
He did not need her love or admiration. Marriages in thetonoften had neither. He found himself wanting her as a willing bride, if not a loving one. But he was starting to suspect that without love, she would not be willing.
While he would have to offer for her soon in order to accomplish his timely goals, he’d decided that a few days of enjoying the hunt would not greatly set him back. Rather, it could be the key to securing his future happiness in marriage.
Now, shuffling on his coat, he couldn’t help but smile. Tonight, the tide would turn in his favor. Nothing put a woman more at ease than good music and wine.
*****
The music room of Lord and Lady Townsend was moderate in size, which made for close seating arrangements around the instruments. Sebastian took full advantage of this, seating himself in the same row as the Browning siblings as soon as he found their forms in the crowd. While Browning had smiled and clapped him on the back, his sister had demured and sat quietly, awaiting the start of the performance.
