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Matthew stood and bowed over Miss Sheldon’s quivering hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Sheldon.”
“Th—Thank you, my lord.”
“I would be truly honored if you joined me.” He had to keep from rolling his eyes back into his head. The girl couldn’t be more than eighteen and appeared scared even to let him bow over her hand. Perhaps he should set an age limit with Jennette. No women under twenty-one. He had no idea why she chose the youngest of the Sheldon women, unless Jennette assumed Amelia would be the easiest to manipulate.
Miss Sheldon sat in the seat next to him and pulled out her fan. Staring straight ahead, she made no attempt to draw him into conversation. Matthew’s attention skipped to Jennette. She’d taken a chair three rows in front of him but to the right. He could just make out her profile and delicate, long neck.
After a quick shake of his head to clear his errant thoughts, he tried to get Miss Sheldon to speak to him.
“Are you looking forward to the Season?” he asked gently.
Her eyes widened with either fear or surprise that he had the audacity to speak with her.
“Yes,” she said in such a soft voice that he had to strain to hear her. She glanced around the room as people turned to stare at them.
“Will this be your first Season?”
She shook her head. “No, my second.”
Well, at least he received a three-word answer instead of one. “Did you enjoy your last Season?”
“No.”
“No?” he queried.
“With four older sisters out, my mother would prefer I don’t draw too much attention to myself.”
And it appeared Amelia had done a fine job of that until tonight. By sitting next to him, she’d gained the attention of the entire room. Every few moments, someone looked back at her as if to make certain she was still alive. As people continued to watch, he noticed a gleam of pleasure enter her eyes.
“I see,” he finally said. Well, he didn’t really but he couldn’t say that to her. “Will you be performing tonight?”
“No, again too much attention with aging sisters,” she said.
Lady Sheldon stood and walked to the front of the room. She introduced her eldest daughter, Beatrice, to start the night off with a sonata. As Beatrice took her seat at the pianoforte, Matthew let his gaze settle on Jennette again.
He’d noticed her glancing back at them before the music started, but now her head faced the pianoforte. What was it about her? Was it the way a few hairs had escaped her pins only to fall against the soft skin of her neck? A neck so perfect his lips wanted to touch that sensitive place where her shoulder met her neck.
Dear God, he was insane!
He should not feel attracted to Jennette. This was madness. There had to be something he didn’t like about her.
Her shopping habits, he decided. The woman was known for her fashion sense and style. And he didn’t like it. She was most likely driving her brother into huge debt over clothing.
Although, the violet silk gown she wore tonight deserved applause. The color suited her perfectly. And then there was that curving neckline framed with a hint of fine lace, drawing attention to the gentle outline of her breasts.
Before he knew it, the sound of clapping alerted him to the fact that the eldest Miss Sheldon had completed her music for the evening. Lady Sheldon next introduced her two middle daughters, who would sing a selection of songs for them.
Matthew forced his concentration on the two young women. It was then that he realized they must be twins. He couldn’t tell the two apart. Both had light brown hair, dull hazel eyes, and freckles over the bridge of their noses. His gaze slid to the woman next to him. He now understood why Lady Sheldon insisted Amelia do nothing to call notice to herself. Amelia Sheldon was the only beautiful lady of the Sheldon family.
She was exactly what he’d told Jennette he was looking for in a woman: petite, blond, quite pretty, and from a fine family. With no sons to inherit, Lord Sheldon had been quite vocal about the small fortune he would give in dowry for the women.
So why didn’t he feel drawn to her? After her initial nervousness, he’d noticed that she relaxed when the music started. She’d even glanced over at him a few ti
mes with a shy smile.
He should court her. Put all his efforts into making her want to marry him. After all, he only had a few weeks before he either married or faced selling off his properties. Amelia Sheldon would do.
When the musicale finally finished with a violin solo by the fourth Miss Sheldon, he turned toward Amelia. “May I get you some lemonade?”
