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Even Irene was able to shed some of her coldness towards Hugh, the shyness she'd retained while she was an unmarried miss, and engaged in a lively debate about horseflesh with him and some of his compatriots at one end of the table. Needless to say, his friends were more than impressed with her knowledge of their beloved horses and more than one of them silently cursed Hugh for finding her first. Then again, Irene had never been so bold as to express such unladylike opinions on such an unladylike subject before her honeymoon with Hugh.
Unfortunately for her, Alex was an entire table length away, because Eleanor had kept Grace's warnings in mind. Of course if Irene had known what he was thinking she would not have been encouraged. Seeing how vibrant and almost outspoken his childhood friend was behaving, Alex was entirely reassured that Hugh was a good match for her. It was obvious that she’d gained in confidence already.
For himself, Hugh was relieved to be able to pick up some of the easy banter that he and Irene had originally had. He hoped that it was a sign of things to come. She was obviously having trouble keeping up her cold shoulder in a group setting, especially on a topic that she was well versed in and that they had discussed many times together in the past weeks when they were on the estates.
After the dinner Edwin took Eleanor up to their bedroom and showed her just how very much he appreciated having a dinner tailored to him rather than against him.
******
Lady Cowper’s ball was the definition of a crush. Dressed in a deep green organza to highlight her hair and creamy skin, Irene fanned herself with a matching green and gold fan, knowing that her fair skin was probably growing increasingly red and blotchy due to the heat. Her mother had warned her of the effect often enough that she could actually feel when it was beginning to happen, her skin overheating and reacting.
Eleanor and she were traversing the crowd together, fortunately for Irene since her sister-in-law was much better acquainted with the members of the haut ton than Irene was. She was able to keep Irene on track and prevent her from embarrassing herself. Now that she was Hugh's wife, suddenly quite a few more people wanted to speak with her, many of whom she'd only met once and barely remembered. When she had been a plain, nearly destitute Baron's daughter they hadn't had any interest in her.
The men had disappeared to the card room almost an hour after they had arrived. Hugh had asked Irene if she wanted him to stay with her, but she'd practically pushed him in the direction of the room. It was too difficult to maintain her mien of ill-will towards him. The man acted as if he'd decided he'd done nothing wrong! And he was far too adept at the little touches and caresses that roused her body, making it impossible for her to be entirely icy with him once they'd retired for the night. Passion awakened and claimed her all too easily under her husband's influence.
Spotting Alex leaving the card room, Irene's heart leapt. At Eleanor's dinner she'd never had the chance to speak with him alone, only a few words when he'd arrived and left and with Hugh by her side the entire time. It had been impossible to discover whether or not Alex had a new lady love since she'd been on her honeymoon.
Strangely the thought didn't bother her as much as it had in the past. She dismissed the lack of jealousy as being completely reasonable, considering that she had been engaging in the marital act with her husband during that time. Since she had been in another man's bed it would have been completely illogical for her to be jealous that Alex had someone in his.
"I'm feeling a need for some fresh air, I'm going to ask Lord Brooke to take me out," she murmured in Eleanor's ear.
As she eagerly stepped away, heading for the tall and rather forbidding figure, she missed the sharp look her sister-in-law gave her retreating back.
The crowd around Alex swirled, as if the people near him were trying to retreat from his hooded gaze but didn't have the room to actually do so. A few women had edged closer, but it was a rare person who would approach Lord Brooke in a social setting unless he met their eyes and gave a clear indication of whether or not he'd welcome their conversation. Irene was one of those rare people of course.
She was so excited to be able to speak with him that she didn't even notice the whispers that sprang up as soon as Alex smiled at her. One woman fanned herself as if feeling faint. There were very few among the ton who had ever seen Lord Brooke smile and the effect was dazzling. Of course, the women who noticed were immediately shooting dagger looks at Irene, but she didn't see them.
"Irene, how are you this evening? Hugh mentioned you were out here with Eleanor." Alex's dark eyes tracked above her head as if looking for her chaperone.
Irene frowned. She wasn't a young miss who needed a chaperone anymore and she certainly didn't want Alex to see her that way. "Yes, but it's become such a crush... I was hoping to get some fresh air if I could find someone to accompany me?"
"As my lady wishes," he said, holding out his arm in an conciliatory manner.
As they swept away through the ballroom, Eleanor watched them, the faintest hint of a frown on her brow.
"Childhood friends, aren't they?" asked Lady Windham, noticing Eleanor's distraction. She patted Eleanor's arm reassuringly. "Lord Brooke never dallies with married ladies, no matter how much they importune him." The easy smile that spread across her beautiful face had only a trace of regret in it. "I have ample reason to know."
Eleanor's eyes widened as she turned her attention to the beauty. In her early thirties, the woman had been married for more than ten years and born her husband three children. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised that the woman was sampling the rakes of the ton but she hadn't expected her to speak so plainly. Then again, now that Eleanor had joined the ranks of the wedded and bedded she found that women were much more forthcoming with all sorts of information that she hadn't been party to as a young miss.
"Your husband's friend, Spencer, on the other hand," Lady Windham's smile changed, becoming more seductive and she was practically purring. "I hear he's much less discriminating. I don't suppose you could give me an introduction?"
As if Wesley needed help with assignations. Besides which, he had a strange tendency to cleave to one mistress at a time and as far as she knew he was still wrapped up in his affair with Lady Lilienfield. On the other hand, it was up to him to deny or accept Lady Windham's proposition and she could build up some good will from the Countess by providing an introduction.
"If you wish," Eleanor said, turning her attention back to the conversation going on around them. "Although I can't guarantee anything more than that."
"No need," said Lady Windham smugly, obviously secure in the power of her charms, which were admittedly considerable.
Although Eleanor's attention seemed as though it had returned to the inside of the ballroom, she was keeping an eye on the door to the terrace, Grace's words about Irene and Alex echoing in her mind. Alex's preferences notwithstanding, if they hadn't returned to the ballroom within ten minutes, Eleanor was going to go looking for her brother.
******
"What a beautiful night it is," Irene said, sighing with relief as they stepped out on the terrace. It was indeed cooler outside, although not nearly as private as she'd hoped. More than one couple was strolling about the terrace and lit pathways down into the garden, and more than one was secreted away in the shadows.
"For the city," Alex replied, giving the obvious comparison as he began to lead her down the stairs to the lit pathways below.
Smiling, Irene couldn't help but won
der at the warmth she felt when she was with Alex. Soft, comforting warmth... nothing like the tingling jumpiness she felt around Hugh. If it were Hugh leading her down into a garden with many darkened nooks her stomach would have been bouncing with anticipation. With Alex she just felt comfortable. Safe. She felt those things with Hugh as well, but it was different.
