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“I assure you that there is no game, and I grow tired of your insinuations,” Madalene challenged.
“Clearly, you are more clever than I have given you credit for.”
Madalene arched an eyebrow. “Was that supposed to be a compliment?”
The man opened his mouth to respond when Madalene heard Lady Jane exclaim, “Baldwin! What do you think you are doing?”
Baldwin dropped his hand and stepped back. “This does not concern you, Jane.”
“It most certainly does,” Jane insisted, coming to stand next to her. “Madalene is my dear friend, and I will not have you treat her in such a horrendous fashion.”
“You befriended my sister?” Baldwin asked, his voice skeptical.
“Madalene and I went to boarding school together,” Jane explained. “I know I have spoken about her.”
“I don’t recall you ever mentioning a Madalene before,” Baldwin said, stepping back to create more distance between them.
Jane frowned at her brother. “I daresay that I must question if you ever listened to any of my stories.”
“I assure you that I listened.”
With a look that implied she didn’t believe him, Jane remarked, “I hadn’t realized that you two knew each other.”
“We don’t, at least not officially,” Madalene replied.
“Oh, then allow me to rectify that situation,” Jane stated, glancing between them. “Miss Dowding, allow me to introduce you to my brother, the Marquess of Hawthorne.”
Madalene dropped into a curtsy, knowing what was expected of her. “My lord,” she murmured respectfully.
Lord Hawthorne’s face was expressionless, but his eyes still held animosity towards her. “It is a pleasure to meet you.” His words sounded forced.
Jane placed a hand on her shoulder and asked, “As pleasant as this is, would you care to adjourn to the drawing room for some refreshment?”
Dropping Lord Hawthorne’s gaze, Madalene replied in a relieved tone, “I would love to.”
As she turned to follow Jane towards the drawing room, she couldn’t help but notice that Lord Hawthorne remained rooted in his spot, and she could feel his eyes boring into her back.
They stepped into the drawing room and Jane spun around to face her. “I am sorry about my brother,” she said quickly. “It would appear that he has forgotten how to have a polite conversation.”
“Your brother seems rather…” Madalene’s voice trailed off as she attempted to think of the right words.
“High-handed, pompous, a jackanapes…” Jane rattled off.
Madalene giggled and brought her hand up to cover her mouth. “Yes, all of those things.”
Jane sighed as she dropped down onto a settee. “My brother is not the same man that he was when he left three years ago.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Do you recall how I used to share stories about my brothers when we were younger?” Jane asked.
“I do,” Madalene replied. “I was always so envious about how close you were with your brothers.”
“Well, it has all changed now.”
“In what way?”
Jane gave her a sad smile. “Oliver is a rakehell now, and my other friends have distanced themselves from me in fear of associating with him.”
