AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Love at First Sight
Spring 1739
Annalise stood by the pillar in her parents’ ballroom, fanning herself. Two other ladies flanked her—Lady Caroline, the Marquess of Roth’s niece, and Miss Olivia, Viscount Landen’s daughter. Both ladies were chaperoned, unlike Annalise, whose parents disappeared the moment after her introduction at the ball.
“It’s incredibly hot here, isn’t it? I wish I could take a break and sit outside for a moment or two. But the next dance is approaching, and so is my suitor,” Lady Caroline said on a sigh.
“Well, my parents are too busy flirting with everyone in the ballroom to do anything about the heat,” Annalise answered. “My next dance is open. I might slip out to the patio for a moment. Olivia, would you care to join me?”
Miss Olivia Landen vigorously shook her head. “My parents would not allow that. Unlike you, I am ridiculously closely chaperoned. I am looking forward to next year when I shall be free to sit with the spinsters and dowagers and not by the sidelines of a ballroom waiting for suitors to never ask me to dance.”
“Don’t you want to get married?” Annalise asked with awe.
Olivia talked about the balls as a duty. Sure, it was suffocating, but this was what she’d been preparing for her entire life. Finding a gentleman who’d steal her heart and then marry her and make her the mistress of his estates.
“Of course, I would. But so far, everyone who asked for my hand was either thrice my age or in insurmountable gambling debt,” Olivia said while biting on her forefinger. She didn’t seem to be able to stand still.
“I’ve heard Viscount Landen withdrew your dowry to encourage genuine offers,” Caroline chimed in. At Annalise’s questioning look, she smiled. “I make it my duty to know all things. And if I may offer a piece of advice? If you want to attract gentlemen, you need gowns done to fashion. I mean no offense, and I could help you if you wish. My modiste’s the best in town.”
“I can barely stand still in this one. The gowns made to fashion make me wish I could crawl out of my skin. And I am afraid a change of gowns would not help. This is my fifth season. The reason I am not married has little to do with gowns and everything to do with my lack of social grace.”
Annalise grimaced at the direct way the lady spoke about her failings. She had read society gossip sheets and saw the caricatures about Graceless Livvie, which was what they called Miss Olivia. She was the opposite of what society dictated a lady should be. She talked out of turn, was fidgety and restless, and never remembered faces or names, which resulted in several instances of her committing a faux pas, which, in turn, rendered her unmarriageable by society’s definition.
Caroline was the opposite—always calm and collected, always knowing what to say or do—she was perfect. Except she abhorred the idea of marriage and, in her first season, had already rejected over half a dozen suitors.
“Isn’t there at least one gentleman who doesn’t make you feel awkward and perhaps makes your heart flutter?” Annalise asked Miss Olivia.
Caroline smirked. “Oh, Annalise, you and your romantic notions.”
“There might be,” Olivia answered, surprising them both. “But since he is yet to propose, I am to remain a spinster until that day comes.”
A gentleman bowed before Caroline and offered his arm. Caroline gave her friends a fleeting smile and walked onto the dancefloor.
“Well, the dance has started, which means nobody is paying us any heed. Olivia, would you care to join me on the patio?” Annalise asked, mischief sparkling in her eyes.
Olivia shook her head. “Thank you, but my parents would never allow it.”
“Very well, but you will be envious of me in a moment when I am gulping the fresh air,” Annalise said with a wink and slipped outside.
She took a deep breath of midnight air and let out a sigh.
This wasn’t exactly how she pictured her come-out in her dreams. Somehow, when thinking about a ball, she imagined a magical palace and gentlemen lined up to kiss her hand. She would see the man of her dreams and recognize him as that immediately.
This suffocating room full of old lords and gossiping matrons was not what she had imagined. At least she’d managed to make a couple of new friends. But she wished Lavinia were with her too. A year younger, Lavinia was yet to make a come-out. She’d been left behind in Essex, looking forward to hearing stories from Annalise. Stories, Annalise feared, which would consist of her standing by the pillar and analyzing her abysmal success.
Annalise’s parents would not forgive her if she didn’t make an acceptable match in her first season. They’d poured tremendous amounts of money into this season, bought her a trousseau, organized an exquisite come-out ball mere days after her eighteenth birthday. Now it was her time to return the favor and secure a marriage proposal before the end of the season. Thankfully, she still had several weeks to meet the expectations of her parents and form a beneficial alliance.
She was not a wallflower. A few gentlemen had asked for a dance or promenade around the room. Annalise knew all the etiquette rules, and she’d performed them well so far. But she wasn’t as perfect as Caroline. She had trouble remembering most of her suitors’ names and was mortified to ask them to repeat them, afraid to become the second Graceless Livvie and remain forever a spinster, humiliated by the society gossips.
She took a deep breath again. No need for those thoughts to bother her now. She was alone at last, and she was determined to enjoy it.
“Not the smartest thing for a debutante, to be found alone, unchaperoned on the patio,” came a gravelly smooth masculine voice from behind her.
Or not so alone. “I am not unchaperoned.” Annalise turned to face the stranger. “You are here, aren’t you?”
The gentleman laughed, a deep rumbling sound that held her mesmerized. “I am far from a chaperone, believe me. With me around, you need at least two.”
“Are you a rake then?” She tilted her head, studying the man in front of her. He was tall, slim, and elegant. He wore a deep green coat and a waistcoat, embroidered with golden thread and matching breeches. His clothing was tailored to precisely fit his build. His skin was snow white, his facial features almost too handsome, his white powdered wig lay about his shoulders in waves. He stepped closer, looming over her, and then sketched a perfect bow.
