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Emily turned to find her younger sister looking at her, Amy’s lips curled into a sneer as her eyes ran down Emily’s figure. The sheer hatred in Amys eyes made Emily shudder the slightest bit.
I should have been used to her taunts by now,Emily told herself, her hands clenching into fists at her side.Why does it still hurt?
“If I do not at least try, what will become of you?” Emily replied softly, her brown eyes meeting Amy’s green ones.
For a moment, her sister appeared visibly taken aback. She had been so used to Emily taking all her insults in silence that she never truly expected her older sister to actually find her voice to reply.
“How willyourreputation affectme?” Amy sniffed delicately. “Even at a glance, you and I are worlds apart.”
“We share the same father,” Emily reminded her. “If I fail, then it will be a taint upon the Montgomery name.”
At that softly worded reminder, Amy took a step back, her eyes widening. As much as she wished to see her older sister fail and become a lonely, miserable spinster for the rest of her life, she was not foolish enough to believe that it would not affect her chances of making a grand entrance into society when she made her bow.
“Milady, the Duke of Gilleton is here,” Jamison announced.
“His Grace?” Amy’s lower lip quivered as she glanced scathingly at Emily. “What business would His Grace have with a plain and boring person such as yourself?”
Emily flinched at her sister’s sharp tongue. However, before she could even open her mouth, somebody else decided to give Amy a setback of sorts.
“As a young lady yet to make her bow, it is none of your business to inquire into the affairs of your older sister,” a smooth baritone intoned from the door.
Both young ladies looked up to find the tall, broad-shouldered Duke standing at the door, his handsome features smoothed into an expression of such arrogant, aristocratic nonchalance that they seemed to highlight the disparity between himself and Amy.
The younger Montgomery flushed at his reprimand. It was twice in one morning that she had been scolded on account of Emily!
As Amy clenched her fists at her sides and bit her tongue, the Duke walked towards Emily with long, slow strides as if he owned the very room where they stood, and he had all the time in the world.
“Come, Emily,” he said, offering her his arm. “My carriage is awaiting us outside.”
“But I did not hear Mama give you permission to go!” Amy complained. “And you are not supposed to go unchaperoned!”
Emily smiled a little. “A young lady may go on walks or carriage rides with a gentleman, provided she is accompanied by her maid or a groom.” She inclined her head to where Jenny stood ready. “Jenny will accompany us today.”
The Duke raised an eyebrow at Amy, regarding her as if she were a child throwing a tantrum in his presence. “Emily,” he drawled. “Let us go.”
Without another word, he steered her out of the door and into his waiting carriage while Amy looked on, fuming as she did. Jenny trailed behind them with a hint of a smug smile.
“You should not have done that,” Emily told him softly. “She will certainly cause a fuss with mother later.”
“If you think,” Daniel intoned, “that I give one whit about what the Marchioness of Rutbridge thinks, then you are severely mistaken.”
Emily stifled her laughter at the sheer arrogance in his tone as if her stepmother never entered his eyes for a minute.She probably never did, she realized ruefully.
As for Amy, Emily believed that it must have been quite a shock for her sister, who was so used to people bending over backwards to please her. Emily sighed as she tugged at her gloves. It was probably just as well that Amy was given an example in the privacy of their home, away from the prying eyes of the Ton. If it had been in the middle of the ballroom, she would have suffered quite a blow.
“Where are we going?” Emily asked him instead, knowing that he did not probably wish to discuss the matter further.
“To Rotten Row, of course,” the Duke replied with a long-suffering face. “An education in the art of flirting would be remiss if we were to gloss over Hyde Park.”
Emily nodded in agreement. She had gone to Hyde Park earlier in the season, but as her acquaintances received offers, the frequency of those picnics was greatly diminished. Today was the first day she had gone to the Park in a long while.
They arrived at the Park at a quarter before five. Already, Emily could see a great many lords and ladies in their finest riding garb out to enjoy the afternoon sunshine.
“When I help you out of the carriage,” he instructed her, “you can pretend to a miss a step. That will allow the gentleman you are with to play the part of the hero and attempt to stop your fall. He will then feel as if he has to hold your hand and support you throughout the rest of your stroll.”
“So, in the art of flirtation, a lady must pretend she is incapable of even doing the most basic tasks,” she grinned, “just so the gentleman can do them for her.”
“It is all about finding the excuse to get closer,” he winked at her. “Why don’t you give it a try when we get off the carriage?”
