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“Utterly stunning!” Sir Alistair exclaimed. The knight shook his head as if to clear the cobwebs of astonishment that clouded his gaze. “I must get a closer look. Better yet, I must have a dance with this astonishing creature!”
Those words caused Daniel to furrow his brow as he looked at the infatuated knight. Just a short while ago, Alistair had declared that there was hardly anybody of note in the current season, and now, he was rushing towards Emily along with the rest of these shallow fops?
“Take a seat, Wyndham,” Daniel snapped coldly.
Sir Alistair looked at the Duke in confusion before sudden realization dawned on him. “Good God, Gilleton…you cannot possibly…you cannot possibly mean to courther.”
The idea of the Duke of Gilleton, one of the most sought-after bachelors in all of London, pursuing the wallflower of two seasons was such a laughable idea that Sir Alistair Wyndham could not quite believe it himself.
“I am not as daft as you are,” the Duke intoned.
“Well then, if you are not in the running for her, do not ruin it for the rest of us!” Sir Alistair grinned before promptly excusing himself from the Duke and striding over to where a small crowd had gathered around Benedict and Emily.
Daniel narrowed his eyes as he looked at the gathering of fops and dandies swirling around Emily, each one eagerly vying for her attention.
If he had not been the one to have taught her how to successfully snag a man’s attention and keep it on her, he would hardly believe for himself that she had been a nondescript wallflower headed for spinsterhood just two short weeks ago.
Now, under the dazzling lights of the chandelier, Emily Montgomery looked like a regal queen holding court in a grand ballroom.
He looked as she smiled at the gentlemen gathered around her, fluttering her fan coyly as she laughed at their inane jokes. His eyes narrowed when he saw a particular lech, Mr. Wellesley, peer closely at her bosom.
He was just about to stride over and drag that poor excuse of a man out by the scruff of his neck when Benedict tapped him on the shoulder and motioned outside.
Fortunately, Hardy is quick about it, he thought to himself, feeling greatly annoyed by the sudden rise in the number of men courting Emily’s favor.
But none of it incensed him more than the sight of Gregory Pratt, immaculately attired in a snowy white dress shirt, perfectly tied cravat, and claret jacket, striding over. Almost as if they sensed the disparity between their status and his, the other men parted to make a path for him towards Emily.
Daniel watched with a growing resentment as the Viscount said something which caused Emily to blush prettily and playfully swat his arm. When he bowed gallantly before her and asked her to dance, it had taken all of Daniel’s self-control not to intervene.
But is this not what you want? Is this not the goal?Daniel reminded himself. From the very start, he had seen it as merely helping Emily along in finding a suitable match before she was doomed for spinsterhood.
Why was it that the sight of her surrounded by a dozen men now courtedhisire?
As he watched the Viscount of Chaney lead Emily out to the dance floor, he could not help but clench his fists and feel that something about that picture was horribly wrong.
Because the one who should be dancing with Emily should be none other thanhe.
CHAPTER10
Emily could not believe the effect one dress had on an entire ballroom. She had been so used to standing in the shadows, quite invisible, and now, she felt like she had been suddenly thrust into the light.
Was this how Cinderella felt when she arrived at the ball in her magical dress?Emily thought to herself in wonder.The way all these gentlemen are acting…it is like they had never seen me before!
What she found most hilarious about the whole situation was that these gentlemen seemed quite eager to pleaseher. They courted her favor by mouthing a profusion of platitudes so much so that she feared that they had mistaken her for someone else!
“My, my, it seems that you have truly turned the Ton on its head tonight!”
Emily turned at the sound of the playful voice and found a blonde regarding her with slightly narrowed gray eyes. She could recall the young lady before her from one of the few other occasions she had been invited to.
“Miss Charlton,” she smiled, tilting her head to the side.
“Amazing what a dress can do, isn’t it?” Eliza Charlton tittered. “One minute, hardly anyone knows your name, and the next thing you know, you have thrown everyone into the shade.”
Emily had never been on the receiving end of much hostility from other young ladies of her age. They had mostly stuck to forgetting her existence when they could and ignoring her when they could not.
“Careful, Miss Eliza. Your dress does not go well with your green eyes tonight.”
Both ladies turned towards a stunning young brunette dressed in a sweet pink dress. Her dark eyes, however, shone with wit and fire, her lips pulled back into a smile that bordered on sarcasm.
