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“Gosh! Adam! You gave me a fright,” she responded. Turning to face her brother, she calmed her beating heart and hid the paper she was reading from view.
Her brother referencing her as a diamond of the first water was in no way a compliment. Its origin in the Somerholm household was with her father, who used it as a compliment for her, in reference to her beauty. However, whenever her brother, Adam Vaughan, the Viscount of Hartington, used it, it was done in jest. After all, she was a supposed beauty, who had remained a spinster till now with no promising suitor in sight. The sibling rivalry between them had persisted since childhood, even though Hart, on his own part, refused to acknowledge its existence out loud.
“You don’t need to hide the paper behind you, My Lady,” he blurted out with contempt. “I stood here watching you for a bit. I already know the publication that has you spellbound,” Adam replied in his usually condescending tone. Family member or commoner, Adam always sounded condescending, except when he was addressing either of his parents or any other entity with a higher title than his. He wasthoroughbredafter all, a true epitome of a titled male of the Britishton, high in the instep, arrogant, snobbish, overly proud, and very much aware of social rank.
It helped in no small measure that he was friends with Prince William, the King’s son, and also heir to a very large entail.
“Do you have nothing better to do with your time than to bother me? A light-skirt to philander with, perhaps?” she fired back.
“Crikey!” Adam swore, a smug look plastered across his face. “What do you take me for, a shark? Can you not see the upright gentleman that I am?” he mocked.
Of course, Rose knew a fair deal of her brother’s business about town—the ladies he courted and bedded, both peerage and barques of frailty alike. He, after all, was a handsome devil with the wiles and charms of a Greek God.
“Oh, please! You are no more saintly than the devil himself,” she responded in disgust.
This brought hearty laughter to Adam’s lips. “Dear Sister! I’m sure you have more important things to worry about than my stellar reputation. Shouldn’t you be preparing for the ball, the same one Mother is going through the stress of hosting for you?” Mischief gleamed in his eyes, insinuating the underlying excuse she already knew was the reason for the ball—another attempt by Mother to get her married off.
She swore heavily as her brother was succeeding in crawling under her skin like he always did.
Mother’s skin was definitely itching seriously by now.
He laughed again before settling his gaze back on Rose.
“Well, I guess Mother finally has nothing to worry about anymore.On dit, it seems Father has stepped in and handled her worry of your betrothal,” Adam snickered.
“Wait, what?” Rose exclaimed in horror, her face suddenly turning ashen.
Adam had scored another point and was in the middle of yet more hearty laughter when Lady Somerholm walked into the study.
“Pray tell, what in God’s name are you doing here?” her mother shrieked, addressing Rose alone, as though she hadn’t passed Adam right there in the doorway on her way in.
“Mother, is this true?” Rose queried, suddenly drained of strength.
“Is what true?” her mother responded, feigning ignorance.
“What Adam said. Is it true? Is Father making a deal to wed me to someone?” After a brief pause, she added, “And who is this person, Mother?”
Instead of responding immediately, Lady Somerholm turned and glared at her son, who had an evil grin plastered across his face, obviously as a result of his sister’s discomfort. That act from her mother meant that either Adam was saying the truth or that her mother was scolding him for stressing his sister with such lies. Rose sincerely hoped it was the latter.
“What I know, my dear, is that your father and I care very much and are worried about you,” her mother responded, while taking Rose’s hand in hers. Her skin had suddenly grown cold to the touch.
So it is true? Adam isn’t jesting.
“Mother, you had something to do with this, didn’t you?” Rose blurted out after seeing the hint in her mother’s eyes.
“Oh, for goodness sake, Rose. Don’t you want to be married? Don’t you envy all your peers who are? It isn’t the end of the world if your father and I tried to help,” her mother scolded in response, trying to take the upper hand.
“By all means help, Mother. It is not like she could find one herself,” Adam fired from the doorway. Her brother was still having a good time at her expense.
“Don’t you have something better to do?” their mother fired back, turning briefly to glare at the laughing Adam.
“I certainly do, Mother. Off I go. Good luck, dear Sister,” he said while laughing, as he retreated from the doorway and out of sight.
Rose could still hear his laughter as he went along. Her mind immediately went into a state of turmoil.
Who is Father making this deal with? Definitely this has Mother’s hand written all over it.
“Rose…Rose!”
