AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Three
GracelaughedagainasLord Brown continued his rant on the horrors of his most recent trip to a local haberdashery.
“The belt clashed with the buttons like you couldn’t imagine,” he said, barely containing his own laugh. “And yet, the old man continued to push the belt at me, like I was a fool for not wanting it.”
“Come now, Lord Brown,” Grace said, her fingers hovering over her lips in case they were needed to stop an unseemly burst of giggles. “Surely he only meant to please you.”
Lord Brown cast his eyes upward. “Gracious knows what he would have thrown at me if he’d been wanting to scare me off.”
“Don’t be so cruel,” Grace continued, still trying hard not to laugh.
He caught her eyes suddenly, his mirth momentarily calming. “Your desire to believe the best in the shopkeeper does you credit, Miss Stewart.”
Grace’s face heated, and she looked down. How the heavens had orchestrated such a blessing as Lord Brown’s pointed attention, she would never know. She was the daughter of a gentleman, but not one who was titled. She was from the country, had only been to Town for the first time this year, and was in no way well connected. And yet, here she sat, laughing with Lord Brown, welcomed at his home until Twelfth Night, nearly three weeks hence. If she’d known this blessing had only been around the corner, this past year would not have been quite so miserable. At least she’d had Lady Frances’s letters—the only bright spot in an otherwise wretched, lonely Season.
As Grace lifted her head once more, her gaze caught on a man standing near the door, Lady Brown at his side. She’d been vaguely aware of when he’d entered the room and been announced. But she’d been so caught up in Lord Brown’s tale, she hadn’t spared the gentleman a second thought. Now that she did think on it, it had been rather rude of Lord Brown not to acknowledge the arrival of another guest. He’d probably been too engrossed in his own tale as well.
Or perhaps too diverted by the woman he was speaking with?
Gracious, no. Grace’s face warmed once more. She believed, or rather sincerely hoped, that Lord Brown was beginning to feel something for her. But she was far from the only eligible young woman invited to the Christmas house party. Though they had spoken to one another often since she’d arrived the day before, he hadn’t exactly singled her out for all his attentions.
“Now,” Lord Brown said, pulling her thoughts back to him, as he always did whenever he opened his mouth or even walked into a room. “Guess what we shall be eating tonight. I am sure you will be quite delighted once you find out.”
Grace pinched her lips in thought. “Mutton?”
Lord Brown shook his head.
“Lamb?” Though Grace’s head was full of foods that might be served that evening, she couldn’t help but feel her gaze drawn back toward the gentleman near the door.
He was watching her. It seemed evident that he was in conversation with the dowager, and yet his eyes remained on Grace.
“Cooked carrots?” Grace heard herself say. Who was the gentleman who stared so unceasingly? Had her skirts hiked up around her ankles again? She did very much appreciate the new silk dresses her parents had purchased for this holiday visit, and the extra thick stockings were a warm indulgence to help prevent her toes from getting too cold. But the two clothing items, while both fine in quality and appearance and worthy of Grace’s sincere appreciation, did not appreciate one another. They seemed to almost bicker in the way they caught time and again.
“I am not speaking of the main course,” Lord Brown said. “I mean dessert.”
“Oh?” Grace forced her gaze back to Lord Brown and smiled at him, all the while subtly reaching for her skirt and fluffing it back out so it would surely fall to the floor without causing her more grief. “Plum pudding, then?”
“Mother insists we save that for Christmas Day. Guess again.”
“You know quite a bit about what we will be eating and when, my lord,” Grace said. The gentleman by the door wasstilllooking over at her. Grace hazarded a glance his way. He wasn’t looking at her skirt, however, so perhaps that hadn’t been the issue at all. Instead, he was focused on her face, his gaze meeting hers.
There was something in his expression...but what, exactly, Grace couldn’t say.
“Miss Stewart?” Lord Brown leaned forward, catching her gaze once more.
“Sorry.” Grace shook herself. Had Lord Brown been speaking?
“Do you not agree that desserts are worth knowing about so one might anticipate them?”
Right. Grace nodded quickly in agreement. She’d asked why he knew so much about what they would eat. That, and she was trying to guess tonight’s dessert. Grace scrambled to think of another sweet. “Honey cake?”
“The very thing. How clever of you.”
Grace dropped her gaze yet again, hoping to hide another blush. But despite Lord Brown’s praise, she couldn’t shake her awareness of the other gentleman. The dowager motioned toward one side of the room, and she and the gentleman began walking that way. No doubt she intended to introduce him to the other guests.
The pause in her conversation with Lord Brown had grown into a decided lull, and Grace spoke the first thing that came to mind. “I do adore honey cake.” The last thing she wanted was for Lord Brown to think she didn’t enjoy his company, and yet, she was suddenly struggling to find things to say. Perhaps she ought to encourage him to take over the conversation once more. “Tell me, what else will we be enjoying tonight?”
Lord Brown delved into a long list of various foods. The baron and the dowager certainly knew how to host a festive Christmas—and apparently Lord Brown believedalltypes of foods should be anticipated well in advance.
