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“I don’t think that’s going to happen, Lord Dashwood. If you’ll excuse me? I think I’ll retire to my room until dinner.”
“I thought you were going to have tea with everyone else.”
“If you’re going to be there, I think it will be best that I go elsewhere.”
She started to turn away, and Lucas found he really didn’t want her to go. He wanted to ask her to stay, even if just in the library, simply to talk, but then he remembered that they were alone. Probably not a good idea.
But the problem was Dorothy would make it impossible to talk to her if they were in a room of other people. She would use that as a shield to stop him from discussing anything with her.
“Lady Dorothy…”
“No.”
“What?”
“I said you should stay away from me, Lord Dashwood. That’s not changed because you picked up a lot of sweets and complimented me on my card-playing skills.” Dorothy glanced back, something flickering in her eyes. “I keep to my word, and I’m not breaking it for you.”
“Even if it means I’m attempting to apologise?”
Dorothy snorted.
“Apologise for stringing me along? Apologise for your behaviour towards me during the engagement? I was extremely lucky that we hadn’t had it announced to everyone, otherwise I would be embarrassed by how it ended.”
Lucas felt like he was being cut down to size. He resisted the urge to shuffle his feet.
“This shouldn’t have happened,” he muttered.
“You’re right that it shouldn’t have happened. Our parents shouldn’t have agreed to it in the first place, but I was willing to go along with it for the sake of it. And what did you do? Complain and push back so much that you got the engagement broken.”
“It should have happened long before then.”
“Well, it didn’t, and you wasted my time. That’s time I’m not going to get back because of a decision that was made without our input. True, it wasn’t your fault that this engagement happened, but it did, and you might as well have led me on for all that you did.”
Lucas tried not to hang his head. He knew he was at fault for his part, but it still smarted to be told off like this.
“Father should have listened to me when I told him the first time I didn’t want the engagement.”
“And you should have behaved like a gentleman and at least met me face-to-face,” Dorothy snapped. “You could have shown you have some decency. But you didn’t. As far as I’m concerned, I don’t want anything to do with you.”
Was it his imagination, or had she managed to get closer to him. Lucas was sure he could reach out and touch her, but he was also certain that Dorothy would slap him if he tried. He took a deep breath.
“I do deeply apologise for my actions. They were not becoming of who I am.”
Dorothy’s jaw tightened, fire flashing in her eyes. God, she looked even more beautiful like this.
“Well, at least you’ve acknowledged it. Now leave me alone.”
“Is that what you want?”
“Yes.”
And with that, Dorothy turned smartly and walked away, leaving the library and shutting the door a little too hard behind her. Lucas slumped against the table, the air leaving his body in a rush. God, how was it possible for a woman to make him feel like this so quickly? And the woman to make him uncomfortable and attracted was Dorothy Napier.
It felt like someone was looking down on him and laughing at how fate had worked out for him.
“Lord Dashwood?”
Lucas looked up. Lady Marcia was coming into the room, the skirt swishing about her legs as she walked towards him. He pushed himself upright and cleared his throat.
