“I have the oddest sensation that they plan to trap him,” Jennette remarked as her indignation rose.
“Why would they need to do that?” Elizabeth asked, pulling at her white gloves. “She is wealthy, and beautiful, and…”
“And what if she’s with child?”
This time, Elizabeth gasped. “Jennette, what a dreadful thing to say about her.”
“But what if it’s the truth?”
Elizabeth tapped her finger against her lip. “Then Blackburn must be warned so he can be on guard. If you are right, Susan will try to get him into a compromising position to force the issue as quickly as possible. Maybe even at the salon.”
Jennette sat back against the velvet squabs and crossed her arms over her chest. “I shall make certain that doesn’t happen.”
Matthew entered Lady Sheldon’s impressive home on George Street at exactly seven in the evening. When he’d agreed to Jennette’s plan, he had doubted she would be able to secure him invitations to any functions. But now he had the musicale tonight and Lady Elizabeth’s literary salon Thursday. He knew Lady Elizabeth and Jennette were good friends so Jennette had, no doubt, coerced her friend into inviting him.
Nevertheless, it mattered not how he came about the invitations as long as they continued to appear at his house every day. He looked forward to starting his new life. Respectability had been too far out of his reach for so long. Now, it was there, just a little beyond his grasp, not such an impossible feat.
While he followed the footman down the hall, he smiled. As soon as he entered the music room, his smile disappeared. The audible gasp of at least five women sounded when he crossed the threshold, followed quickly by the lifting of fans over their lips.
Not a single friendly face greeted him. Lady Sheldon’s granite expression told him without words that she was only allowing his appearance because of Jennette. Glancing around the room, he noticed she hadn’t attended tonight, leaving him stranded in a sea of frowns. He walked toward the seats in the back and sat down, hoping the chair would swallow him completely.
A commotion at the door forced him to look over just in time to see Jennette enter the room with a swish of violet silk. Several women formed a circle around her, whispering to her.
“I really don’t see why it is a problem,” she answered loud enough for him to hear.
After a few more vehement protests from the ladies surrounding her, Jennette broke from the group and walked directly toward him. “Good evening, Lord Blackburn.”
Damn, she had pluck to greet him in front of everyone. “Good evening, Lady Jennette.”
“I do hope you enjoy the musicale this evening. Lady Sheldon’s daughters have quite the talent for both singing and the pianoforte.”
He couldn’t stop the pleased smile from forming. “I am certain I shall enjoy myself immensely.”
She nodded and then gave the ladies a sardonic look. “I think you shall at that.” She glanced about the room as if looking for someone in particular. After blowing out a delicate breath, she said, “But you do need someone to sit beside you, my lord. You shouldn’t be alone.”
“You could do me the honor,” he said just loud enough for her to hear.
Her black eyebrows rose and her lips twitched as if she found the idea perfectly amusing. “I have just the person.”
She walked away before he could stop her. His preference would have been Jennette, not someone who would sit quaking in the chair next to him. Nonetheless, he couldn’t stop himself from watching her work her magic on some poor young girl whose face suddenly blanched as Jennette spoke with her. After a quick nod, Jennette led her toward him.
“Miss Amelia Sheldon, may I introduce Lord Blackburn,” Jennette said with a smile to them both.
Matthew stood and bowed over Miss Sheldon’s quivering hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Sheldon.”
“Th—Thank you, my lord.”
“I would be truly honored if you joined me.” He had to keep from rolling his eyes back into his head. The girl couldn’t be more than eighteen and appeared scared even to let him bow over her hand. Perhaps he should set an age limit with Jennette. No women under twenty-one. He had no idea why she chose the youngest of the Sheldon women, unless Jennette assumed Amelia would be the easiest to manipulate.
Miss Sheldon sat in the seat next to him and pulled out her fan. Staring straight ahead, she made no attempt to draw him into conversation. Matthew’s attention skipped to Jennette. She’d taken a chair three rows in front of him but to the right. He could just make out her profile and delicate, long neck.
After a quick shake of his head to clear his errant thoughts, he tried to get Miss Sheldon to speak to him.
“Are you looking forward to the Season?” he asked gently.
Her eyes widened with either fear or surprise that he had the audacity to speak with her.
“Yes,” she said in such a soft voice that he had to strain to hear her. She glanced around the room as people turned to stare at them.
“Will this be your first Season?”
She shook her head. “No, my second.”
Well, at least he received a three-word answer instead of one. “Did you enjoy your last Season?”
“No.”
“No?” he queried.
“With four older sisters out, my mother would prefer I don’t draw too much attention to myself.”
And it appeared Amelia had done a fine job of that until tonight. By sitting next to him, she’d gained the attention of the entire room. Every few moments, someone looked back at her as if to make certain she was still alive. As people continued to watch, he noticed a gleam of pleasure enter her eyes.
“I see,” he finally said. Well, he didn’t really but he couldn’t say that to her. “Will you be performing tonight?”
“No, again too much attention with aging sisters,” she said.
Lady Sheldon stood and walked to the front of the room. She introduced her eldest daughter, Beatrice, to start the night off with a sonata. As Beatrice took her seat at the pianoforte, Matthew let his gaze settle on Jennette again.
He’d noticed her glancing back at them before the music started, but now her head faced the pianoforte. What was it about her? Was it the way a few hairs had escaped her pins only to fall against the soft skin of her neck? A neck so perfect his lips wanted to touch that sensitive place where her shoulder met her neck.
Dear God, he was insane!
He should not feel attracted to Jennette. This was madness. There had to be something he didn’t like about her.
Her shopping habits, he decided. The woman was known for her fashion sense and style. And he didn’t like it. She was most likely driving her brother into huge debt over clothing.
Although, the violet silk gown she wore tonight deserved applause. The color suited her perfectly. And then there was that curving neckline framed with a hint of fine lace, drawing attention to the gentle outline of her breasts.
Before he knew it, the sound of clapping alerted him to the fact that the eldest Miss Sheldon had completed her music for the evening. Lady Sheldon next introduced her two middle daughters, who would sing a selection of songs for them.
Matthew forced his concentration on the two young women. It was then that he realized they must be twins. He couldn’t tell the two apart. Both had light brown hair, dull hazel eyes, and freckles over the bridge of their noses. His gaze slid to the woman next to him. He now understood why Lady Sheldon insisted Amelia do nothing to call notice to herself. Amelia Sheldon was the only beautiful lady of the Sheldon family.
She was exactly what he’d told Jennette he was looking for in a woman: petite, blond, quite pretty, and from a fine family. With no sons to inherit, Lord Sheldon had been quite vocal about the small fortune he would give in dowry for the women.
So why didn’t he feel drawn to her? After her initial nervousness, he’d noticed that she relaxed when the music started. She’d even glanced over at him a few ti
mes with a shy smile.
He should court her. Put all his efforts into making her want to marry him. After all, he only had a few weeks before he either married or faced selling off his properties. Amelia Sheldon would do.
When the musicale finally finished with a violin solo by the fourth Miss Sheldon, he turned toward Amelia. “May I get you some lemonade?”
Her thin pink lips turned upward. “I would like that.”
The refreshments were in the dining room and this could be his opportunity to converse with her. “Would you accompany me?”
“Thank you, my lord.” She rose with the grace of a swan then hooked her arm with his.
He watched her as she looked around the room with a smug smile on her face. Blowing out a small breath, he understood exactly what she was doing.
“Are you enjoying the attention?” he whispered.
“Yes, I am,” she replied just as quietly. “I do hope you don’t mind. It is very rare that anyone notices me when my mother is constantly pushing her older daughters on any man she can.”
“I see.”
She glanced up at him with sympathy. “I know what you are about, my lord.”
“Oh?”
“You think to marry a wealthy woman. The gossips have spoken of nothing else for days.” She looked forward but continued in a hushed tone, “But it won’t be me, my lord. I have my sights set on another.”
“Indeed?”
“Yes.”
While he should have been disappointed, it was relief that washed over him. For some inexplicable reason, he had no desire to have her as his wife. So as they walked into the dining room, she using him to draw attention to her, and he using her to help gain some respectability, he smiled.
Chapter 5
Jennette shoved her pins into her reticule, thrust some money inside, too, and then strode from her bedroom. She had to do something with this anger eating her from inside and there was only one thing that would soothe her frustration: shopping.
The image of Matthew’s face as he entered the dining room with a smiling Amelia Sheldon on his arm had kept Jennette up all night. She should be ecstatic that they both seemed so pleased with each other. Happy, even. The last thing she should be was overwhelmed with tension and frustration.
“Are you ready, miss?” Molly asked as Jennette entered the salon.
“Yes,” she answered back harshly.
Hopefully, her maid would understand that she had no desire for conversation today. Jennette climbed into the carriage, then sat back and waited for the usual calm that settled over her when she shopped. Picking at the fingertips of her gloves, she wondered just how long it would take peace to come to her.
This annoyance was illogical. He had done exactly what she’d wanted him to last night. Amelia’s reaction to Matthew, however, had surprised Jennette. She thought of Miss Sheldon as shy and retiring, not alluring with that secret smile of hers. And she was the epitome of what Matthew had said he desired in a woman.
Curiosity picked at Jennette’s inquiring mind. Did Matthew call on Amelia today? For all Jennette knew he could be at the Sheldons’ home right now having tea and biscuits, making polite conversation while he courted her.
Therefore, Jennette should be pleased with herself, not about to rip off the tips of her gloves. She did not love the man. She never had.
But there was something about him.
Something tempting that made her think wicked thoughts she shouldn’t about him. Lurid thoughts about what he looked like without his shirt. Was he as muscular as he appeared? Or had he taken to padding the shoulders of his jacket, as did so many men? She highly doubted he had.
Closing her eyes, she pictured his chestnut hair and thought about what it would feel like to her fingers. Soft and silky? Thick and coarse? And his lips…would they feel as wicked against hers as they had that morning? How could the memory of that ever-so-brief kiss have stayed with her all these years?
Thankfully, the carriage slowed to a stop on Bond Street before her mind went further down that disquieting road. She and her maid walked down to the draper’s with a footman following closely behind them. She put Matthew out of her mind and concentrated on what she’d come for today.
A little bell rang as she entered the shop. Bolts of cloth lined the small room.
“Lady Jennette, how wonderful to see you again,” Mrs. Greenwood announced.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Greenwood. Did you get the fabric I wanted?” She had no time for polite conversation with the amount of items she needed today.
“Of course, wait here.” Mrs. Greenwood went to the back of the store and returned carrying a bolt of forest green velvet.
Jennette removed her gloves and caressed the soft fabric. “This is beautiful.”
“It will make a lovely gown for you.”
“I will take it all.”
Mrs. Greenwood’s mouth dropped. “All of it, my lady?”
“Yes.” She would need all that fabric for what she had in mind.
While Mrs. Greenwood wrapped the cloth in paper to keep it clean, Jennette wandered the room looking at all the fabrics. She would miss Mrs. Greenwood’s shop. The woman could find any fabric Jennette ever wanted. Mrs. Greenwood handed the bolt to the footman, who hefted the cloth over his shoulder.
“Good day, Mrs. Greenwood,” Jennette called as they departed for the next shop.
After a trip to the cobbler’s and then a stop for gloves, hats, and stockings, Jennette had finished. With the footman and Molly weighed down, she carried four of the boxes herself. Just able to peer over the top of the teetering boxes, she walked down the street toward the carriage. Several people smiled or laughed as the group ambled forward.
Approaching the carriage, she noticed a man standing nearby. As she tried to get a better look, her hat blew in the wind, half-covering her eyes.
“Allow me,” the deep voice said.
One by one, the man lifted the boxes out of her arms until she could finally move the offending hat out of her eyes. And then she saw him.
“Busy day, Lady Jennette?” Matthew inquired with one brown eyebrow raised.
“Yes.”
He watched with disdain in his gray eyes as the footman placed all the boxes into the carriage. “I’d always heard the rumors of your shopping but thought they were largely overstated. I can see I was wrong.”
“I think you are vastly mistaken, my lord.”
He turned toward her and bowed. “I can see that I am not. Good day, Lady Jennette.” And then he was gone, striding down the street as if she’d done something wrong.
“Mat—” Jennette quickly covered her mouth realizing how that might sound if she were overheard using his Christian name. “Lord Blackburn!”
But he never turned back. Bloody stupid man, she thought. She’d been known to shop in excess for herself but what harm did that cause? Banning had been more than generous with her allowance and now with her grandmother’s inheritance, she need not worry about money. She could never spend it all if she tried.
Besides, she only used shopping as a method of calming herself at times. Of course, her bad habit had started almost exactly five years ago. After what she’d done to John and then hearing the rumors about Matthew, she’d needed something to do. Painting and shopping were her only options.
As she sat in the carriage, she realized just how much she missed painting. When she and her mother moved into Avis’s former house after Banning’s wedding, Jennette had never unpacked her canvases and paint pots. She’d told her mother there wasn’t enough light in any of the rooms. When in truth, there seemed no point as she would be leaving for Florence in three months. And now her departure was only weeks away. Once she arrived and settled in, she would take up painting again.
This restless energy was driving her mad. The image of Matthew’s scornful face as he helped her with her packages just wouldn’t go away. She needed to talk to someone.
After getting the attention of her d
river, she said, “Please take me to Miss Reynard’s home.”
Sophie would understand Jennette’s need to have a friend listen without solving her problems, as Avis and Elizabeth would attempt.
Sophie’s lips twitched but she quickly gained control over her desire to smile. Things were progressing nicely so far. Jennette’s reaction to Blackburn was exactly as Sophie had hoped when she’d seen the vision of him.
“He wouldn’t even let me explain,” Jennette complained for the second time. “He just stormed off.”
“Well, the man is having financial difficulties, Jennette. Surely you can understand that he might be envious watching you spend money without a care.”
Jennette slammed her teacup down. “It most certainly wasn’t without a care.”
“I realize that but he only knows what he hears about you from others. And you do have a reputation for fashion.”
“Of course I do. But I am not much different from most of the other ladies of the ton. And at least I am now spending my personal money, not that of my father, or brother or husband.”
Sophie desperately wanted to laugh. Poor Jennette looked so put out by all this. “What are your plans for tonight?”
“Lady Cantwell is having a dinner party. I’ll deliver everything after Elizabeth’s literary salon tomorrow night.”
Lady Cantwell was due here for a tea reading in an hour. Sophie smiled. The tea leaf reading was bound to tell her that Lord Blackburn must be invited to dinner or something dreadful might happen.
“You are welcome to join us tomorrow night for the salon,” Jennette added with a smile. “You know we love your company.”
“Perhaps, but not all of Society agrees with that sentiment. I am quite the thing as long as I stay in my place and don’t venture into your world.”
“Regardless, come along,” Jennette pleaded. “I could use the support. I have a very strange feeling about introducing Susan Whitmore to him.”
“Why are you introducing him to Miss Whitmore if you believe he might be happy with Miss Sheldon?” Sophie watched Jennette’s reaction with a smile. Her friend’s face tightened, her hands fisted, and a deep frown brought her eyebrows downward.
Every Time We Kiss Page 5
