Page 6 of The Lady Needs a Rogue
“It is a rather unusual circumstance, you must admit,” Lady Drayton countered.
Macie’s shrug was more casual than her tone. “Surely you must know my grandfather was anunusualman. Quite ahead of his time, really. Perhaps that’s why my mother is unusual. As am I.” Her voice brimmed with pride.Good for her.
“I study the place each time I pass by,” Finn said. “The architecture intrigues me.”
“In that case, you simply must come by. Jon has spoken of your expertise.”
Lady Chastity leaned closer to Macie, as if to confide a secret. “You know it’s haunted, don’t you?”
Macie grinned. “I’m counting on it.”
“How very... unusual. And daring.” Lady Chastity flashed a slight smile. Turning back to Finn, she draped her gloved fingers over his forearm. “I must confess, Mr. Caldwell, I am also feeling a bit daring tonight. I’ve taken the liberty of adding you to my dance card.”
He slowly shook his head. “Forgive me, but I did not come here to dance.”
Lady Drayton’s eyes narrowed, her expression making it clear she would welcome his departure. To the dance floor. To anywhere, in fact, where he was not impeding the introduction of the Drayton lord-in-waiting to the heiress. “Might I ask why youarehere, Mr. Caldwell?”
“Curiosity.” He cocked his head toward Macie. “Rumor had it ye’d invited a certain lady who is considerably more adept at scaling apple trees than at strolling across a ballroom floor. I wanted to see for myself.”
A smile curved Macie’s mouth despite the surprise in her eyes. “It has been a very long time since I’ve done any climbing.”
“The two of you are acquainted?” Lady Drayton’s brows hiked, as if Finn had revealed a vile secret.
“It has been a very long time. But I possess an excellent memory,” Finn said rather blandly. “Do ye still run pedestrians off the road with that bicycle of yers, Miss Mason?”
Lady Drayton’s jaw dropped, if only for a moment, even as Macie’s smile reached her eyes. “I’ll have you know I’ve replaced my bicycle with a more modern machine,” Macie said. “It’s easier to maneuver and ever so much faster. And before you ask, Mr. Caldwell, my father still abhors my bloomers.”
If Lady Drayton’s chin plummeted any lower, it might actually touch her chest. “How lovely that you’ve been afforded the chance for an impromptu reunion.”
“How lovely, indeed,” Lady Chastity spoke up. “I am still waiting for my dance, Mr. Caldwell.”
He gave a disinterested shrug. “I doubt my toes would withstand the trauma.”
Pressing her lips together into a pout she evidently intended to be beguiling, Lady Chastity motioned to the dance floor. “One waltz, Mr. Caldwell.”
“Surely you would not refuse a lady,” Lady Drayton urged, the color miraculously returning to her cheeks.
“I would not be so certain.” He saw no point in encouraging Lady Chastity. Especially not now, when he’d much rather be looking into another woman’s emerald eyes.
“Phineas Caldwell, I had not believed you to be a stick in the mud,” Lady Chastity said, not quite teasing.
“A stick in the mud, is it?” Finn turned to Macie. “Might I inquire as to yer thoughts on the matter?”
She squared her shoulders and regarded him with a thoughtful tilt of her chin. “I am no authority on the matter, but this is a ballroom, after all. Dancing is to be expected, is it not?”
“I cannot counter yer logic, Miss Mason.” He crooked an arm in offering. “Shall we dance?”
Chapter Three
Why, the gallof the man!
Spotting the cocky glimmer in Finn’s eyes, Macie bit back an unladylike reply. The man had no more desire to twirl about the dance floor than she did. Rather, he’d transformed Lady Chastity’s unsubtle attempt to ease the tedium of her marriage to a man old enough to be her father into a means to sabotage Lady Drayton’s scheme. If Finn possessed so much as a single gentlemanly inclination, she might have believed his invitation had been intended to offer her a reprieve, however brief, from their hostess’s matchmaking.
But Phineas Caldwell was no gentleman.
His motives had nothing to do with chivalry, nor was he intent on looking out for her best interests. If anything, he was making the most of this opportunity to vex both Lady Drayton and Lady Chastity, if only to watch the younger woman pout.
The cocky curve of his smile seemed to challenge her. Macie resisted the urge to glare at him. He’d put her on quite the spot, hadn’t he? Heaven knew she had no inclination to wade into the crowd of peacocks, much less while garbed as a mud hen.
