Page 14 of Earl for the Summer
That shouldn’t matter so much, but it did.
Her gaze flicked up then, as if she’d felt his attention. Their eyes met, but only for a second.
Cassian forced his mouth into a mild expression and looked away, then reached for his glass again. He was not here to be distracted. He had a part to play. A duty to his brother to uphold.And then, somewhere between the fourth course and dessert, a thought began to take shape in his mind.
What if he asked her for help?
Daphne Bridewell was Lady Selina’s dearest friend. If anyone could assist him to navigate a courtship with the lady, it would be her.
And then he’d have a reason to speak to her. He’d have reason to listen to her laugh. To hear her thoughts. To watch the way her fingers curled around a napkin as she listened to dull men with remarkable patience.
Yes, he could ask her to advise him on how best to woo Selina.
He glanced at her again. This time, she arched a brow as she met his gaze. Anticipation coiled low in his gut, but he willed himself to look away.
As the final plates were cleared and Lord Harrington rose from his seat, guests began to disperse. Gentlemen were invited to the billiards room or a nearby salon for cards. Others made murmured plans to stroll the garden paths in the balmy air.
Cassian didn’t head to billiards or cards. He went in search of one petite blonde.
He found her not far from where she’d been earlier, standing near the drawing room’s wide windows beside a dark-haired young lady who shared her features and seemed to have her affection. He guessed she must be one of the other Bridewell sisters. Julian had mentioned that there were several and also that one of her sisters was the Duchess of Edgerton.
“Miss Bridewell,” he said to the woman he’d done a miserable job of not watching all through dinner.
The dark-haired sister tilted her head. “Let me guess, Lord Windham. You mean to steal my sister away again.”
“I’d be greatly obliged,” he replied smoothly. “I’ve a question I’d like to put to her.”
The two exchanged a quick, inscrutable look.
Then Cassian met Daphne’s gaze squarely and added, “Perhaps we might all step into the garden? The air will do us good.”
He said it lightly, but the request was sincere. And if he wasn't mistaken, the wariness in her gaze softened. Just slightly.
The Harringtons had strung lanterns throughout the garden paths and Miss Daphne Bridewell’s sister took off wandering through the waist-high beds of flowers, then broke away into the grass to smell some white roses twining around a trellis.
“She intends to seek her own path, it seems.” Cassian snuck a look at the beauty beside him.
“You’ve just summed Ivy up perfectly.” She smiled as she watched her sister. “Always determined and very certain of her own opinions.”
“A formidable combination,” he said, amused.
They walked in companionable quiet. A night breeze stirred the lanterns above them and carried the scent of roses and damp grass. The silence between them wasn’t uncomfortable, but at least for him, it felt charged.
“Are you and your sister much alike?” he asked at last.
“In some ways, but very different in other ways.”
The other Miss Bridewell had plunked herself down on the grass, seemingly unbothered about mussing her gown.
“Perhaps she doesn’t have your restraint,” he said. “Though I can’t begrudge anyone for relishing a garden.”
Daphne’s steps slowed. She looked over at him. “You think me restrained?”
He didn’t answer right away.
“I think,” he said slowly, “that you see more than you let on. And I suspect you feel more than you let yourself admit.”
Something flickered across her face. “I don’t know what you mean.”
