Albert bristled as he looked at his father. It was all he could do to bite his tongue and remind the earl that no pleasantness or first impressions would be necessary, had it not been for his bright idea to fix Albert up with a strange woman. He had to fight harder to point out that he could pantomime throughout the entire evening, or stand on his hands and juggle with his feet, and no one would notice, because his scars were his first impression. People judged him before he even opened his mouth. And that would never change.
Albert just managed to wrestle for control of his mouth just as they reached the open townhouse door. The tall, gray-haired, sharply dressed butler bowed and greeted them politely, but Albert noticed that he didn’t let his eyes linger anywhere near the viscount. Albert took several deep breaths as he followed the butler and his family through the halls.
The townhouse was warmly decorated, with streamers and vases filled with pink and yellow flowers, but Albert shuddered. Like the people of the ton, looks were very deceiving. The pretty people were the cruelest, while Albert himself scolded himself for days if he ever said a cross word to anyone. Anyone, that is, except for his father, for whom he would have many cross words in the coming days. But then, his father’s appearance was also deceptive. Albert would have never guessed that his father would be the type of person who would decide his son’s future without so much as a consideration.
Before he knew it, they were approaching the drawing room. The buzz of conversation within told Albert that the other guests were already there. He tried to brace himself for what was to come, to give a good first impression, as his father had said. But his smile felt more like a grimace, even to him, and looked that way in the reflection of the small mirror on the wall just beside the drawing room door.
The instant their arrival was announced, every pair of eyes in the room went directly to Albert. His heart sank into his stomach, and he forced himself to not close his eyes tightly and wait until everyone stopped staring. And yet, he also couldn’t bring himself to make eye contact with anyone. Even as his parents began greeting some of the less rude guests, Albert opted to glance around the room. And instantly, he was amazed.
The drawing room walls were covered with beautiful paintings, some of which Albert was sure he had never seen anywhere, even in his travels overseas. They were beautiful pictures of prominent London buildings, Hyde Park, theatre performances and landscapes, as well as what Albert could only surmise were portraits of people the artist knew, or who agreed to pose for the artist. He noted that the skill was easily that of the professional paintings he saw for sale in museums and art shows. Where had they purchased such fine paintings?
He was so mesmerized by the paintings that he hadn’t realized he had viewed the last one. His eyes sought more, and he continued scanning the room. But what caught his eye next wasn’t a painting, or even a mirror. It was a young lady in a pretty, red dress standing alone in the far corner of the room. She was gazing almost lovingly at one of the paintings. Albert understood, as the paintings were wonderful. But before he could look away, the woman’s eyes locked onto his, and he froze.
Her face was largely expressionless, though her jade green eyes flickered with a few different emotions. Only once did they find their way to the right side of his face, and it was so briefly that Albert couldn’t be sure that she did it at all. What made his stomach twist into knots was that she held his gaze firmly. She was a very lovely woman, to be sure. And the only reason that such a pretty woman would be staring at him so intensely was out of disgust at his appearance. But then, why wasn’t she grimacing? Was she too shocked to outwardly react?
“Welcome to Elwood Manor,” Lord Elwood said suddenly. The young woman immediately looked at the viscount, and Albert slowly did the same. But not before noticing how her cheeks briefly turned red, and how she gave him one more sideways glance. Albert groaned inwardly. He hadn’t even spoken a word, and he had already repulsed a young lady. But then, had he expected any less?
“Thank you, Lord Elwood,” his father said brightly, bowing to their host elegantly.
Albert turned his face away to mask his disgust. His father appeared to be all but groveling to the viscount, which was something he’d never witnessed before. He couldn’t believe that an atrocious arranged marriage could turn his father into such a suck up.
Albert’s father began making introductions, and Albert reluctantly turned back to face the viscount. When he did, he noticed that the woman in the red dress had moved closer to the viscount. Albert avoided her gaze, but he could feel her eyes on him. No one had ever looked at him for so long without making it a point to stay away from him, or making a snide, cruel remark. He didn’t get long to consider the thought, though. His father clapped him on the back suddenly and pulled him closer.
“Don’t be shy, my boy,” he said pointedly. “Lord Elwood was just introducing us to his family.”
Albert plastered on a smile as he bowed to Lady Sarah Elwood and Miss Isabel Elwood, his wife and niece, respectively. Albert frowned, wondering if he had misunderstood his father when he said that Albert was to marry the viscount’s daughter. And then, the woman in the red dress stepped forward, and Lord Elwood put a gentle hand on her upper back.
“And this is my dear daughter, Martha,” he said.
Albert stared dumbly as she dipped into a curtsey and greeted everyone. Albert noticed that she avoided eye contact with him, even after he had bowed to her. He was sure then that his appearance had horrified her. And now, he knew for sure that his future wife couldn’t stand the sight of him. More than ever, he wanted to flee Elwood Manor and never look back.
He was saved from awkward conversation, however. The butler announced that dinner was ready to be served, and everyone began filing out of the drawing room. Albert fell back to the end of the line, ignoring the fact that he was likely expected to escort his future betrothed to dinner. She didn’t seem too interested in having him escort her, as she walked closely beside her mother. However, Albert wasn’t surprised to find that he was seated across from Miss Elwood at the table.
All throughout the meal, Miss Elwood didn’t speak to him. The conversation revolved around the Season, which was in full swing, and Albert did his best to tune it out. He didn’t have any interest in the Season events from the start. But he hardly saw any point in any of the parties, now that he was to be engaged to Miss Elwood. Albert began to feel suffocated by superficial chatter around him. It had been three years since he socialized with members of the ton. And it wasn’t going well at all.
***
Martha was happy to let her cousin chatter away happily beside her, smiling and nodding as Isabel gushed about the Season, and about her wedding. She was a bundle of nerves. She shot occasional glances at Lord Billington, the man who was to be her husband, but she couldn’t summon the courage to speak to him. She couldn’t deny that he was handsome, despite the scarring on his face. But he was aloof and cold, and that concerned her. She thought about what Lily said about him. And everything she had seen of him so far indicated that the information was correct.
Why does Father think he is a suitable match for me?she wondered. It made her think that her father was friends with the earl, and that he was simply making the match for that reason, and no other. Surely, he could have made a more compatible match, if not for that. It hurt her to think that her father would be so intent on appeasing his friend that he would subject her to such an unsuitable partner. And yet, that was exactly how it seemed.
“Darling, are you all right?” Isabel asked. “You’ve hardly touched your dinner.”
Martha felt terrible that her situation was causing Isabel’s concern. She had been trying to keep her feelings hidden, so that her cousin wasn’t upset during what was supposed to be the happiest time of her life. She forced herself to smile as she reached out and patted Isabel’s arm.
“I’m fine,” she said. “I’m just not very hungry, that is all. I woke up feeling a little ill this morning and eating sparingly seems to help.”
Isabel nodded knowingly, her expression going from concerned to understanding.
“I see,” she said. “That’s probably for the best, then. I love you, Cousin. I just want to be sure that you’re all right.”
Martha nodded, smiling warmly again at her cousin.
“Thank you,” she said. “And I love you. I’m all right. I promise.”
And yet, when dinner came to an end, Martha cheered silently. She had to force herself to remain seated as the gentlemen retired to the parlor for drinks. Knowing that the evening was almost over did help her to feel better. She put her biggest fake smile on her face and counted down the minutes until she would get to leave.
Chapter Seven
