For the first time in as long as Albert could remember, he and his father shared a smirk. James had never been the smartest man Albert had ever known. In truth, Albert didn’t know how his cousin had any business ventures at all. Between his ignorance and his roguish ways of drinking, gambling and keeping the company of less reputable women, he had no idea how James wasn’t completely bankrupt.
But then, Albert guessed that his uncle kept James financed. Like the earl, Albert’s uncle was proud, and would do anything to keep any scandal from coming to their family’s name. Albert doubted it would be long before James did something to ruin his efforts, however. James had no ambition. He wanted money, but he didn’t want to have to work hard for it. And as a man who had no claim to a noble title, his only other option was to continue his gambling. Albert might have pitied his cousin, had he not been such a cad all the time.
The earl appeared to be gearing up to launch into a long speech, proving just how ignorant James was. But as he opened his mouth, the loud chatter all throughout the ballroom turned to brief silence, then hushed, intense murmuring. Albert turned with disinterest toward the front of the ballroom, wondering what had caused such a drastic change in atmosphere. And as soon as he did, he wished he hadn’t. His heart dropped into his stomach, which then commenced to twist into knots, making it hard for Albert to breathe.
There, at the top of the stairs, beside her brother, was Cordelia. Her black hair was twisted into knot atop her head, with ringlets hanging down in back and framing her pale face. Her light brown eyes were proud, and sparkled in a way that told Albert she was relishing the attention that her arrival was garnering. And her lips turned up into a small, humble smile as the butler announced the arrival of her and her brother.
The room was so quiet that Albert could hear the rustling of her blue skirts as she moved. Albert felt like time completely stopped. Only, instead of love and joy, he felt dread and horror as he watched his former lover enter the room. He couldn’t even move until James nudged him with his elbow.
“Looks like I was right about Cordelia being back in London,” he said, grinning.
Albert looked at his cousin, disgusted, but not surprised, to see the glee on his face. Albert was sure that his bewilderment was plastered all over his own face. But even for James, gloating about something so painful for Albert was a new low. Albert wouldn’t have dreamed of making a scene by giving James what for. But even if he’d wanted to, he found that he couldn’t make his mouth form words.
“Well, I’ll be,” the earl said. “I wonder what could have brought her back to London after all this time.”
James chuckled, patting Albert on the back.
“Perhaps, she came looking for our beloved Albert here,” he said.
The earl snorted.
“Wouldn’t that be something?” he asked.
Albert tuned out the rest of what they were saying. He stared at Cordelia as though he could eventually look just hard enough to will her to disappear. He wasn’t able to look away from his former lover until the orchestra began playing the chords for the first dance set of the evening. Only then did Albert come back to himself. He had promised the first dance to his mother. And he was anxious to get away from his father, and especially his cousin.
Without a word, he turned on his heel and darted through the crowd. He was moving in an auto function mode for the first few seconds, his mind still reeling from the sudden sight of Cordelia. James had, in fact, warned him that she was supposedly back in town. And yet, he had dismissed James as either misinformed, or a liar. Now, he felt foolish. If he hadn’t done that, he might have been better prepared to see her. His only saving grace was that she hadn’t noticed him yet. At least, he didn’t think she had.
He found his mother talking with some friends of hers that he didn’t recognize. They barely looked at him as he bowed, offering his mother his arm.Some friends these are, Mother,he thought dryly.
“Oh, dear, I almost forgot our dance,” his mother teased, giggling.
Albert gave her a tight, small smile as she linked her arm through his. He started leading the way back to the dance floor, but his mother stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.
“Darling, I saw what I know you saw,” she said, keeping her voice low. “Are you all right?”
Albert glanced at her, too afraid to meet her eyes. He swallowed, determined not to make any kind of scene. Especially because of Cordelia.
“Yes, Mother,” he said, his voice sounding mechanic and forced. “I’m fine.”
The viscountess looked at him as though she heard his inner voice, which was screaming at him about how much of a liar he was. He knew he was lying, and he felt guilty. But to be fair, he knew that his mother must have known that he wasn’t all right. Still, he did his best to relax and give his mother a true, warm smile as they got into position for the dance.
“Let’s dance,” he said. But in the back of his mind, his inner voice kept screaming at him. He was far from all right. And he didn’t know how he was ever going to handle the situation.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Martha watched with mild curiosity at the buzz of conversation and activity surrounding Lady Cordelia as she and the gentleman beside her descended the stairs from the entryway of the ballroom to the main floor. She studied the pair, noting the striking resemblance between the two. The man was clearly a bit older than her. But they had the same light brown eyes, dark hair and high cheekbones. Martha guessed that the gentleman must have been her brother.
On the surface, they didn’t look like anything any more special than any of the other members of the ton. And yet, people were all but fawning over them, crowding around and seeking occasion to speak with the two of them. Lady Cordelia, in particular. She couldn’t figure out what all the fuss was about. She didn’t even think that Lady Cordelia looked familiar to her.
“Can you believe it? It’s the dowager marchioness,” a woman just ahead of Martha said.
Martha didn’t intend to eavesdrop. But she and her friends were speaking loudly enough for Martha to hear without much effort on her part.
“I was sure she was gone for good,” another woman said.
The other two women shook their heads simultaneously.
“With Lord Dalton now dead, it makes sense that Lady Cordelia would return here,” said the third woman.
