Page 66 of The Spinster's Stolen Hear
The smile dropped from her cousin’s face. “Not exactly. I only meant that since I know you rather well, I could tell that you liked him. I never saw the two of you interact tonight, though.”
“We didn’t,” Pippa responded, a little more sharply than was fair. “Excuse me, Katherine, but I really should go to bed. I’m quite tired.”
Katherine nodded slowly, and Pippa turned and began to head up the hallway. She stopped dead in her tracks when Katherine spoke again.
“If there’s something weighing on your mind, Pip, you can always talk to me about it. I give fairly good advice, and I can always be trusted to keep a confidence.”
Can you?
Oh, Pippa wanted to believe it. She wanted nothing more than to unburden herself, to tell Katherine everything, to weep on her shoulder and mourn the tattered remnants of her life.
But it was too risky, entirely too risky. Who was to know what would happen if she told Katherine the truth? And words, once spoken aloud, could never be taken back.
So, Pippa forced a smile that she did not feel and met Katherine’s eye squarely.
“There’s nothing weighing on my mind,” she said, as lightly as possible. “I’m worried about Mama’s megrim, of course, and I’m rather tired. I have the normal concerns of a woman of my age, I think. Nothing to worry yourself about, cousin. You should be resting and preparing for the baby.”
Katherine did not smile back. It was fairly clear that she was not convinced. Pippa’s cheeks ached from smiling.
“I see,” she murmured. “Well, just let me know if you would like to arrange any sort of party, and we can always invite Lord Whitmore and his mother – she’s quite delightful, you know. I would be happy to oblige you. I care about you, Pip. I want you to be happy.”
Happiness?Pippa thought, with a flare of anger.Why, that was never a choice. I was a fool to think that it was.
“Thank you,” she said aloud, quite mechanically. “That’s kind of you, but it won’t be necessary. We have a ball only tomorrow night, remember? Goodnight, Katherine.”
She turned on her heel and walked firmly along the hallway, leaving her cousin behind. Pippa’s throat burned from holding back tears. She knew that once she got back to her room, she would start to sob.
This time, Katherine did not call out after her.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Nathan drank his champagne in one gulp and immediately regretted it. It was not good champagne, and the sharp fizz scratched at his throat.
The Sinclairs were a family that wished to be considered sociable and wished to invite as many important people as they could, but never quite had the funds to do so. So, they stretched out their money by serving cheap drinks and fewer courses than what might be expected.
Still, they were a decent enough family, and a ball was a ball. Most people accepted the invitations.
Nathan had accepted his because he knew that Pippa would be here.
A full day had gone by since the musicale and their almost-kiss on the balcony. William had not turned up on Nathan’s doorstep demanding a duel and nor had Lady Randall.
Nathan knew that he ought to have called that very morning, and proposed marriage at once. It was the gentlemanly thing to do.
He was a little afraid that Lady Randall would throw him out of the house, however. Perhaps it was best to let the situation calm down.
Perhaps he’d waited too long, because now Pippa was dancing with Lord Barwick.
The man was clearly in his cups. He was staggering around, eyes glazed and red-rimmed. Even from his place in the corner of the room, Nathan could see that he kept treading on the poor woman’s feet. Pippa winced, trying and failing to keep her face straight, and did her best to keep her poor, slippered toes away from Lord Barwick’s stamping Hessians.
Lady Randall was here, of course, and Nathan was rather glad that he hadn’t seen her. His mother had melted off somewhere, and Colin was enjoying his honeymoon. It was easy enough for Nathan to stay out of conversations, and stand quietly in a corner.
His heart was thumping. He had to dosomethingabout Pippa. There was no sense going to Lady Randall, who clearly disliked him, and was focused on protecting her daughter’s reputation.
And that’s not uncalled for,he told himself firmly.You ought not to have put her in that position.
An apology was necessary, of course, and to summon up the courage to make that happen, Nathan had drunk a couple of champagne flutes to steel himself.
The dance ended, although Lord Barwick briefly tried to continue, arms and legs jerking out. Pippa flushed red, pushing him none too gently towards the sidelines. Lord Barwick’s mother was waiting, her face unreadable. Nathan moved towards them.
