Page 20 of Shining Knight
She hit him with one of her pillows. “I am serious! Do you think I would be allowed to talk to you if you married her?”
He chucked her under the chin. “We cannot have that. Very well, I will play. Who would you suggest for me?”
She twisted her face adorably. “I will have to think about it. Do you have any particular requirements?”
He tapped his cheek with his index finger, pretending to think. “Well-bred.”
She snorted. “That goes without saying.”
He scowled at her. “This is my list, is it not?”
She waved her hand for him to continue.
“Sense of humor. And a sportswoman.”
“Will you clarify that?” she said, closing her eyes as if trying to conjure up the image of the ideal mate for him. It was rather entertaining, if nothing else.
“A good seat on a horse and able to shoot?”
“That will narrow your choices considerably,” she pointed out. “If you say billiards or cricket then you will be completely out of luck since neither is a ladies’ sport.”
“You play billiards and cricket,” he argued. She had not yet realized he was baiting her.
“We both know I am a poor example of ladylike attributes.”
“I like you just the way you are, pet. If you simply played by the rules you would have no difficulty.”
“Perhaps I should try to think of societal behavior like a cricket game,” she teased, smiling mischievously.
Graham felt something stir within him when she looked at him like that. Describing his ideal mate was becoming dangerous.
“What else? Beautiful, I assume?”
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” he retorted. “Kitty Ravenhill is aesthetically pleasing, but is one of the ugliest people I have ever met.”
Eugenia was watching him carefully. “There is no one you have in mind?”
“Not particularly. I am open-minded, but I have no desire to be trapped into a marriage of convenience or wedlock by scheming.”
“I would hate that for you. I would hate it for me,” she added ruefully.
“What about you, pet? You have had lots of unsuitable suitors, but now that Perth and Farnsworth are interested, will either of them suit you?”
“Say that quickly ten times.” She blew out an exasperated breath, causing a stray hair to go upward. “Farnsworth is very agreeable in a paternal sort of way. Perth is handsome…”
“But?” he prompted.
“I feel like I am walking on ice when I am with him, but I admit I do not know him very well. Perhaps the house party will give me an opportunity to discover our compatibility.”
Graham nodded. “I do not personally know of any faults.” It was hard to know a person’s true self amongst the whirl of the Season. Yet Graham knew nothing averse about Perth and he had known him since school, even though he was three years Perth’s junior.
He had received a note from Knighton that morning, informing him that he would be on his way to Town, but he did not want Eugenia to know yet.
But how would Eugenia behave with her brother around? Would she feel obligated to marry to please him? Graham knew Knighton well and he loved his siblings dearly, but he might think it was for her own good to marry. Eugenia might appear disobedient, but truly she wanted nothing more than to please her brother. Graham could see how conflicted she was by these two suitors. He would have to keep a close eye on Knighton and make certain he didn’t pressure her into a marriage that would only see her miserable. For all Rowley was like a brother to him, the duke could be extremely stubborn when he thought he knew best.
“I should be on my way,” he said, standing and straightening his jacket. “I’ll stop scandalizing your maid now and leave you to your Radcliffe.”
She waved her hand dismissively. “No one is worried about you.”
They should be, he thought instinctively.
“I will see you tomorrow, then. I have promised Lady Hambridge to escort you to Brighton.”
She gave him a hesitant smile.
“Cheer up, pet. I will fight Knighton if he tries to force you into anything disagreeable.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.” He bent over and kissed her on the cheek, then left before he said or did something he would regret.
