To make matters worse, she’d returned to an animated discussion about the Duke of Rockeforte and Lord Thurston. Both of whom, it seemed, had been recently heard at White’s making a solemn pledge to remain unmarried until the age of forty. Lord Loudor had acted as witness.
The evening had lost a good deal of its charm after that. No matter that she’d known all along that Alex wasn’t wooing her as one does a wife, to hear his intentions so plainly spelled out pinched at her heart. She could have done with the illusion that the idea of marriage to her had at least crossed his mind.
In the parlor, Alex continued to speak in spite of her obvious reticence. “Last night aside, I haven’t personally seen you truly enjoying yourself at a single event you’ve attended.”
“Not every event I’ve attended included you.”
“True,” he replied. But most of them had; she simply wasn’t aware of it. He’d wanted to give her some degree of space. A chance to come to him for help with what ever was eating at her. And, he could acknowledge to himself, a chance to miss him, just a little. “But I’ve been present at a few, and at every one you made certain to surround yourself with the same group of men with whom you have nothing in common. I’m willing to wager that has something to do with your current dissatisfaction.”
“Alex, we’ve been over this.”
“But I’ve yet to receive a satisfactory explanation for your behavior. You evade, you equivocate, and you lie. I want to know why.” He leaned forward in his chair and leveled a hard look at her. “Why are you so determined to encourage the attentions of men you don’t care for?”
“They’re only white lies,” she grumbled. “And I only make them when you press me for information I’m not ready to give.” She didn’t bother denying his correct assessment of her feelings toward the Listed Gentlemen, not when he could so easily tell when she was lying. She studied his face a moment, and in her mind’s eye she saw herself confiding in him, heard him offer his help…as a protector, or worse, as a matchmaker. Her stomach rolled at the thought, and she sat up straighter, lifted her chin.
“That’s an evasion,” Alex pointed out.
“It happens to be the truth. I’m not discussing this with you, Alex. You can either accept that and we can move on to far more agreeable topics, or you can leave, but I’ve no intention of squandering the rest of my afternoon arguing with you.”
Alex deliberately took his time deciding, and Sophie barely refrained from squirming in her seat, or worse, admitting to her bluff. Even fighting with Alex was preferable to sitting alone in the house with no distraction from her troubles.
Alex stared at her a moment longer, then relaxed once again. “Very well.”
“Very well, you will abide by my wishes and stay, or very well, you will abide by my wishes and leave?”
Alex smiled at her little jab. “The former. So come, you offered agreeable conversation. Let’s have it then.”
Sophie nearly closed her eyes in relief. Now she could spend the rest of the day sitting here with Alex discussing everything from politics to fashion. He wouldn’t speak down to her or temper the choice of topics. He’d ask her opinion, listen carefully to what she said, and almost certainly disagree with her. But rather than give her a patronizing pat on the hand and an equally patronizing smile, he’d debate the subject with her as an equal. She adored their verbal sparring, even when she suspected he was being difficult on purpose. Alex might see her as a pretty keepsake to be won, but at least he regarded her as a pretty keepsake with an active mind.
They were in the midst of a perfectly enjoyable debate regarding the likelihood of a war with the Americans when he stood and said, “We’ll have to continue this another day. I must be going.”
“What? But you just got here.” Good Lord, she hoped that didn’t sound quite as pathetic as she thought it did.
“It’s coming on five,” Alex said checking the wall clock. “I’ve been here near two and a half hours.”
“But I thought…”
“What did you think?” he asked sincerely, smoothing his coat and straightening his cravat.
That he would stay for dinner, she thought. That he would convince her to go out to night after all, just the two of them, unless a proper chaperone was required.
“That you would stay longer,” she said instead, hoping to salvage what little pride her over eager mouth had left her.
“Why, Miss Everton, will you miss me?”
Sophie snorted by way of answer.
“I don’t suppose that translates to ‘yes, dreadfully,’ in any of those languages you know?”
“I’m afraid not.”
“Pity.” He walked over to give her a chaste peck on the forehead. “If you were willing to beg, I might be willing to stay. Now, I shall have to keep my other appointment.”
“With my cousin?”
Alex appeared not to hear the censure in her voice. “No actually, I have business with his friend Lord Heransly.”
The earl’s son? The one he had warned her about?
“I’ll see you at Haldon,” he said.
“Not before?” So much for her pride, but the house party was still several days away, and—