It had affected him for a moment and caused him to hurriedly ask if she would care for a walk by the lake. She was attractive to him, of course, but he knew he must avoid any of the finer feelings that could lead him back down the old path. At all costs, he must keep to his original plan.
He was glad of the company of the three women all the way to Croston Hall. They chattered happily, and he was struck by the closeness of their relationship and the ease of their conversation. There was clearly a great care between the three of them, and he thought that a very good thing. After all, Emmeline would no doubt settle in very well at Addison Hall having been assured of the company of her mother and sister whenever she wanted it. He could not help thinking that the three of them being so very close would make the whole thing work so much more seamlessly in the end.
When they finally arrived at Croston Hall, Hunter hurriedly jumped down from the carriage and helped the ladies out. As they approached the great entrance, he could see that Giles Calloway was standing ready to greet them, smiling broadly.
“Lord Addison, how very pleased I am that you could attend this evening,” he said warmly. “And Mrs Fitzgerald and her lovely daughters, what a treat.”
“How very kind of you, Mr Calloway,” Emmeline said and graciously inclined her head.
“Well, I hope you have all come here ready to dance this evening. I must admit, I do love the amusement myself, and I shall be on the lookout for partners, so do bear me in mind,” he said and smiled at all three Fitzgerald women.
“Of course, Mr Calloway,” Emmeline answered and spoke in as amiable manner as their host. “I shall look forward to it.”
As he watched her, Hunter could not help thinking that she would make a very fine Countess indeed. She had a grace and ease of manner that would make her very popular in the county as his wife.
With a certain amount of pleasure, Hunter held out his arm for Emmeline to take as they made their way into the ballroom with her mother and sister hand-in-hand behind them. Perhaps, if he could just concentrate on Emmeline, he would be able to get through the evening.
However, the moment they walked into the ballroom, despite the fact that it was already well populated, his eyes flew immediately to the light, bright blonde hair of Felicity. Her hair was so fine that it was quite unlike any other shade of blonde, and he had often teased her that she must be some manner of Nordic princess.
But the memory of happier times almost floored him, and he shut his eyes tightly for a moment in the hope that, when he opened them again, she would be gone. But she was not; when he opened his eyes, not only was Felicity still there, but she had turned to look at him.
“I say, Mr Calloway has gone to a great deal of trouble with the food, Lord Addison,” Emmeline said, and it was clear from her tone that she was trying to distract him.
He had told her most honestly beforehand that Felicity and the Duke were to be in attendance. She had taken the news with extraordinary calm and seemed as keen to help him through it all as he had been to help her. In the end, he was glad of his honesty as it would not have done for a moment to have Emmeline surprised by Felicity’s presence, even if there was no attraction love between the two of them. She valued honesty, and she had told him as much.
“He most certainly has.” With a great effort, he turned his back upon Felicity and regarded Emmeline fully. “And I see that some people are already eating. Perhaps we should find a table and make ourselves comfortable before the food has gone altogether.” He laughed but knew that he was forcing it.
Even though Felicity had been clean across the room, many yards away from him, he felt almost as if she were by his side, her warm breath on his neck as it had been in so many an embrace in their time together. He felt haunted and unequal to the task of making his way through the evening from one end to the other with the sort of dignity that Emmeline Fitzgerald had shown in the face of much greater adversity.
“I shall follow your lead, Lord Addison,” Emmeline said brightly, and he knew that she was equally forced in her demeanour.
They had managed the evening as best they could, and he had stood up to dance with Emmeline more than the customary twice. Emmeline was a good dancer, very graceful, and she had done her best to chatter to him throughout, trying to keep him distracted as he had done for her at Ashton House.
However, for one of the dances, they had found themselves in a group with the Duke and Duchess of Galcross, and he realized immediately that there was nothing he could do about it. Even though some weeks had passed, and Felicity and the Duke were now very much out and about in society, it was clear that people were not quite used to the changes just yet. He knew that people were regarding him a little more closely than ordinarily they might, if only to see his reaction. Of course, it was nothing like as extreme as the experience had been for Emmeline, and he knew it. However, he was being regarded closely enough that he could not turn away from the dance now for fear that he would embarrass not only himself but Emmeline also.
As they danced, it was necessary for Hunter and Felicity to cross more than once. On the first occasion, he had fixed his stare, looking at a point a little over her shoulder and to the left, so as he did not have to look into her face. If he stared into those bright, shining blue eyes, he did not know how he would react.
And as for the Duke, he had regarded him only surreptitiously. Although the man was but eight years older than Hunter, at forty, he thought the Duke had not fared very well. The years had not been kind to him, and it looked likely that the rumours of his overindulgence in strong liquor were well-founded. He had a certain redness to his cheeks that spoke a little more of drink than the warmth of a summer’s evening.
When it came time to cross Felicity once more in the dance, Hunter had quite forgotten his resolve not to look at her. As he looked into her face, she was looking intently back, and he felt sure he saw a little regret there. Perhaps even a little pain. Although he kept his own expression flat, his heart was pounding in his chest like a runaway carriage, so much so that he wondered that she could not hear it.
When the dance had finally come to an end, there was not a dancer more relieved than Hunter Bentley. With a fixed smile, he turned from the group and held his arm out to Emmeline.
“You managed very well indeed, Lord Addison, really you did. I can only hope that it will get easier for you from here onwards,” Emmeline said with a warm smile.
“I cannot thank you enough,” he said and heard the desolation in his voice. “I could not have managed it had you not been there, Miss Fitzgerald. Really, had it not been for you, I should have simply turned and walked away. You have spared me such an indignity, and I shall not forget it.”