During a break between songs, the Master of Ceremonies announced a game. During the next song, a fun galloping dance, the partners were obligated to switch after a few spins around the floor, allowing the couples to get to know more of the group on an individual level and only for a few minutes. It looked fun to Marie, but she was still glad she didn’t have to be involved. That kind of movement would surely have made her feel faint.
She didn’t play a great deal during the dance. Her part was simple and allowed her to watch the couples on the floor. She settled her eyes on Duke Arlington because the constant movement would have confused her brain. He was stone-faced most of the time. She noticed that he went through her four sisters one after the other, not paying much attention to any of them. The knowledge of open rejection was obvious on his face. Two of her sisters smiled at him and danced freely, enjoying the movement and the fun. Jenny kept her eyes down as she danced with him but looked shyer than anything else. She responded to the Duke when he spoke to her, making him smile a little. That gave Marie a sense of relief. When they separated, he bowed to her and kissed her hand. He turned then and was confronted with the disdainful face of Madeline.
Once again, Marie found herself feeling sorry for the Duke. She wished she could talk to him and ease his pain. She didn’t believe the scar made him an unattractive man. She felt that it distinguished him from the others and should be worn as a badge of honor. He had obviously been defending his beliefs over something or there would not have been a duel. Even if it was a duel over a woman, surely that still meant that he was a loyal and honorable man who would put himself on the line for a woman he loved?
She didn’t understand why she seemed to be the only one who thought that about him. She noticed that Madeline did not smile when she was dancing with the Duke. In fact, she kept her eyes and face turned away so that she was not looking at him. Marie could tell that the Duke was saying a few words to her, but Madeline did not appear to respond to him.
Duke Arlington spun her in a circle violently, and she almost lost her footing. Marie lowered her head and tried to hide a small grin. It was only what Madeline deserved. She was being rude to the Duke. She could tell when he separated from her that when he bowed low to her, he said a few angry words that made Madeline’s face screw up tight. She turned on her heel and stalked away from him into the arms of another man who swept her away to dance.
Marie watched the Duke looking after her retreating sister with a look of rage on his face. He turned away and walked off the dance floor, apparently looking for a drink.
She sighed. She wondered how she could draw the Duke’s attention to her. It was his ballroom they were occupying, which made it even more unsettling that her sister had treated him with such disdain. No one else in the room behaved that way to the Duke.
She spotted Cornelius as he was headed toward her when the music stopped. She stood up from the bench and moved away from it to stand next to the grand piano. She gestured for him to come to her. He stopped on the way and grabbed two glasses of white wine, one of which he handed to her when he got closer.
“How are you getting along, Marie? Enjoying yourself? I do like your playing. You play so well.” They smiled at each other.
“Thank you, Cornie. I do like to play. How have you been this evening? Found your lovely lady yet?”
He narrowed his eyes and grinned slyly. “I think I have my eye on a lady, yes. How about you? See anyone from afar?”
Marie blushed and moved closer to him so that she could speak in a soft voice. “I have. And I need your help.”
“I can’t play the piano for you if that’s what you’re going to ask,” Cornelius replied with a laugh, knowing she would never have asked such a thing. She laughed with him.
“No, no. You know better than that, Cornie. No, I want you to talk to him for me. I want to know if he’s noticed me at all back here. Or if he saw me last Season. I was dancing then.”
“We’ll be dancing together soon. Do you want me to talk to him before then? And who is it we’re talking about anyway?” Cornelius gazed around the room, trying to guess who his young friend could be interested in.
“Duke Phillip,” she whispered.
He leaned closer to her and spoke out the corner of his mouth. “Did you just say Duke Phillip, my dear? Are you interested in becoming an Arlington?”
The thought sent a chill of excitement through Marie that she tried very hard not to show. She assumed her friend noticed anyway because he chuckled deeply.
“Aaah, so it is that way. Well, dear, I will go and have a chat with our host and steer him in your direction. How does that sound?”
“Oh, Cornelius, you are a good friend!” Marie threw her arms around his shoulders, and he leaned over to hug her back.
“It’s not a problem at all.”