Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
Suffering the exhaustion of too many hours of overthinking through the night, Sebastian sat in a garden chair on the lawn of Whitestone Hall, his eyes fixed on one lady and one lady alone.
Many had tried to snatch his attention, but he could not tear his attention from Phoebe.
He loved her and he intended to ask for her hand in marriage, but there was only so much he could do in the time that he was allotted.
Before he made his declaration of love public, he needed to know that her family was safe. She would be protected, regardless, because he would do everything in his power to provide for her every need and make her feel secure.
But he could not forget that Lord Tripleton’s name had been jotted in Betula’s ledgers. That meant the Earl was in debt, but perhaps, if he had dug himself into that hole, there were other dark deeds buried there along with him.
“You look as though you are ready to set this entire garden ablaze.”
Sebastian grunted, barely looking up at Vincent as he took the seat opposite him. Percy and Verity trailed in Vincent’s wake.
The scene at Lord and Lady Brennan’s had been dull, to say the least. Every time Sebastian tried to get close to Phoebe, he was thwarted. Her mother stayed at her elbow all night, whispering in her ear.
And when the Countess of Tripleton did slip away for a few moments, leaving her daughter unattended, that was when the Earl of Tripleton would swoop in and introduce his daughter to an old and practically decrepit gentlemen who was searching for a second, or even third in some cases, wife.
Sebastian’s heart went out to Phoebe, but when Verity suggested that their party retire to Whitestone, he had gone along with the crowd easily. He could not stand being in the same room as Phoebe but being denied the pleasure of her company. It was too cruel to keep him from her side.
“I just might,” Sebastian quipped.
Percy sat and pulled his wife onto his lap. Verity reached out then and patted Sebastian’s arm. “When will you tell everyone that you proposed to Lady Phoebe?”
“Not now… not yet.”
Verity pouted prettily. “I should like to begin helping her plan the wedding.”
“All in good time, my friend,” Sebastian assured her.
Vincent took a slow sip of his drink then asked, “What is stopping you from declaring your love publicly? Can you not save Lady Phoebe from her awful mother and dreadful father by whisking her away from their sides forever?”
“Phoebe has suffered through a string of scandalous ordeals in the past. First, when her parents sent her away as a child. Again, when they carted her off to Nantwich after her first Season and now…”
“Birchwood,” Verity grumbled. “His name was on the tip of everyone’s tongue tonight. The people at the supper party could barely utter a sentence without talking about the dastardly Birchwood.”
“He is the worst sort of scoundrel,” Sebastian agreed.
“And it is a blessing that he has been captured.” Verity smiled at Sebastian. “We are all grateful to know that there is one less villain lurking in our midst.”
“Hear, hear,” Percy cheered as he dropped a quick kiss on his wife’s cheek.
“Take heart,” Vincent added in a low, soft voice. “You have freed Lady Phoebe from Lord Birchwood’s clutches. It will only be a matter of time before the two of you will find yourselves together again.”
Sebastian lifted his chin and stared up at the moon. It was a tiny silver slipper of a thing tonight and cast barely any light at all. “The time cannot pass quickly enough.”