Chapter Six #2
“Pray, tell, what is to be done to stop it, Emily?” Penelope asked, a helpless smile curving her full mouth.
“You’ve done your best. You’ve been the truest friend I could have hoped for.
And you’ve placed yourself in jeopardy by helping me escape marriage over the last three years.
It’s only a matter of time before my parents catch on to the subterfuge.
Now, they’ve grown desperate enough to ignore all subtleties.
They will force me into trapping a wealthy gentleman into marriage before the end of the Season, mark my words.
” She glanced around the Jacobson ballroom, noting the men her parents had already deemed worthy of the scheme but failed to catch.
“The situation has grown more dire because of the past failures. I am to be sacrificed, Emily. My life and happiness for riches.”
Emily ground her teeth, hating the sad reality of Penelope’s statement.
It was true, of course. Lord and Lady True had grown bolder over the years in their efforts to secure a wealthy husband for their only daughter.
By now, their tactics were common knowledge, but rather than cease inviting Penelope to social functions, a game of sorts had somehow evolved.
There were even rumors of bets placed on which unlucky man would be inadvertently captured.
The wrinkle in the ton’s entertainment, however, was Penelope’s uncanny ability to escape situations that would have ruined any other lady.
She either managed to slip away just before discovery, or the targeted gentleman refused to engage in one-sided conversations with a girl who blushed and looked down at her slippers when asked a direct question, thus saving himself.
“It isn’t fair, Pen,” Emily finally whispered, her despair evident as she gave her friend a quick embrace. “But at the very least, we can try and make sure you marry someone you actually like and with whom you have something in common.”
“What gentleman worth his mettle would be interested in a woman who enjoys playing the ’Change and balancing accounts?” Penelope shook her head, the gaslights of the ballroom reflecting off her glossy brown locks.
“If only your parents would listen to you. The answer to your family’s financial troubles is right there inside your head.
They’ve no idea of your brilliance when it comes to such matters.
The only other person I know with similar talents is my brother.
” Emily huffed, then her eyes widened with a sudden thought.
“Oh, no, Emily Blackthorne. No!” Penelope’s nervous giggle carried a hint of panic as she gripped Emily’s hand.
“Do not even consider it. I would simply die of embarrassment if my parents ever thought of trapping Lord Camden, of all people. Besides, he is far too intelligent to fall for that sort of deception, and I am too terrified of the man to say two words in passing. I fear he would react violently if he ever found himself tricked in such a manner.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. My brother would never harm a woman.
” A quadrille had begun, signaling the first dance of the evening.
Emily used the gaiety of the moment to pull Penelope farther away from the watchful eye of Lady True.
“I don’t know why I never considered it before.
Oh, Pen. My brother is perfect for you, and you for him.
The pair of you are the only ones I know who find excitement in the endless tallying of numbers and stodgy, boring old stock reports. ”
“No, Emily.” Penelope glanced about, her expression pinched when Lord Grant waved from the opposite side of the ballroom.
Together, the two women watched as the man began weaving his way through the crowd toward them.
“I fear I will soon have no choice but to accept my fate, horrendous though it may be.” She shot Emily a sharp look, her green eyes perceptive enough that Emily nearly squirmed with dread.
“You’ve been fortunate that your parents have not forced you to accept one of the many proposals you’ve received since your first Season.
However, I suspect your luck will soon run out as well.
There is only so much freedom they will allow us. ”
Emily’s chin tilted higher as she saw the object of her dreams leaning against a pillar, his arms akimbo as he watched her with the mannerisms of a lounging tiger.
Realizing her attention had fallen upon him, he flashed her a grim smirk of acknowledgment.
Emily shivered as the earl silently conveyed his disappointment for how she’d fled from him.
“I shall marry Lord Wyldewood or not at all, Penelope. Mark my word on that.”
Penelope let out a delicate snort, bravely squaring her shoulders as she prepared herself for Lord Grant’s imminent arrival.
“If it wasn’t for your imposing, arrogant brother standing in the way, I might believe it possible.
But we both know he will never allow it, even if his reasons for objecting remain shrouded in mystery.
” Her following words were steeped in the same manner of sympathy as Simon’s.
“My dear, Lord Wyldewood would never consider it anyway. The man hasn’t truly spoken to you in almost three years, and you think you can wrangle a proposal out of him? ”
“What if I told you he is not completely adverse to the idea?” Emily confessed softly, her gaze narrowing on Wyldewood as he pushed off from the pillar.
He was now sauntering his way through the crowd, staring directly at her, and her heart pounded with such force that she wondered if she might faint.
Will he truly approach me here? He must know Simon is also in attendance…
and yet, something about the way he regards me says he does not care.
Her skin tingled in anticipation as he continued strolling with nonchalant determination through the crush of people.
Penelope’s green eyes widened with surprise, a tiny smile playing across her delicate features.
“You’ve had an adventure, Emily, and you will tell me everything that happened when we next find ourselves alone.
Now, the saints help me, I must obey my mother’s earlier directive and dance with the odious Lord Grant. ”