Chapter 7
After Cameron had departed (and, thankfully, so had the three obnoxious visitors, clucking and fussing the whole way to the door), Cora spent the rest of the day in her room.
She even declined to join her brother and his wife for supper since she was so deeply lost in thought.
Harry came up to express his concern over this and to attempt to solicit additional information from her regarding her interaction with the strange Scotsman, but she was disinclined to satisfy his curiosity.
“It’s only right that I should know more about this whole thing,” he insisted. “If this fellow means to court you, then we must discuss the matter.”
“You wanted me to have a season so that I might find a suitor,” Cora reminded him airily. “As I appear to have found one, it seems I have saved the time and trouble of attending any more of those ghastly social gatherings.”
“That cannot be the only reason you have agreed to accompany him tomorrow, surely?”
She smirked. “Of course not, Harry. Merely a pleasant additional feature.”
“So what are his intentions?” Harry demanded. “For that matter, what are yours?”
“He has made it plain that he has taken a romantic interest in me,” she explained patiently.
“I have no idea where this has come from given our exceedingly limited initial interaction… It cannot be simply physical, for there were far lovelier ladies at the soiree if he were inclined to chase after that sort of thing.”
Cora didn’t bother to wait for Harry to correct her by telling her that none of the ladies could have been as lovely as she.
Such reassurances simply were not part of Harry’s personality, as they might have compelled him to actually acknowledge the existence and importance of people other than himself.
“However, I intend to humor him and see where this leads,” she went on, “as I have little else to do.”
“Did you not think it might be prudent to discuss the matter with me before agreeing?”
She balked. “Why on earth would I do that? For heaven’s sake, Harry, you are my brother, not my jailer! If I wish to pass a pleasant afternoon with a Scotsman—or an unpleasant one, for that matter—that is my affair, not yours!”
“Very well,” he conceded, sulking, “as long as it is only an afternoon and nothing beyond that.”
“Who are you to dictate such things?” she demanded.
“I am the one who wants to see you wed to a man who is worthy of you!”
“You mean a man whose wealth and prospects are worthy of your ambitions!” Cora retorted hotly.
“Yes!” he agreed without hesitation. “It is vital that you select a husband who can provide for you and your children, not just in terms of meager sustenance or even minor affluence but in a far larger sense of legacy and opportunity!”
“When I agreed to attend Lady Hepplewhite’s gathering—under duress, may I remind you—you assured me that ultimately, the decision would be mine with regard to whom I choose to marry. Is this to be another of your broken promises, Brother?” she asked tightly.
He sighed and collapsed into a chair, exasperated. “Why do you fight me so when you must know I am only trying to do what is best for you?”
“You are only trying to do what is best for yourself,” she countered, “just as you always have. But I am a grown woman, and I shall make my own choices regarding my future.”
“Even if it means being ostracized?” he protested. “From society? From your own family?”
“To be ostracized from a society of people I find boring at best and detestable at worst would be a blessing for me. And as for my own family, I do not believe for a moment that you would do such a thing.”
“You should not test me!”
“And you should not test my patience any more than you already have today!” she shot back angrily. “Now please leave my room at once so that I may be alone with my thoughts.”
He withdrew reluctantly, and Cora did her best to put his little tantrum out of her mind.
No, he would not disown her as a sister, she knew, no matter how much she infuriated him.
He would rant and rage and stamp his foot, and if others of his ilk inquired about her, he would no doubt do all he could to verbally distance himself from her. But that would be the extent of it.
Which still left her with mixed emotions about encouraging the advances of some Scotsman whom she barely knew.
To say that she was attracted to him would have been a tremendous understatement.
Those dashing green eyes of his remained with her even in his absence, and so did his astonishingly powerful arms. Not only that but what he had said to her, that both of them were only barely tolerated by polite society, had stuck with her.
What other prospects did she have? What other young men could she trust to be sincere in their intentions instead of suspecting that they were encouraging her only so they could share a private laugh about it with their friends?
If nothing else, allowing Cameron to escort her around the next day would give her an amusing way to pass the time. She tried to convince herself that the stakes involved were no higher than that.
Which did not make it easier for her to sleep that night, as she anticipated the meeting.
The following morning passed excruciatingly slowly for Cora as she waited for Cameron to call on her. She sat in the drawing room restlessly, flipping through books she’d read before and trying not to overthink what she might be in for that day.
At last, Gerald stepped into the room and cleared his throat, causing her to look up from her novel.
“Cameron Wallace is here to see you.”
“Thank you, Gerald.” She put the book aside, stood, ran her hands over the front of her dress to smooth it out, and checked her hair one last time in the looking glass.
She tried to tell herself that she was being silly, that there was no need to fuss over her appearance.
After all, the man had seen her embarrass herself enormously at the soiree, and he still wanted to spend the afternoon with her, so she doubted he’d care overmuch if a few hairs were out of place.
And it wasn’t as though the opinions of others who might spot her mattered much to her either. They were already trading enough cruel gossip about her that the state of her appearance was the least of her concerns in that regard.
Still, she spent a few extra moments making sure she was presentable before leaving the room.
Cameron waited for her in the foyer. She had spent much of the previous day trying to convince herself that he could not have been nearly as handsome as she’d remembered. But now, to her chagrin, she saw that he was every bit as attractive as her memory had insisted.
Perhaps even more so.
When he saw her, his face lit up with a wide smile. “Lady Cora! You look magnificent. Thank you again for agreeing to spend the afternoon with me.” He extended an arm. “Shall we, then?”
She grinned, accepting his arm. “You have been studying English customs of gentility, then, I take it?”
“My valet has taught me a thing or two,” he affirmed as they strode out into the sunlight. His carriage stood waiting for them, and he helped her into it before joining her. When he tapped on the roof, the driver flicked the reins and the ride began.
“So, you say you have not yet seen Hyde Park?” she asked.
Cameron shook his head. “No. I have had few opportunities to take in the sights of the city since my arrival. I am quite looking forward to it, though!”
When they reached the park, she pointed out the window of the carriage. “There! Look at the trees and the flowers! Aren’t they marvelous?”
Cora expected him to marvel at them, but instead, his face fell. “They are…adequate, I suppose, when one lives in a place such as this.”
She frowned. “You seem disappointed. Were you expecting something grander?”
“I suppose I was,” he admitted. “Have you ever been to Scotland?”
“I confess I have not.”
“Ahh.” He nodded as though that explained everything.
“It is such a green and gorgeous country. The woods, the fields, the blooming meadows… Nature is all around in its most glorious finery. Compared to that, this sad collection of weeds and branches in the middle of all this horrid gray stone and smoke…”
“I can see how that might make you wistful,” she conceded. “If you are that heartsick to return home, then why remain here?”
He sighed. “My father wants me to take an English bride. He believes that in doing so, our own position among the clans will be strengthened.”
“You do not sound as though you agree,” she pointed out.
“No, I do not see the sense of it, truth be told. But I am loyal to my father and my clan, so I told him that I would do my best to see it through, and so I shall. Even if it means spending the whole of the season in this dark and dreary place.” He turned to her and managed a smile.
“Though I must say, your presence certainly brightens it immensely.”
“You are kind to say so,” she laughed gently. “And as you’ve said, in some ways, we do seem to be two of a kind. However, I do not believe you will find it especially easy to convince an English girl to return to Scotland to be your bride.”
His face fell. “You do not believe I am charming enough, then, to woo an English noblewoman? Am I too uncultured? Are my features not pleasing to the eye?”
He seemed so genuinely distraught by these notions that Cora could not help but feel for him.
“Your features are marvelous,” she assured him, “and you possess tremendous charm indeed. Even your manners are far more civilized than one might expect from a Scotsman…no offense intended, of course.”
“None taken.”
He seemed eager to hear her continue so that he might better understand his prospects.
“But to seek to remove a woman from the comforts of her own native city, not to mention country? To expect her to become accustomed to such a removed setting and to acquaint herself with the customs and surroundings of such a different place? That is asking a great deal, especially of these society ladies, who would never dream of moving so far away from the familiarity of each other’s parlors and salons! ”
“You speak of others,” he pressed, “but what of yourself?”
She blinked at him incredulously. “You are being rather forward, sir, are you not? We’ve barely passed an hour together, and already you talk of spiriting me away and making me your wife?”
He shrugged, flashing her that disarming smile once more.
“I need not explore the city much further to know that you are the only true prospect for me here. The others hold no allure for me, while you have been ever present in my thoughts since the moment I first saw you. I will find no better candidate for marriage than you, I am sure of it.”
Cora felt entirely overwhelmed. “You seem to be a good man, and I appreciate your…enthusiasm where I’m concerned. But it is most improper for you to make such sweeping statements so early in our acquaintance. If anything, it makes me less inclined to agree to your outlandish proposal, not more.”
Cameron nodded slowly. “I believe I understand. Thank you for explaining it to me, my lady. I shall conduct myself with more decorum in the future, I assure you.”
The carriage returned them to Cora’s house, and he helped her down from the carriage, kissing her hand softly. “Again, thank you for the pleasure of your company. I have little doubt that we will see each other again quite soon. Until then, my lady.”
As Cora entered the house and walked up the stairs to her room—certain that Harry, Matilda, or both would soon be joining her so they could interrogate her about the events of the afternoon—she felt sure that Cameron was not finished wooing her.
She wondered, then, what measures he might resort to next.