Chapter Fourteen
‘Are you finally going to see him today?’ Daphne asked as she glanced up from the sofa opposite Ophelia where she had been reading from The Times.
She met Ophelia’s gaze as she bit into a biscuit.
‘The masquerade was an absolute success for you and your client. Surely, you wish to celebrate Lord Worthing’s glowing write-up and your mention as a newcomer to the Society scene in yesterday’s paper?
It is bad enough you cancelled your lesson with him on Monday due to…
fatigue. The man had to have seen through your shallow excuse for not visiting. ’
Ophelia’s stomach clenched and she struggled to swallow.
She met Trudy’s knowing gaze across the room, where she had been sipping her afternoon tea and staring out the window at the garden.
Daphne was right. He could have ended Ophelia’s employment as his matchmaker right then and there for cancelling one of their meetings.
But, how could she face him? She had been such a naive fool and…
and if she were honest with herself, truly honest, she was also falling for him.
How did one approach a man for whom one has developed feelings, knowing he does not and will not love her, as he no longer believes in romantic attachments?
Especially when that same man rescued her from a horrid situation… ?
She groaned. Simply put, one couldn’t.
She couldn’t.
The dueling feelings of embarrassment, gratitude and affection muddled her mind. And what was worse was that she had no idea how to untangle them. But she needed to figure it out, and soon. Otherwise, she would lose her client, his friendship and her business before it had even fully started.
Why did these things always happen to her? How had something so simple become so complicated? Was there any way he might possibly care for her too? The way he had looked at her after rescuing her. Something had been there, hadn’t it?
But did she dare push him to acknowledge it?
Of course not. What if she were wrong? What if he fired her for such insolence?
Daphne looked between Ophelia and Trudy and folded up the paper. ‘What has happened that you have not shared with me? Out with it. I cannot help with solutions if I do not know the issue at hand.’ She lifted her chin and sent a look of challenge to them both.
Trudy held Ophelia’s gaze and gestured toward Daphne. Ophelia’s shoulders sank and she groaned. If she did not tell her, Trudy would.
‘I made a mistake at the masquerade ball,’ Ophelia began. She shifted against the cushions on the sofa and brought her legs up to her chest to hug her body. She dreaded telling Daphne. She looked up to her and never wished to disappoint her.
‘Mistake?’ Daphne asked cautiously.
‘It was a beautiful night and the gentleman, if one could even call him that,’ Ophelia muttered toying with the edges of her beaded bracelet upon her wrist, ‘seemed kind, so I went out with him to the gardens, and then his intentions became rather…different. I tried to get away, and I told him to stop, but—’ Her pulse increased as the flashes of fear heated her skin at the memory of how she’d felt that night.
‘If Trudy had not taught me how to defend myself, and if Lord Worthing had not arrived when he did, I…’ She paused, her breaths shallow.
‘Oh, dear,’ Daphne said, coming to sit next to her on the sofa and pulling her into a comforting hug. ‘I wish I could say I was surprised, but I am not.’ She rubbed her arm. ‘Were you harmed?’
‘No.’
‘That is what is most important,’ Daphne declared.
‘I was such a fool,’ Ophelia bemoaned.
Daphne stilled and pulled Ophelia around to face her, lifting her chin up. ‘No, my darling, you are not to blame at all. You did nothing wrong. I actually rather hope you wounded the man’s ego with your rejection, as well as his person in a particular way, if you take my meaning.’ She smirked.
‘She did. She kneed him in the groin right before Lord Worthing came to her rescue. He toppled to the ground like a rag doll,’ Trudy added helpfully and with an evil smile of her own.
Ophelia groaned at the memory. ‘I am embarrassed I did not see how the situation could have played out earlier, but Lord Worthing and Lord Phoenix were so kind, and I was having such a glorious evening. I did not even imagine such a possibility.’
‘But you did the right thing to escape him, and I am sure Lord Worthing set him straight as well.’ Daphne tucked a lock of hair behind Ophelia’s ear like her mother used to, and Ophelia felt a sudden sharp pang of loss and longing, wishing desperately she still had a mother.
‘I am too embarrassed to see Lord Worthing after what has happened. That is why I am delaying going to him. He must think his matchmaker is a fool for needing to be rescued.’
And I think I may be falling in love with him.
There was also that dreadful reality to contend with, but she would leave that little piece of information out for now.
Or for ever.
Daphne laughed. ‘If anything, he is most likely feeling quite pleased with himself at having come to your rescue and eager to see you again.’
‘He did send you a note to inquire how you were,’ Trudy added, which made Ophelia feel instantly worse. ‘Twice.’
Ophelia cringed. He had sent her two letters. Why did he have to be so gallant? And could he truly wish to see her again?
‘What do you mean pleased?’ Ophelia asked, trying to avoid the guilt clawing at her after the reminder of Lord Worthing’s kindness. She was missing something. While she thought she understood many things, this she did not.
‘He was able to become a knight in shining armor for you, my dear,’ Daphne explained. ‘What more does a man want than to be able to set another man in his place and rescue a beauty such as yourself? And if I am not mistaken, he seems to care for you. Perhaps more than he should.’
Ophelia blushed. She cared for him more than she should as well, and she knew that, but she couldn’t tell anyone.
She could barely admit it to herself. Could she dare dream and hope that maybe he did as well, despite his continued desire for a match of convenience without love or affection, with a woman who only had lineage to recommend her?
Could his heart want more than his head demanded?
She felt breathless. ‘I had not thought of it that way,’ she replied.
‘You have given him a rush of confidence that you should capitalise on. What is your next event on this matchmaker’s calendar of yours?
’ Daphne asked, rising to make her way to the desk in the parlour that held Ophelia’s working calendar for Lord Worthing.
She scanned it and then clapped her hands together, making her blond curls bounce.
‘The outing at Vauxhall Gardens is in two days. Call upon him today, share with him the article in The Times, and build on that momentum for the outing on Friday. Perhaps even squeeze in a lesson of yours as well, to make up for Monday’s lost time.
He will be pleased to see you and eager to take the next steps.
I am sure of it, and I am rarely wrong about such things. ’
Ophelia nodded, and straightened up, sitting taller. Perhaps she had been looking at the situation all wrong. Maybe there was still hope? ‘You are right, Daphne. I will do just that.’ She paused and her shoulders slumped again. ‘Although it is a Wednesday. He will probably be at the shops.’
‘I am sure he is not one to dally in his errands. He will be at home shortly for tea. That would be a perfect time to call upon him and set your matchmaking venture back on course.’
She started to stand, but Daphne held on to her hand. ‘But first, do tell me about this Lord Phoenix of yours. I do not remember you mentioning him before.’
Ophelia sighed and smiled, relieved to speak of something other than her close call in the garden that night. ‘He is very kind and handsome. Ironically, he and Lord Worthing are old friends.’
‘Friends?’ Trudy asked. ‘You did not mention that before. I did not think Lord Worthing had any.’
‘I must have forgotten with all that happened, but yes, he and Lord Phoenix were very cordial. They must have been close before he went off to the Americas. The affection and regard they held for each other was unmistakable.’
‘And?’ Daphne added.
‘And…’ Ophelia hesitated. ‘He was handsome, kind, charming and attentive. He was very interested in my business and inquired about it more than once,’ she rushed out. That was the bit that pleased her most. ‘And I am rather sure I will see him again. Or at least I hope I will.’
‘I do hope so,’ Daphne said. ‘I want to meet him. Perhaps he is your match.’ She winked at her.
The mere thought of him being her match made Ophelia blanch; he was exceedingly handsome, but he wasn’t Lord Worthing. Could she aim for less than what she wanted by pursuing a match with Lord Phoenix? Could she just be content with an imperfect match?
She frowned. She knew she couldn’t. She deserved nothing less than perfection, and so did Lord Worthing.
Why was everything so complicated? Perhaps, it was best to focus on building her business and finding a match for her first client.
Her match could wait, could it not? It would have to.
She needed all her wits about her to manage her feelings for the man she couldn’t and shouldn’t care for.
‘Trudy, can you join me this afternoon on my visit to Barnett House? I do have a few possible matches I would like to discuss with Lord Worthing to see if he would invite one of them to Vauxhall Gardens on Friday.’
Trudy gave a melodramatic sigh, slumped against the window and closed her eyes as if she’d collapsed suddenly from fatigue. They all laughed. Trudy had used a similar tactic to escape social events of her own in Stow. Every time it made Ophelia laugh with genuine amusement.
‘I am happy to join you,’ Daphne offered. ‘It has been some time since I have poked and prodded Lord Worthing. I do not wish for him to forget me.’