Chapter 30
CHAPTER THIRTY
“The guests are arriving, Lady Evelyn,” Margery said, tapping lightly on the open door of Evelyn’s chambers. “You should probably be there to greet them.”
Evelyn stared at her reflection in the mirror, noting the dark crescents beneath her eyes and the pallor of her skin.
She had not slept properly in days, plagued with nightmares of marrying Miles that would soon be a reality.
She had not been able to eat much, anxiety filling her stomach with lead.
Now, even the small, smooth jewels on her necklace could not offer any comfort.
“Lady Evelyn?” Margery repeated, hesitantly.
“I shall be down in a moment.” Evelyn exhaled a strained breath.
The last dinner party had been a disaster, and she doubted this one would be much better. Although at least her friends would be there to distract her: Octavia and Selina had both confirmed their attendance.
The housekeeper retreated from the door, allowing Evelyn her privacy, as voices drifted up from the hallway, the laughter and chatter of eager guests.
Evelyn cringed as she thought she heard the grating sound of Miles’ mother’s voice.
The old woman would undoubtedly be Evelyn’s primary companion once she married Miles, and though she never liked to be unkind, she could not tolerate the thought.
Absolute solitude would have been preferable.
I wonder if Selina will have news of her own engagement. Evelyn’s heart ached, as sore as a scraped knee. Surely, upon their last outing, Hugo will have alluded to marriage if not asked her outright to be his wife.
She was sorry not to have attended the excursion to the botanical gardens with her dear friend, not least because she adored the botanical gardens, but it would have hurt too much. Still, that did not mean she had not thought about the final outing, imagining every possible outcome.
“Come on, Evelyn,” she muttered to herself, rising. “Best get it over with.”
At the door of her bedchamber, she paused to gather herself, forcing a smile onto her face. She pinched her cheeks a little to try and bring some color back into them and, tilting her chin up and pulling her shoulders back, she headed out onto the landing.
Below, two familiar guests had just been welcomed in by the footman, who took their cloaks. Evelyn’s spirits lifted at the sight of Octavia and Selina, but as she was about to call out to them, to greet them, another figure strode in through the front door and proceeded to peel off his greatcoat.
Evelyn stood frozen. Speechless.
What is he doing here?
They had not noticed her yet, but it was not as if she could remain in her bedchamber all evening, hiding from Hugo and her friends.
The party was, after all, in her honor. A celebration of an engagement she did not want, now attended by the one man that her heart desired. It was a cruel twist indeed.
“Evie, there you are!” Selina called up, as Evelyn forced a new smile, the immense effort prompting her cheeks to twitch.
She looks beautiful. Tired… but beautiful.
Hugo watched Evelyn descend the stairs, breath abandoning his lungs as she came closer.
There was a smile upon her face, though it did not reach her eyes, and he could not ignore the paleness of her skin, nor the bruised crescents under her eyes.
Nothing could ever detract from her beauty, from how perfect he thought she was, but he was concerned.
“I am so pleased you could attend,” she said, too brightly, as she moved to embrace Octavia and Selina in turn.
She did not, however, pay attention to Hugo. She did not even look in his direction.
“We would not have missed it,” Octavia said, a sly note in her voice.
Hugo’s sister had been informed of the loose plan, and Selina’s part as conspirator. The night ahead would be an interesting one; that was for certain.
“I hope you do not mind that I brought Hugo?” Octavia added, with the right amount of feigned chagrin. “He had nothing to do this evening, and the invitation said I could bring a guest, so…”
“Mind? Why would I mind?” Evelyn’s voice cracked, her smile becoming tighter by the second. “Please, make yourselves comfortable in the drawing room. There are plenty of refreshments. My father clearly thinks that this is a ball rather than a humble dinner party.”
Her laughter echoed false, confirming Hugo’s hopes that she was not at all happy about this engagement…
or perhaps it was just his presence that she was not happy about.
He would not know until he managed to steal a moment alone with her, though he had not quite considered how he might do that in her own home, with guests everywhere, under the watchful gaze of her brothers and father.
Goodness, why did I not think of that?
“How are you feeling?” he asked Evelyn, determined that she would not ignore him.
She looked straight through him, her throat bobbing. “Hungry.”
Skirting around him, she took hold of Selina’s arm and grabbed for Octavia’s hand, leading the two women into the drawing room. With a steadying breath, Hugo followed.
Twenty minutes later, he came to the full and frustrating realization that Evelyn was going to do everything within her power to evade him tonight.
She had become quite the social butterfly, mingling with the other guests, engaging everyone in conversation, graciously accepting congratulations, and he might have believed there had been a true transformation if he did not know her better than that.
This was Evelyn’s idea of a nightmare, yet she was acting like Selina.
Well, this will not do.
“What are you waiting for?” Octavia whispered, as if reading his mind. “The baron has not arrived yet. You should speak to her before he does.”
Selina appeared on the other side of him. “Now, Your Grace!” she hissed. “She is alone at the drinks table.”
Swallowing a mouthful of champagne, Hugo brushed the moisture from his lips and cut through the increasing crowd to reach Evelyn. She bristled as he approached, as if she could sense him. Had she been a cat, her ears would have flicked back and forth, her tail swishing a warning.
“It is a fine party, Evelyn,” he said.
“I am glad you think so,” she replied, keeping her back to him as she scooped lemonade into a glass.
“Evelyn, would you look at me,” he urged.
“I do not need to. I know what you look like.”
A muscle twitched in his jaw, his hands clenched in exasperation. What threat did she believe he posed to her? What was the reason for all of this animosity?
“Evelyn, I was wondering if I might have a word with you,” he tried again. “On the terrace, perhaps. It really is rather urgent, and I—”
At that moment, a footman appeared at the drawing room door, ringing a jarring bell as he declared, “Ladies and gentlemen, dinner is served.”
Hugo cursed under his breath and shot a dark look at the footman, as if he was personally responsible for the unfortunate timing of the dinner.
Meanwhile, all around the room came the confused murmur of the other guests, perhaps twenty of them in total. It was understandable, considering the future husband was not yet in attendance. Did the baron mean to make some sort of grand entrance? He did not seem like the sort.
He glanced back at Evelyn, but she was already moving away, slipping past him on swift feet to get to the drawing room door. From the other side of the room, Octavia and Selina rolled their eyes at him.
I would like to see you try to speak to someone who does not want to be spoken to! He huffed out a breath and, refreshing his determination, he followed the rest of the crowd out into the hallway and down the passage to the dining room.
There, it became obvious why the baron had not been present in the drawing room.
He was already seated at the head of the dining table, with an old lady on his right and Evelyn’s father on his left.
Matthew and Luke took the seats beside their father, while Evelyn wandered the table with a frown, a slight grimace twisting her face as she found her place.
She was to sit beside the old woman. The baron’s mother, no doubt.
“We are here,” Octavia said, gesturing to two chairs that could not have been further away from Evelyn.
How great a scandal would it cause if I just confessed right here and now, in front of everyone?
Hugo considered the idea, rather liked it in truth, but figured Evelyn would not appreciate a public declaration of his love.
She might have said she wanted someone who would not be afraid to show that she was loved, but causing a ripple through society and its gossipmongers likely was not what she had had in mind.
So with some reluctance, he sat down at his sister’s side and decided to be patient instead.