A Chance to Kiss the Marquess (Charmed By Chance #3)

Chapter 9

9

K al stared at the door with his arms crossed and tried his best not to think. He also did his best to ignore the painful ache in his chest.

It was wounded prided, that was all. And yes, perhaps some disappointment as well. But it couldn’t be more than that. After all, he barely knew the girl.

He glared at the empty doorway as if it had just insulted his mother.

It was the fact that their conversation was so…unresolved. Surely that was why he felt this way. If only they’d had a chance to finish talking then maybe he wouldn’t feel as though some beast was trying to claw its way out of his chest.

But no. Even if he’d wanted to continue the conversation, he couldn’t. Because Ann had simply…disappeared.

Nearly an hour after Ann and her friends departed, Kal was still marveling at how quickly it had all gone down. One moment she’d been there in the hallway, gaping at Albright with a horror he understood because he’d felt it too.

Though not because he’d been embarrassed. No, he was…

Oh blast, he didn’t know what this feeling was. He rubbed his chest and accepted the drink Carver handed him. Whatever this was, it wasn’t pleasant and it left him feeling horribly…empty.

Not long after Ann had run past Albright with flaming cheeks and an indecipherable squeak, the whole party had dispersed. Carver told him later that Meg, Jane, and Felicity had taken one look at their friend and flown into action, bundling her up and whisking her out the door.

Lord Marlin had offered to take them all home, and Everson had gone with them, thankfully. Kal’s misery was bad enough without having to endure new ‘friends.’

Carver paced in front of Albright, who sat by the fire, looking thoughtful…and slightly stunned.

Kal moved toward the doorway and leaned against the doorframe, ready to flee himself, except…

He didn’t know where to go.

Or what to do with himself, for that matter.

He scowled into his drink.

“So, tell me exactly what happened,” Carver said to Albright.

Poor Carver seemed to be taking the abrupt ending of his dinner party personally. He wanted to fix matters, but this was not a problem he could make right with a smile.

Kal turned to Albright, who was looking right back at him as if to say ‘would you care to explain?’

But Kal merely took a sip of his drink. Not only did he not wish to share his humiliation with the others, he was also rather keen to hear what Albright had to say.

From what little they’d said to one another since that awkward moment when Albright had interrupted him and Ann, Kal had come to understand that while Albright’s timing had been wretched, he had not witnessed anything…untoward.

Indeed, even now Albright said, “I came upon Kal and Ann talking.”

Talking. Not kissing. Kal took a large gulp of his drink. That was good. This situation was bad enough without him compromising a sweet young lady’s reputation.

Carver turned to him as if expecting to glean more information from his cousin.

Kal took another sip of his drink.

Carver turned back to Albright. “And?”

“And…well…” Here Albright shrugged and ran a hand over his light brown hair. “And I accidentally overheard her expressing an…er…an interest in me.”

Carver fell silent.

They all did.

Kal suspected Carver and Albright were coming to grips with this new information and—in Albright’s case, at least—trying to sort out what to do about it.

For Kal’s part, he was attempting to drown out this abominable ache in his chest. But as he drained the last sips of his drink, he had to acknowledge that his attempt was not working.

If anything, the more he thought through the events of this evening, the more the ache grew. Worse, he couldn’t avoid the truth any longer. This pain, it wasn’t embarrassment?—

Rather, it wasn’t only that. If it was only a matter of his pride being wounded, he could laugh it off. Or at least, he could see the potential to laugh it off once the sting ebbed.

But this was not that. This was…

Well, he would not call it heartache. He frowned into the empty glass. He wouldn’t, would he?

He wasn’t certain he’d understood himself just how attached he’d become to Ann—to all she represented, and to the young woman herself.

He didn’t know at what point exactly she’d begun to burrow into his chest and settle into his heart. Maybe from that very moment he’d read his name in her book and allowed himself to believe that a sweet, kind young lady with no artifice had chosen him.

And then that feeling had grown every time he’d seen her smile or heard her speak. Each word she’d spoken to him had felt like a revelation of honesty. Her every blush and glance spoke of sincerity and vulnerability, frankness and strength.

He set his glass down on the mantel with a clink.

Blast. When he’d gone and fallen for the girl hardly mattered. What mattered was that he had fallen. And she…had not.

He picked the glass up again and turned it this way and that just to have something to do with his hands.

“What are you going to do about it?” Carver asked.

For one awful moment, Kal thought his cousin was speaking to him.

He was not. The usually cheerful Carver was facing Albright with a look of consternation.

Now Kal was watching Albright as well, a mix of dread and anger churning in his gut.

On one hand, he despised the thought of Albright courting Ann. On the other…

Would he make her happy? If Albright was who she wanted, didn’t she deserve that?

And so, he waited impatiently, until Albright finally sighed. “I do not know. I must admit, it came as a surprise.”

Carver nodded. “I imagine so. She’s a sweet girl?—”

“Oh indeed,” Albright hurried to interrupt. “I admire her greatly. And perhaps it shouldn’t be such a shock. We have become close of late.” He frowned, and a muscle in Kal’s jaw ticked as he watched his old friend consider Ann.

He knew without having to ask that Albright was replaying their every interaction, perhaps reframing Ann in his mind’s eye. Seeing her not as Ann, Franny’s shy younger sister…

But as a woman in her own right.

A gently bred young lady who’d be expected to marry and have a family and?—

A feeling akin to a swift kick to the gut had Kal inhaling sharply.

He could see it. He could see Ann with a family all too clearly. Never in his life had he imagined himself with a family, but that was what he’d seen.

Ann, at his side, smiling up at him, a babe in her arms and a whole army of little redheaded children playing at their feet.

He rubbed his chest and squeezed his eyes shut, as if that could scrub the image from his brain.

It didn’t work. If anything, he got the feeling he’d just etched the mental image into his mind permanently.

“She’s a lovely woman from a good family.” Albright’s tone was thoughtful. “It bears consideration.”

Carver’s expression was serious. “Indeed. However, it would not do to toy with her feelings unless you are certain of your intentions.”

“Agreed.” Albright nodded. “I will give it serious thought before discussing the matter with Ann.”

Kal blinked, his head darting back and forth as he watched his cousin and his friend. What was happening here?

He stared at Albright, but his friend’s expression had eased. Now that he’d decided to give the matter ‘serious thought,’ his features had relaxed, his mouth curved in a reassuring smile.

It was no wonder Ann had taken a fancy to this man. No one would call him intimidating, much less terrifying.

He ran a hand over his face and turned away.

Terrifying. She’d called him terrifying.

And even after that, like a fool, he’d somehow let himself believe she might actually have feelings for him.

He’d let himself imagine…oh, all sorts of things.

This time when he set his glass down he walked away from it. He didn’t need another drink. What he needed was to clear his head. To sort out fact from wishful thinking.

And that was precisely what he did the moment he was alone in his carriage and headed back to his own home.

He’d always done well with facts and figures, so tallying the facts of the situation made him feel more in control and far calmer than he had all night.

He admired Ann greatly. Fact.

That she admired him…? Wishful thinking.

He’d very much like to court Ann. Fact.

Also a fact? He’d kissed a young lady who had not wished to be kissed.

He winced. But even as shame washed over him, he found himself replaying the kiss.

While it was certainly true she had not expected the kiss, could it be said it was unwanted?

He crossed his arms and glared at the empty seat across from him. If this were a proper debate, he could argue both sides.

Clearly, in light of her statements after the fact, she had not wished for him to kiss her.

But also, just as clearly…that sigh. That little sigh had not been his imagination. Nor had her actions.

An unwilling participant would surely not have fallen into his arms in such a way. It was almost as if she’d melted against him. All in all, not considering the exchange that had followed, that kiss had been the highlight of his life, and he found himself replaying it from every angle, analyzing every detail.

Aside from the sigh, there was the melting, and if either of those two pieces of evidence were not enough, there was the look in her eyes when he’d pulled back.

Dazed, but not in horror. Warm, but not with anger. A smile tugged at his lips as he dropped his arms to his sides and shifted in his seat. Perhaps he ought to amend that last fact.

Fact. He’d caught a young lady by surprise with an unexpected kiss.

But he’d bet every shilling he owned that she’d liked it.

A grin split his features at the thought, which seemed to lead inevitably to the next fact.

Fact. He wished to do it again.

And as for Albright? Well…

He could hardly sit still in the carriage as a wave of determination replaced his former sense of defeat.

Ann might have been infatuated with Albright, but one could argue it was not real if it was not reciprocated. Just as one could argue that a young woman like Ann deserved to be with a man clever enough to know just how valuable and precious she was.

In fact, she deserved to be with a man who’d do whatever it took to win her hand. After all, nothing worth having ever came easily.

And there was nothing he wanted more than Ann.

The rest of the household was asleep by the time Kal entered, but he was wide awake. He headed to his study–that was where he did his best strategizing, and where he crafted his most persuasive arguments.

If it worked for business and politics…

Why shouldn’t it work for love?