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

Chapter 10

10

A nn’s misery was blessedly interrupted by her sister’s return.

She and Rodrick had taken a short journey to visit his family after their wedding, but had returned to London, and Ann feared that their return was in no small part due to her.

“How have you been?” Her sister’s brow was creased with concern.

Dear Franny was always worried about Ann. And while her sister resisted the urge to meddle the way their cousin Dottie did, it was safe to say that Franny never failed to fret when Ann was concerned.

And with good reason, it turned out. Left to her own devices for all of a fortnight, and look what had happened. “Oh Franny, it’s a disaster!”

Franny set down her tea and cast a glance toward the door to make sure their mother had well and truly left.

Their mother had a tendency to eavesdrop. How else am I supposed to know what my daughters are up to? she’d cry when called out on such bad manners.

“Tell me everything,” Franny ordered.

Where to begin? Ann nibbled on her lower lip. “It all started with a dare…”

She told Franny about how she’d tried and failed to flirt with Albright, pausing only to scowl when Franny snickered.

“I’m sorry, it’s just…did he really think you had something in your eye?”

Ann sighed. “Like I said, it was a disaster. So I did what anyone would do…”

Ann was a little pleased by Franny’s gasp when she got to the part where Lord Kalvin joined her in the library. And when she got to the part where he pulled out her notebook, Franny shot up out of her seat with a loud, “No!”

“Yes.” Ann stayed seated, but her humiliation and fear were temporarily replaced by satisfaction at her sister’s reactions.

It turned out that once her speech impediments were out of the way, Ann truly enjoyed the art of storytelling.

But all too soon, Ann was forced to face reality once more, because the most dreadful part of the evening had yet to occur.

“He kissed you,” Franny breathed, her eyes wide with shock.

That was not the dreadful part. Ann was as of yet uncertain how to describe that kiss, but it was most assuredly not dreadful. Not in any way.

Revelatory, yes. Mind-addling, certainly.

But it had not been dreadful. Not in the least.

No, the dreadful part came next.

Franny groaned as she fell back in her seat. “And Albright heard you say that you…prefered him?”

Ann nodded, her lips pressed tightly together in a grim line—until she remembered something crucial. “You are not to discuss any of this with Rodrick!”

Franny’s brows arched. “Of course not. It’s sister code.”

Ann nodded in agreement. “Yes, of course. I just…I wasn’t certain if sister code was still in effect after one married. I thought perhaps…” She shrugged. “Perhaps allegiances shift.”

Franny gave an inelegant snort which no one outside of her family and close friends would ever hear. “Please. I shall only include Rodrick if—” She paused to give Ann a meaningful look when Ann started to protest. “ If I believe he might help our cause.”

Ann settled again at the use of ‘our’ in that sentence. Her friends were the best a girl could ask for, but they had trials and tribulations of their own to contend with, and when it came to dealing with crushing humiliation, there was no one more qualified to handle it than her unflappable, proper older sister.

“So?” Ann asked. “What do I do now?”

Ann rather hoped her sister would say ‘hide, of course.’ But alas, Ann was not so silly as to believe that was the answer, and Franny never had been one to beat about the bush. “First you ought to decide what it is that you want.”

Ann blinked. “Pardon?”

“Or rather, who it is that you want,” Franny clarified.

Ann waited a moment for her sister to laugh at her own joke. When she did not, Ann said, “Surely you are not serious.”

Franny frowned. “I am always serious.”

Ann pursed her lips. This was true. Franny was the serious sort. And yet… “I do not see how I have much say in the matter.” And then, in case her sister had misunderstood, Ann summed up the story to make her point. “Lord Kalvin only kissed me because he thought I wanted him to. And Lord Albright has no interest in me in that way.”

Franny held up two fingers. “First, no man kisses a woman merely because he thinks she wants him to. And certainly not a man like Lord Kalvin.”

Ann blinked several times. She wanted to argue but found she could not. No one would call Lord Kalvin agreeable, let alone eager to please. And yet, she couldn’t quite shake the fear that he’d kissed her as some sort of act of charity.

She touched her lips, the memory of his firm lips crushing hers with such heat and passion…

She swallowed hard. It hadn’t felt like charity. And yet, he’d made it clear he’d sought her out only because he’d believed she was enamored with him.

Franny’s voice cut into her thoughts. “And second, I don’t believe Lord Albright requires interest in that way in order to see the value of a good match.”

Ann frowned. “What does that mean?”

Franny sighed, sounding far older than her years as her gaze grew thoughtful. “I do not claim to be a close confidante of Lord Albright, but Rodrick is, as you know.”

Ann nodded. Rodrick’s close connection to Albright was how the two sisters had come to spend so much time with him.

“And you know about Albright’s wife, of course,” Franny said quietly.

Ann nodded again. Everyone knew the tragic tale. Albright was the first of his peers to marry, and by all accounts it had been a love match. But the poor girl had fallen ill and died within the first year of marriage.

“Well…” Franny sighed. “From what I understand, Albright is not eager to marry for love for a second time. It seems that sort of heartbreak was enough to last a lifetime.”

Ann and Franny both sank into silence. “How sad,” Ann murmured.

“Indeed.”

After another moment of silence, Franny turned to her again. “But you understand my point, do you not?”

Ann nodded. She didn’t necessarily need Albright to see her as a romantic partner for a match to be made. In truth, the fact that he did not see her as a love interest might work in her favor…

If she truly wanted to make a match with him.

She frowned down at her clasped hands. And she did…didn’t she?

Her musings were interrupted by the housekeeper who hurried over. “A messenger came by with this letter for you, Miss Ann.”

“Thank you.” She took the letter but the housekeeper still hovered.

“The messenger was told to wait for a response, miss,” she explained.

“Ah. I…I see.” She did not see, but curiosity had her opening the letter as her sister scooted closer.

“Is that from Lord Kalvin?” Franny sounded as surprised as she felt.

Ann could only nod as she was too busy reading every word of the short missive.

My dear Miss Truesdale,

I owe you an apology, and I would prefer to make amends in person, if it is not too disagreeable to you.

I realize you owe me nothing, for I am the one who invaded your privacy and proceeded to leap to all the wrong conclusions. However, if you would do me the honor, I will be in attendance at Lady Margaret’s garden party and will meet in whatever way is most comfortable to you.

By that I mean, should you wish to bring a whole host of friends to act as your personal guard, I would understand. And if you’d prefer to speak without seeing me, I have it on good authority that the garden is filled with an abundance of ferns.

Ann clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle an unexpected surge of laughter.

“What? What is it? What has he said?” The always composed and proper Franny was very nearly bouncing in her seat with impatience.

Ann shook her head. She wasn’t through.

It is my sincere hope that you’ll accept my apology, and if that is the case, I should warn you that I would like to continue the conversation.

I should very much like to become better acquainted, Miss Truesdale. To that end, I would be pleased to discuss whatever topics are of interest to you. However, as I am aware that you prefer to be prepared, I’ve taken the liberty of asking the first question below so you may compose your thoughts and rehearse your response.

Question: Who is Dottie and what did she do to deserve such a heated retort?

Yours Truly,

John Vergo, The Marquess of Kalvin

Ann wasn’t certain who was more startled by her choked laughter—Franny, the housekeeper, or herself. But the other two women were waiting for some sort of response, and Ann had to pull out her notebook and flip through until she found what precisely Lord Kalvin was referring to.

There it was, right in the middle where the book fell open at the crease, and written in large letters. Don’t be daft, Dottie.

She laughed all over again.

The housekeeper shared a look of confusion with Franny before turning back to Ann. “Shall I send the messenger away, miss, or?—”

“Oh no.” Ann’s heart was clattering wildly as if she’d just stopped dancing a reel. But she didn’t hesitate to say, “I shall respond. Just one moment, if you please.”