Immediately, the young lord offered her his arm, and they strode out into the hall.
“Pardon me,” someone spoke out from behind them, and Anne cringed at the sound of Louisa’s voice.
Stopping, Lord Gillingham turned back to look at Louisa. “Yes? Is there something I can help you with, Lady Louisa? Perhaps you would like to join us in the gardens?”
A gentle but somewhat insincere smile came to Louisa’s face. “What a lovely idea,” she told Lord Gillingham with a sideways glance at Anne that made Anne want to sink into a hole in the ground. “However, I’m afraid I need to speak with my cousin about a matter of importance. Would you excuse us?”
A matter of importance? Anne knew that at present there was only one important matter on Louisa’s mind, and she wished her cousin would simply forget about it.
Knowing Louisa, Anne was certain that hell would freeze over before that happened though.
“Of course,” Lord Gillingham replied without hesitation, the look on his face one of deepest concern. “Please, if there is anything I can do.”
“You’re too kind,” Louisa said as she slipped her arm through Anne’s and pulled her back toward the drawing room, where a number of guests had collected around the pianoforte, singing Christmas carols. Joy stood in their eyes as their voices echoed through the room, adding to the warm atmosphere.
Anne, however, felt as though trapped in a block of ice.
“Where did you think you were going?” Louisa demanded under her breath.
“To get a bit of fresh air,” Anne replied, trying to maintain an innocent face. “Why?”
Louisa chuckled, “As though you didn’t know.”
A cold shiver ran down Anne’s back and her eyes widened in panic. “Now?” Her gaze swept the room, but for once Tobias was nowhere to be seen. “You said you’d wait a day or two. Why now?”
Louisa shrugged. “Why wait?” Then she all but delivered Anne into Leonora’s care before hurrying off with a whispered, “You know what to do.”
Tucking a strand of her dark tresses behind her ear, Leonora looked at her with compassion in her eyes. “She means well.”
Anne heaved a deep sigh, wondering if Leonora would truly try to stop her if Anne made to walk off. “I know, but that doesn’t mean this’ll end well.” Looking about herself, Anne felt her palms begin to sweat. This was a disaster waiting to happen! “What now?” she asked Leonora. “What do you…what does she have planned?”
As though you didn’t know. Louisa’s words echoed in her head.
Leonora cast her a warm smile, linking her arm with Anne’s. “You are to wait here with me until the clock strikes ten.”
“And then?” Anne asked, wondering why she even bothered.
Leonora hugged Anne to her. “Why are you fighting this?” she asked gently. “I saw the way you looked at him over supper. Louisa is right. You don’t look at him the way she or I look at Troy. Tobias is not a brother to you, is he?”
Closing her eyes, Anne sighed, “But what if he thinks of me as a sister?” she whispered, knowing full well that not even Leonora with her sharp mind and formidable observational skills could answer that question to Anne’s satisfaction.
Returning from Lord Archibald’s study after a glass of brandy, Tobias and his brother were walking down the hall toward the drawing room when they spotted Lady Louisa hurrying from one of the adjoining rooms to the next. Opening a door, she peeked inside before closing it with a rather exasperated huff and then hurrying on to the next, grumbling something unintelligible under her breath.
Beside him, Phineas chuckled, “I admit I’d love to know what goes on in that devilish head of hers.”
“That is no way to speak of a lady,” Tobias chided his brother. Admittedly, he, too, was wondering about Lady Louisa’s rather odd behavior; however, considering Phineas’s poor manners, Tobias could not afford to let an opportunity to reprimand his brother slip by unused.
As expected, Phineas merely laughed, “Believe me, Brother, it was meant as a compliment.”
“I doubt the lady would see it as such,” Tobias protested when the lady in question spotted them.
For a second, she froze on the spot before her eyes widened, and she came charging toward them. “There you are,” she exclaimed, a hint of disapproval in her voice as though they’d failed to meet her at an agreed upon time.
“It’s a delight to see you again, Lulu,” Phineas greeted her with a wide grin. “Are you looking for something?” The left corner of his mouth twitched. “Or rather someone?”
The implication that dripped off Phineas’s voice was not lost on Lady Louisa. For a second, Tobias feared her head would explode as her eyes shot daggers and her cheeks turned a darker shade of red, steam all but coming out of her ears. “You are an utterly despicable man,” she hissed, her hands balled into fists.
“You don’t know the half of it,” Phineas laughed, his dark gaze daring her to make good on the threat that stood in her eyes.
“Will you be quiet!” Tobias snapped at his brother before he turned to Anne’s cousin. “I apologize, my lady. My brother has no manners to speak of.”
Lady Louisa huffed out an annoyed breath. “That is obvious.” After a final glare in his brother’s direction, she seemed to put Phineas out of her mind and turned to him. “Mr. Hawke, do you have a moment? My cousin wishes to speak to you.”
“Anne?” Tobias croaked as a sudden jolt went through him at the mention of her name.
Lady Louisa’s face softened. “Yes, Anne. Would you come with me? I’ll take you to her.”
“Of course.”
When Phineas fell into step beside him, Lady Louisa stopped. “Not you, Lord Barrington.” Indeed, on her lips, it sounded like the worst sort of insult.
Of course, Phineas’s response to such a challenge was laughter. “My dearest Lulu, when will you finally realize that I hold you in the highest esteem?”
Lady Louisa’s brows rose as she regarded him like one would look upon an insect that had crawled onto one’s dinner table. “Coming from you, that is far from a compliment.” Then she spun on her heel and headed back toward the drawing room.
Phineas sighed rather wistfully as he leaned back against a marble column, his legs crossed at the ankles. “That is some woman.”
Tobias shook his head at his brother and then hurried after Lady Louisa, curious what Anne wished to speak to him about.
Thus far, her time had been largely monopolized by Lord Gillingham, and Tobias had been hard pressed not to interfere in a manner that would have been considered impolite. However, he feared that he would trip over his words if he were to attempt a conversation in his current state. Had anything changed since supper? Tobias rather feared it had not.
Inhaling a deep breath, he stepped into the drawing room and spotted Anne and Lady Leonora standing near the pianoforte, a few steps away from a group of caroling guests. Both looked a bit tense. While her cousin, however, appeared no more than a tad nervous, Anne looked ready to faint. Her eyes were wide, and she was wringing her hands in a very agitated manner.
“Is something wrong?” Tobias asked, but Lady Louisa merely smiled at him.