He truly was handsome. That was simply fact. Why, he’d nearly taken her breath away tonight when she’d seen him at the bottom of the stairs. He’d been standing there wearing all black and white, his sapphire eyes glowing in the shadows of the foyer. Tall and muscled, his jawline bold, his shoulders square, he’d never looked more alluring. If he was apprehensive, it didn’t show. The man knew precisely how to hide emotion. A skill that would do him well as a member of the ton.
Adding to her dismay, Annabelle had hardly been able to take her eyes off him all evening. In addition to his good looks, he was so unlike the other stuffed shirts in the ballroom. Half of them were wearing bright peacock blues or royal-looking purples, for heaven’s sake. They came buzzing around, smirking, preening, and trying to impress her with their golden snuff boxes and jeweled rings. David didn’t wear any rings, and she seriously doubted he owned a snuff box, golden or otherwise.
He stood out not only due to his height and sophisticated fashion, but he was also debonair. The man had a mild manner yet a commanding presence that made you want to speak to him. Made you want to stand next to him and be in his company. He didn’t have to be the center of attention in every conversation. She soon learned he made his mark by being affable and steadfast, offering a clever remark or a witty response that was never at the expense of another in the group. He was kind, she realized. Kind and classic. A perfect partner.
Annabelle forced herself to take her eyes off David’s dance with Lady Heloise to scan the ballroom. Lord Murdock was staring at her like she was a prize mare at Tattersall’s. She should have remembered this Season she had Lord Murdock to deal with. The flowers he’d sent were just the start of it. The Marquess of Murdock had been the purported catch of the last few Seasons. He’d finally offered for Lady Julianna Montgomery, who had eventually tossed him over for the Duke of Worthington. Now that Murdock was back on the market, the marquess had apparently taken Annabelle in his sights. He’d been after her during her first Season, but she’d managed to stave him off. The man was handsome with dark-blond hair and dark brown eyes, and he was certainly well-dressed, but every time she spoke to him, he seemed…petulant, self-obsessed. No. She was definitely not interested in the marquess. But he wasn’t one to quietly go away. She would have to fend him off at every turn.
Quickly averting her gaze from Murdock, Annabelle glanced over to see David escort Lady Heloise back to her mother’s side. Lady Heloise was smiling up at him as if David was a Greek god and she, a mere mortal. Good heavens. Annabelle had picked Heloise because she was supposedly demure and well-mannered, but at the moment the lady was making a cake of herself. Annabelle seriously doubted David would be impressed with such a girl. After all, he’d said himself he was interested in true love. Lady Heloise seemed the type who’d declare her undying love after a ten-minute dance. Far too clinging.
Perhaps Lady Titiana would prove to be the best choice. She’d clearly been interested in David. Annabelle noticed the sparkle in the young woman’s eye when she’d been introduced to him by her mother, though she had played it much cooler than Heloise. Lady Titiana nodded and smiled and declared how pleased she was to make David’s acquaintance, but she hadn’t nearly tackled him the way Lady Heloise had. Annabelle hadn’t mistaken the look of obvious interest on Lady Titiana’s face when David had turned away after meeting her. She might well be a viable choice.
Lady Elspeth, however, was already annoying Annabelle. She’d been the first one to be introduced to David, mainly because she and her mother had made straight for the earl and his party the moment they’d entered the ballroom. Lady Elspeth and her mother had swooped upon them, demanding an introduction and staying overly long, as far as Annabelle was concerned. Then Lady Elspeth had proceeded to laugh far too much for far too long at every clever thing David said, and she’d had the unmitigated audacity to reach out and touch his sleeve. His sleeve, for heaven’s sake! What sort of hoyden was the girl?
As Annabelle had mentioned to David earlier, Lady Elspeth had unofficially been named the Season’s best catch. When she’d made her debut in front of the queen, that esteemed lady had declared her ‘ravishing.’ And she was…with golden brown hair and pretty hazel eyes, Lady Elsbeth was indeed a fine-looking young woman, and she certainly came from a good family. But Annabelle didn’t like how Elspeth kept staring at David over the top of her champagne flute while he danced with the other two ladies. She eyed him with a sort of feral gleam in her eyes, like he was a fox and she the hound. There was nothing subtle about her.
Adding to the complexity, it wasn’t only Lady Elspeth and Lady Titiana who Annabelle had to consider. There were all the other ladies who seemed to descend on David in droves, vying for an introduction. Why, she, Mama, and Marianne had nearly been knocked over by the hordes, for the first hour after their arrival. Thank heavens David had already met most of the young ladies at this party or they might still be fighting them off.
Annabelle had turned to look for David again when Lady Elspeth stepped in front of her. Annabelle instinctively stepped back. “Lady Elspeth, ah, good to see you again. What brings you over?” She did her best to paste a smile on her face as she pressed a glove to her diamond necklace.
Lady Elspeth gave her a narrow-eyed once over.
“Lady Annabelle,” the younger girl began in an overly confident voice. “I was hoping you’d take a turn around the room with me.”
Annabelle gave her mother and Marianne a look that clearly said, ‘save me,’ but there was little they could do. Mama shrugged while Marianne mouthed, “I’m sorry.”
“Very well,” Annabelle finally said to Elspeth. What could the debutante possibly want to say to her? Perhaps she’d ask for some advice about how to handle the bevy of suitors the girl obviously was already acquiring. A group of gentlemen had formed near Lady Elspeth’s mother and were staring over at them pensively as if disappointed that the lady had chosen to leave them.
Smiling obsequiously, Lady Elspeth hooked her arm through Annabelle’s, and they began to walk together around the perimeter of the ballroom.
“You look quite lovely this evening,” Annabelle began. “Your gown is beautiful. The green brings out the color of your eyes.”
“Thank you,” Elspeth said. They’d barely got out of hearing distance from Marianne and Mama when the smile dropped from Elspeth’s face. “I have a question for you, Lady Annabelle.”
The girl clearly wasn’t one to waste time on pleasantries. “What’s that?” Annabelle asked, trying to maintain her own smile.
“Is Lord Elmwood courting you?”
Annabelle was so taken aback that she nearly stopped walking. Never had anyone been so blunt with her about such a topic, especially not a younger unmarried woman.
“The Season has just begun,” she started to say, trying to think of the best way to casually sidestep the overly familiar question.
“Everyone knows you’ve been the belle of the Season every year. Until this year,” Elspeth said, a sly smile popping to her lips.
Annabelle arched a brow. “Because you’re here now?”
Elspeth’s smile widened. “Precisely.”