An Agreeable Arrangement (13 page)

She inclined her head toward Sir Horace when the
quadrille came to an end. He escorted her off the
floor and graciously thanked her for the dance.

The squire made his approach toward the couple.
Sir Horace politely excused himself. Cassie felt the
squire’s blaring presence. His mostly hazel eyes
had sharpened to a vivid green. He had tracked her
every movement on the dance floor and stood watch
over her.

“Did you enjoy your dance?” the squire asked.

“Very much.” She stared at him with uncertainty.

“Our waltz is next,” he reminded her. An uncomfortable silence hung heavy in the air. She waited for
a confession from him. But she found none forthcoming.

Something had happened between the squire and
Lord Nathan. The series of events this evening left
her with little doubt.

When the squire caught Cassie gazing in Lord Nathan’s direction, he said, “I don’t think it wise to
approach Ellerby, Lady Cassandra”

“And exactly why is that, may I ask?”

“I believe the association with that fellow is at an
end. You will find his interest in you has cooled.”

“Has it?” she replied thoughtfully. “Will you explain why?”

“None that I care to discuss in public.” A selfassured smile crossed his face.

“I suppose there is nothing to be done” Cassie gave
the pretense that she had taken the squire at his word.
“Would you”-she looked at him with the most sincere expression she could manage-“could you … if
you would be so kind as to fetch me some refreshment? I find that I am ever so parched” Then she gave
him a small smile.

He glanced around as if he could discover her deception. No, she was merely thirsty and she wanted
to be rid of him, if only for a minute or two.

“Your servant” He acquiesced, and with a shallow
bow of his head he left.

My prison guard, more like. Cassie could not imagine what had come over him or over Lord Nathan.
What had happened to the men around her?

It took only a minute for the squire to return. He
wasn’t gone nearly as long as she would have liked. He
handed her a glass of punch and, in keeping with her
desperate need for liquid, she profusely thanked him.

“Cassie? Is that really you? Lady Cassandra
Phillips?” The tall, dark, and handsome man called
out from across the room.

She turned toward the familiar voice. “Roger
Shelby!” A cheerful expression graced Cassie’s face
when she recognized her old friend as she passed her
empty glass to the squire.

“What a most delightful surprise! Had I known of
your presence, I would have dashed immediately to
your side. I fear by now I must have missed my chance
to stand up with you.”

“Squire Stewart is promised the next dance.” She
threw a fleeting glance in his direction. “I’m sure he
won’t mind at all if you take his place.” She followed
the expression with a tenuous smile.

The squire nodded and bowed in resignation.

Cassandra moved to Shelby and wrapped her arm
through his. Their smiles of joy made Julian all the
more dismal. In her discovery of an old friend, she
found a kindred heart. One that could be, he feared,
more of a threat than Ellerby had been.

With his eyes glued on the retreating couple, Julian
passed Cassandra’s glass to Horace as he followed the
couple. Unprepared to take the glass, Horace performed a minor juggling act, bouncing the fragile
piece precariously from hand to hand, trying to capture the airborne culprit.

Only moments earlier, the squire had secretly praised himself for his clever work in extinguishing
Ellerby’s flame. Now some old friend showed up,
partnered Cassandra and stole his dance.

Julian lightly harrumphed. As if she would take
notice of this country bumpkin.

The squire continued to watch. Cassandra’s smiling
eyes gazed into the simpleton’s face. This … Roger
may have reflected the same sentiment, although Julian would describe the expression on Cassandra’s
partner’s face more as a dog drooling over a savory
tidbit.

Julian would make certain the friend would not
share a single minute alone with her.

That cad dare not get close enough to stroke the
smooth skin of her cheek. The memory of her exquisite scent warmed him. No, Julian would not allow this
stranger, no matter how familiar Cassandra made
him, those exclusive liberties. The squire approached
the couple.

After the dance ended, Roger silently suggested
they step out on the side landing with a quick movement of his head. Cassandra smiled and nodded. She
laid her hand upon Roger’s arm. He placed his hand
atop hers to assure safe passage off the dance floor
through the French doors that led outside.

As soon as they stepped onto the terrace, Shelby
half-swung Cassandra out in front of him. “How good
it is to see you again!” he exclaimed.

“It has been a long time, Roger.” She was glad to
see a familiar, friendly face. “You must come out to
Stewart Hall tomorrow to see Romeo. He’s grown so”

“I don’t think he could possibly stay as small as he
was, considering he was the runt of the litter.” Shelby
laughed. “I have an appointment in the morning but
I’ll cancel it.”

Just on the far side of the wide landing, the squire
edged around the corner discreetly and remained in
the shadows, eavesdropping.

Shelby drew Cassandra’s hands together and
planted an affectionate kiss on each.

“That will be quite enough!” Julian called out, interrupting them.

Squire Stewart stepped out into full view and
shoved Roger against the balustrade, away from
Cassie, and advanced toward him. Roger raised his
leg, pulling his knee close to his chest, and kicked
the squire across the landing, sending him to collide
into one of the large potted plants that flanked the
double glass doors.

The defensive maneuver compromised Roger’s
balance on the wide railing. He toppled over the
edge, dropping onto the pathway below. Luckily, it
was not far.

Cassie dashed to the balustrade and leaned over,
peering down into the darkness. “Roger, dear …
Roger, are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” his weakened voice responded.

“Nothing’s broken as far as I can tell” But it sounded as
if the wind had been knocked out of him.

Cassie spun toward the sound of the squire’s approaching footfalls.

“I hope you’re proud of yourself!”

“He’ll soon recover, if he’s any kind of a man” The
squire brushed the dust from his trousers. “Now, you
will come with me” He took her hand and slipped his
arm around her waist, making sure she moved forward
with him.

The couple stepped into the Assembly Rooms
from the terrace. Their entrance drew several stares
and piqued interest as they emerged from the direction where various strange sounds had originated.

With a gentle but firm guiding hand, he led Cassie
through the ballroom. Their superficial smiles masked
the hostility they each suppressed inside. They continued out the side doors, down the hall to a small side
room. The squire closed the doors after they entered.

“How dare you drag me away!” Cassie scolded.

“I was merely providing protection. He had you
quite secure in his arms. No telling what would have
happened had I not intruded.”

“He held my hand,” Cassie corrected. “And how
dare you leave him out there. He could be seriously
hurt”

“He said himself that he was not injured. I’m sure
some good Samaritan will hear his groans and lend him aid.” The squire cleared his throat. “I had to intervene. It is not proper for you to display such intimacy with a stranger!”

“Roger Shelby is not a stranger.”

“No matter, for propriety’s sake you should not have
been alone with him;” Squire Stewart’s voice grew in
volume. “And you should not have invited him to
Stewart Hall without consulting me first.”

Cassie moved to the liquor decanters on a credenza.
“It seems Roger and I weren’t alone at all, then. You
were there the entire time-listening.” She lifted the
large crystal decanter and poured the contents into a
short wide-mouthed glass.

“You do not intend to drink that, do you?” The
squire gasped, disturbed that she might imbibe.

“Certainly not. It is for you. I believe you need it
to calm you” She replaced the heavy crystal stopper.

“I don’t want it!”

“I must insist,” she said calmly. With one quick
movement of her wrist, she launched the spirit into
his face.

The squire froze. He kept his eyes closed, the
odorous liquid ran down and dripped from his face
onto his shirt, vest, and jacket then finally onto the
carpet.

“There”-she paused, reveling in the moment of
silence she’d created-“I do believe it has helped.”

The drenched squire reached into his jacket and
she spotted a flash of gold from his signet ring. He drew out a pristine white silk handkerchief and proceeded to blot the remaining moisture from his face.

Cassie’s voice softened as she addressed him. “I
think you need to get your priorities straight. Do you
or do you not wish me to marry?”

She paused to give him a moment to think.

“Do you or do you not want me to marry? If you
will not do the honor yourself, then it must be some
other gentleman. It’s as simple as that. I know Lord
Nathan came by yesterday. I know he’s already offered for me and you’ve said no”

She paused again, just to allow time to let her
words sink into his thick skull.

“When you have regained your manners, we can
discuss this further. Until that time, I suggest you enjoy your drink.” She set the empty glass on the table.
Turning on her heel, Cassie made a swift exit.

Julian mopped his face with his silk kerchief. As
he finished, he began to think over Cassandra’s
words.

I did instruct her to marry. Am I standing in her
way of making any match at all? And why would I do
such a thing? What is it I want?

“What about me?” he murmured to himself. “Do
my feelings not matter?”

Cassandra loves me. She’s told me as much. Why
can I not act on my feelings for her? But what were
they exactly … he wasn’t quite sure.

There was also that kiss. He could instantly con jure up and vividly recall the kiss Cassandra and he
had shared.

It was the sight he saw when he closed his eyes
before he fell asleep. It was the recurring dream that
tortured him night after night. The memory of her
warm, supple lips upon his haunted him.

Dash it all-he wanted her for himself!

He had thrown out Ellerby after his offer of marriage. Tonight he interrupted her reunion with an old
acquaintance. Julian had no idea how old or how
close that friendship was but he did not wish it to develop any further.

What was he doing thwarting every chance she had
to marry? The truth, he discovered, was that he could
not bear to see her with another. Not just Ellerby or
Shelby-not any man. If he continued in this fashion,
she would end up with no husband and, thus, no inheritance.

Then it dawned on him. There was nothing wrong
with his intentions.

Julian was so caught up in his duty of making sure
the stipulations in the earl’s will were fulfilled … he
simply did not think of the obvious solution.

With Edward’s absence, it seemed the perfect solution. Their fathers wanted the families united. His
marriage to her would certainly accomplish that. Although with his legal ties to the Phillips family, the
union may seem odd to outsiders. What did he care?

Julian made his way down the corridor and into the ballroom. He scanned the crowd for the violet dress
Cassandra wore.

“I say, Julian, do you think it’s proper to be here in
your state?” Horace sniffed in the squire’s direction.

Julian grabbed Horace’s coat lapels. “Have you
seen her, Lady Cassandra?”

“I believe I saw her leave not more than ten or fifteen minutes ago”

“Leave? Oh no!” Julian eyes shot open with panic.
He needed to see her, to tell her, now.

“I thought you might be outside waiting.” Horace
remained calm. “Didn’t think about it much really.”

“She’s taken my rig,” the squire realized.

“By herself?” Horace chortled. “Don’t be ridiculous man. She’s probably caught a ride from someone else.”

“No, Horace, that’s not possible.” The squire
dragged him out of the ballroom and down the hall.
“She doesn’t have any friends in town.”

“By the look of you I’d say she’s done the impossible.” Horace glanced at his friend’s much altered
manner.

“I need you to take me home right away!” Julian
motioned for the footmen to bring their hats and
coats.

“I’ve promised the next set to Mary Worthington,”
Horace balked. “I’m sure you’re quite mistaken,
Julian.”

“We have to leave-now!”

Horace looked down at his crushed lapels. “Is all
this abuse necessary?”

The squire hadn’t noticed his white-knuckled fists
grasping Horace’s jacket. “I’m so sorry.” He eased his
grip and smoothed the wrinkles. “If my carriage is
here, you may return to your Miss Worthington with
my soundest apologies. If not, I must insist-”

“Fair enough,” Horace replied.

After donning their coats, hats and gloves, the two
men dashed outside.

Sure enough, the squire’s carriage was missing.
Once aboard Horace’s chaise they started off for
Stewart Hall.