Redeeming the Deception of Grace (13 page)

He
smiled,
as he knew one thing for certain
.
H
e indeed did have
hope in winning Grace
'
s heart.

C
hapter Eight

As Grace prepared for the famed Kringle
B
all
,
she thought back over the past week
.
Indeed
,
Miss Rachel had proven to be the friend she had hoped
.
Already they had become fast friends
,
and Grace was thankful that Ewan had run into her
.

She laughed gently at the thought
, but her amusement was short
-
lived
. A furrow etched itself in her brow as she thought over the frequent subtle questions Rachel had asked regarding Shiply.
She had
answered her questions as best as possible but found it difficult because, well, as she answered the questions she discovered she didn
'
t know Shiply well at all
.
It was a shocking revelation
,
amplified by the contrast with her ability to answer any and every question Rachel occasionally asked about Ewan
.

Although her heart hadn
'
t been engaged in the courtship Shiply had paid to her, she also hadn
'
t ended it
.
Ewan had indeed spent more time with her
,
but the hope she had felt earlier at the Lordington ball was fast fading as Ewan
'
s behavior toward her was lacking the seduction he began at the ball
.
He was far too much of the gentleman, far too reserved
, far to
o
unlike the Ewan she knew.

Gone was the rake and rogue
who
would flirt shamelessly
,
and replacing him was a perfect gentleman
.
Grace found she missed the old Ewan, and wondered what had caused such a profound change
.

Although his actions
said
he was paying her court as well, she didn
'
t know for sure
.
He had not stated his intentions nor spoke with her parents
,
as far as she knew
.
It had been a confusing week
,
and Grace was frustrated.

"
Mother?
"
Grace asked as
Lady Jarvais
walked into her room
.
She was beautifully dressed in a red velvet gown trimmed with gold
-
braided trim
.
On her head was a thin veil that had white ostrich feathers gracing the top
.

"
Yes, love?
"
Lady Jarvais
asked as she
inspected
Grace
'
s dress.
"
You look stunning. I
'
m sure Shiply will be pleased.
"
She
spoke with tenderness as she caressed her daughter
'
s arm and
studied her
with a proud smile.

"
Yes
,
well…
I believe I have a problem
…
"
Grace trailed off, unsure of how much to share with her mother.

"
What
is it,
darling?
"
she asked,
sitting down next to her and waiting patiently.

"
What if
…
I mean
…
"
She paused, collecting her thoughts.
"
What if Shiply isn
'
t exactly what I want?
What if there
was
another
who…
another
to whom I was attracted
?
"
s
he
asked hesitantly
as she lowered her eyes and smoothed out the lines of her silk gown
.

"
No one is requiring you to accept Shiply
'
s attentions
,
dear
,
"
h
er mother replied gently.

"
I know
,
but
…
though I know I should like him and be thankful because he
'
s a perfectly respectable gentleman, my heart is holding on to a fantasy
,
and
M
other, I…
"

"
You don
'
t know if you should settle or not?
"
Lady Jarvais
added helpfully.

"
Does that sound horrid? I sound vain and arrogant when it
'
s said that way
,
but it
is
how I feel
,
"
Grace replied miserably
.
She lifted her gloved hands and covered her eyes.

"
No
,
love, you don
'
t sound vain
.
"
Lady Jarvais
smooth
ed
Grace
'
s warm cinnamon and golden
hair from her face
.
"
Sometimes the heart is simply wiser than the head, but also
,
sometimes the reverse is true as well.
"

C
onfused
,
Grace looked at her mother.
"
But which is true of me, now? Which is wiser
, m
y head or heart? My head says be thankful and forget about my heart
,
and my heart says the opposite.
"
A
lone tear trailed down Grace
'
s cheek, followed by a sister tear on her other cheek.

"
Dear
…
"
Lady Jarvais
pulled her daughter into an embrace.
"
These things have a way of working out
.
As of yet, Shiply hasn
'
t asked for your hand
,
so you have time, love
.
Time to discern the wisdom of both your head and
your
heart
.
As for Shiply, he wouldn
'
t be allowed around my daughter if I didn
'
t think him worthy of your attention. As for the other…
"
Lady Jarvais
wiped Grace
'
s
tears
away
.
"
I
believe Ewan is equally as worthy, or else I wouldn
'
t have allowed him around here as long as I have
.
"

Grace gasp
ed
.

She smiled.
"
You
'
re my daughter
,
love, it
'
s my job to know your heart
,
"
s
he replied to a still stunned Grace.
"
Give them both time
,
dear, you don
'
t have to choose now.
"
Lady Jarvais
rose from her seat and placed a kiss upon her daughter
'
s head before leaving the room.

Grace
'
s
gaze
followed her mother as she left
.
She was thankful her mother had said she approved just as much of Ewan as Shiply
.
S
omehow it made her feel more secure in her affection for him
.
With a deep breath
,
Grace continued to ready for the ball,
and
something told her that it would be special, one way or another.

****

Ewan paced the floor of his study, watching the clock.
Time seemed to be standing still, for the clock appeared to almost move backward. He clearly was anticipating the evening with too much impatience.
Tonight he would speak the words he had been so carefully display
ed
the past week to Grace
.
It had nearly killed him; the restraint, the
self
-
control
it took to be
utterly proper when around her and not succumbing to his passion and pulling her into a tight embrace and kissing her thoroughly, and more
…
so much more
.

He gave
a frustrated growl
and
heard Whit clear his throat.

"
I suppose you
'
re going to say I
'
m wearing out the rug or some other sort of attempt at humor?
"
Ewan gr
umbled

"
No sir, I was merely reminding you that your study clock hasn
'
t be
en
serviced and is behind.
"
Whit hid his smile behind a false cough.

Ewan froze and glanced at the old clock again.

"
Excuse me?
"
h
e asked Whit, increasingly nervous. What time was it truly?

"
I believe I told you yesterday
,
but I doubt you heard me.
It was when you were on your way to
Lady
—
"

Ewan interrupted Whit.
"
I know full well where I was yesterday, but why tell me now
?
I
'
ve been pacing here for near an hour! What time is it?
"
h
e asked, frustrated.

"
Near nine
,
sir.
"
Whit responded
. Ewan heart lurched
,
and he felt his face twist
with horror
. Whit glanced down
, lifting a fist to cover up the clearing of his throat in a pathetic attempt at hiding his laugh
.

"
N
ine
!
"
Ewan shouted before jumping into action and grabbing his coat. The ball began at nine! He had wanted to get their right on time so that he could find Grace as soon as possible
.
Though she was arriving with her parents
,
he had no doubt that Shiply would descend like a plague and whisk her away without a backward glance.

"
Sir, I took the liberty of readying your carriage when you didn
'
t ask for it about a quarter hour ago
,
"
Whit assured as Ewan continued to ready himself for a bout with the English
w
inter weather.

"
Thank you
,
Whit
.
I just might not kill you for waiting so long in
reminding me
about the miserable clock
,
"
h
e retorted over his shoulder as he put his tall hat upon his head, smoothing the brim.

"
Here you go
,
sir.
"
Whit handed Ewan his gloves as he walked past.
"
And, if I may say so
,
sir, good luck tonight.
"
Ewan grinned at Whit
.
They had discussed earlier how he would make his intentions known. In fact they had spoken about it a week ago
,
where Whit had encouraged him to pursue her with all the manners of a gentleman so that Grace would know his intentions were noble and well thought out, not born of a fleeting jealousy or impulsive attraction.

"
Thank you
,
Whit.
"
He glanced at his friend and nodded before heading out into the cold air.