Page 41 of Mr. Eastwood’s Match

He should have stepped back long ago. He should have moved across the room. He should have remembered that Roman had told him—plainly, earnestly—that he had decided to take a bride, and Lady Emily was a most obvious choice. A baron’s younger brother had no right to hover behind her like some besotted schoolboy.

And yet he had done exactly that.

Blasted hypocrisy. He prided himself on temperance and good sense, and here he was indulging every impulse simply because she looked a little startled in a darkened room.

He shifted, meaning to put a safer inch or two between them. Then she glanced back—only briefly, eyes seeking reassurance—and his breath tangled again.

“I am glad you were here,” she said quietly. “I did not expect to be shaken by this event to such an extent.”

He wondered, absurd fool that he was, whether she might have wanted to stand with him from the beginning. Whether she had been pleased to see him arrive. Whether her soft intake of breath when he took her hand had more to do with him than it did the cymbals.

For one wild instant, he let himself imagine she might choose him instead of Roman, if he asked.

Then he dismissed the thought so sharply that it stung.

Lady Emily Sterling deserved a man with rank and presence and confidence—not a second son who communicated best with ink and paper and lost every trace of composure the moment she smiled at him. She would be far better matched with Roman, who carried a title, a commanding manner, and the important members of Society standing behind him.

Roman would never hesitate. Roman would never be undone by a pair of gloved hands brushing his.

No. Lyness knew precisely where he stood. And more so, where he must stand.

At a distance.

He straightened, folding his hands behind him once more, the only safe place for them. The painted ships glowed on the canvas before him as the exhibition drew to a gentle close, but he saw none of it. Holding within him the knowledge that wanting more than his lot was folly of the worst kind.

When the panorama finally ended and the lights rose, he told himself he would make a polite farewell, return to his mother’s side, and forget every reckless impulse of the evening. Never to repeat it.

He already suspected he would fail.

Lady Emily straightened, blinking as the brighter lamps returned shape and color to the room.

Mrs. Elgin turned to her at once, cheeks flushed with excitement. “What an astonishing display! My dear Lady Emily, you endured it beautifully. I jumped nearly every time the drums sounded, yet you held yourself with such composure.” She put a hand to her throat, her eyes wide and bright. “How did you fare? Truly?”

Lady Emily’s composure had returned, though Lyness thought her voice carried a faint tremor. “It was louder than I expected, but quite extraordinary. And I did well, I think.”

Lyness felt the words settle in his chest, part relief, part guilt. She did well, he repeated silently, as if that might excuse his behavior.

Mr. Holly stepped beside his sister, looking at each of them with an air of pleased approval. “I daresay you handled the affair with admirable grace, Lady Emily. Many of the gentlemen in this room ducked at that first cannon blast.” His amused smile deepened. “Though some of us had the advantage of foresight.”

His gaze slid pointedly to Lyness—not unkind, but with a curious lift of his brows.

Lyness resisted the urge to tug at his cuffs. Holly knew. Or at least suspected more than Lyness wished anyone to notice. He inclined his head in a polite acknowledgment, schooling his expression into something mild. If he attempted a verbal response in that moment, his words would trip all over themselves.

Mrs. Elgin gave her brother a playful nudge. “Christopher, do not tease. Lady Emily may well have been startled, but she recovered splendidly.”

“Yes,” Mr. Holly agreed, eyes flicking again between Lady Emily and Lyness. “She did.”

Unaware of the silent exchange, Lady Emily looked up at the platform and the scenes being rolled backward for the next showing. “I am glad to have seen it. Though I certainly do not believe I will attend a second viewing.”

Mrs. Elgin laughed. “Indeed not. My nerves could not withstand another barrage.”

“This is certainly a unique way to learn of significant events in our time,” Lady Emily said, turning to look again at Lyness. Her lips curled upward. “Experiencing the display with others makes it more enjoyable than solitary study.”

Lyness swallowed down the warmth rising in him again—warmth and something precarious, something dangerously close to hope. He willed his breathing steady.

And then Roman appeared.

“Lady Emily.” Roman’s baritone cut smoothly through the chatter as he stepped up beside them, bowing to the ladies with polished ease. “Mrs. Elgin. Mr. Holly.” His gaze shifted last—and longest—to Lyness. “I am glad to see my brother found good company for the exhibition. I wondered where he had gone.”