Suzanne Allain - Incognito

Abernathy nodded in satisfaction, and Alexander mentally chided himself for slipping out of his role so easily. It was a good thing he hadn’t posed as a servant. Apparently he had no talent for acting. He needed to accomplish his goal, so that he could return to London as soon as possible and quit this stupid charade. His father would certainly never expect him to pursue a lady whose affections were already engaged by another. He just needed to verify his suspicions and present his father with the evidence. Miss Emily Smithfield would be the perfect accomplice in his endeavor. Not to mention a most attractive one.

Emily was at that moment peering speculatively across the room at Alexander, thinking much along those same lines herself. She was very conscious of the fact that Lord Wesleigh could appear any day, and there was still nothing resolved between Lydia and Sedgewick. If he were to arrive tomorrow, Emily doubted she could do anything to prevent the match from proceeding as planned. And in addition to her own selfish reasons for wishing to stop her sister’s marriage, she truly loved her sister and did not want her marrying one man when she loved another. But Emily was accomplishing nothing on her own. She needed Mr. Williams’s help. He was Sedgewick’s good friend and could ascertain if Sedgewick returned Lydia’s regard. He had told her earlier that evening he had no experience with matchmaking, but Emily was sure he was a quick learner. He didn’t seem the sort who was unfamiliar with romance. She would wager he’d been an eager participant in quite a few affaires de coeur . Alexander saw Emily looking at him and smiled. Emily caught her breath before smiling shyly back. He got up to walk toward her, and Emily was held, captivated by his stare. It was as if they were the only two people in the room. She jumped when Lady Abernathy turned to speak to her.

“I have another treat in store for you, young lady.”

“Oh, really?” Emily replied absently, still watching Williams’s progress across the room. “What is that?”

“I am having a a visit from my niece, Lady Cynthia Sommers. You will want to meet her. She could definitely smarten you up.” Emily wondered that Lady Abernathy dared to criticize her appearance, as Lady Abernathy was no nonpareil in that area, either. Her favorite color appeared to be a quite unbecoming mixture of brown and gray. “Quite the fashion plate, my niece,” Lady Abernathy continued in her stentorian voice. “Has all the London bucks chasing after her. She could definitely teach you a thing or two, young lady.”

Emily was embarrassed to have Lady Abernathy proclaim in front of Mr. Williams that she needed someone to help her attract beaux, but he hardly seemed to have heard. At the very mention of the name Lady Cynthia, a dismayed look appeared on his face, and he halted abruptly. He regained his composure almost immediately and took the seat next to Emily.

Alexander was quite perturbed, however, to hear that Lady Cynthia was coming to Stonehurst. They had enjoyed an enjoyable flirtation last season, until the lady had made it very clear she would not be averse to something more. He had spent the end of the season last year and the beginning of this one avoiding her. He assuredly had not expected to run into her in this little backwater. He assumed she would be enjoying the height of the season. Could she have heard somehow he was in Stonehurst? It was not an impossibility. He had sent his father a note before he left, explaining that he was leaving for Stonehurst at the earliest opportunity to make Miss Smithfield’s acquaintance. It was entirely conceivable that the news had spread. He would have to think later how he would deal with her presence, but, for now, Lady Abernathy had resumed conversation with Lady Smithfield, and this was his opportunity to speak to Emily.

“I found our earlier conversation very interesting, Miss Smithfield.”

“As did I, Mr. Williams. I wished to discuss the matter with you further.” Emily felt she might have been a trifle bold, but Mr. Williams just smiled.

“Good. For I must admit I had a similar goal in mind when I approached you. I feel that a gentleman such as my friend Sedgewick, a gentleman with such serious responsibilities, could only benefit by having a partner and helper. A proper wife can be the making of a man, don’t you agree, Miss Smithfield?”

“I am in complete agreement. Your friend needs a compassionate and caring wife, who will assist him in his parish duties and provide a good example to others.”

“I take it from your matchmaking attempt earlier this evening you feel that your sister meets those qualifications.”

“Well, perhaps I should not say so to a near stranger, but I must admit they seem well suited.”

“You can trust me, Miss Smithfield, for I have Sedgewick’s best interests at heart. And somehow I feel that I know you very well, although our acquaintance has been of short duration. There is a candid, honest quality about you that is quite refreshing.”

“Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Williams, but my mother is more forthright in her description of me. The quality you describe so prettily as ‘candid and honest’ she more accurately characterizes as ‘a sad lack of delicacy.’”

“Then your mother does you an injustice. Please believe me when I tell you that I do not find you lacking.”

Emily was so unused to compliments that she barely knew how to react. She decided it would be best just to change the subject, although she meant to hone her skills at flirtation before the marquess arrived. That thought reminded her of the goal at hand, which she had been in imminent danger of forgetting. Mr. Williams’s gorgeous brown eyes were proving a formidable distraction. “As you appreciate candor, I will tell you truthfully that I wish to enlist your help in throwing Lydia and Mr. Sedgewick together. I was hoping you could also tell me if you have any reason to believe Mr. Sedgewick holds my sister in esteem.”

Alexander wondered again why Emily was so determined for her sister to marry a vicar. He had his own reasons for wishing for the match, but why would Emily wish her sister to make such an inferior match from a worldly standpoint? Had she taken him in dislike before even meeting him? He found that notion displeased him for some reason, but then again, what did it matter if it left him free? Emily was still waiting for him to reply, and he felt it would do no harm to give her his true opinion.

“He has not confided in me, of course, but I could not help but notice he appears to admire her. I believe he would not be at all averse to a match if he believed it to be possible. I think that is his secret hope, but he feels she is above his touch, and so has tried to put the thought out of his mind.” Emily nodded, delighted with this bit of news. She had felt much the same way herself, but was pleased to have it confirmed. “And your sister, Miss Smithfield? Do you have reason to believe she’s partial to Mr. Sedgewick?”

“Yes, I do. That is why I’m determined to see them together.” Emily looked at him, considering how much to confide in him. The look in his warm brown eyes must have convinced her, because she continued. “You see, there is another gentleman, with greater advantages from a material and social standpoint, whom my mother would prefer to see Lydia marry. But I do not think such things should be a consideration when two people truly love one another, do you?”

If asked that question even a day previously, Alexander would have laughed and scoffed at the idea of love being a prerequisite of marriage. In his social circle, men and women married to achieve greater social standing and wealth. He knew very few that married for love. But looking now at Emily, who was waiting innocently for a reply, he surprised himself with his answer. “I, too, feel that none of those considerations should matter when compared with the feelings of two people toward one another,” he told her. He was rewarded by a bright smile from Emily, which made him feel guilty for holding such cynical views in the past.