CHAPTER 12

“Ooh, look at this.” Leonora clapped her hands together excitedly. “The guests are arriving.”

Since his mother had spent all morning organizing the lush well maintained gardens in preparation for the tea party this afternoon, it was no surprise to Christopher that she was thrilled for the guests to come and see what she had created.

If only Christopher could muster up any of that joy for himself.

He backed up a little until he was far too close to the rose bushes as the Devereuxs arrived first, dressed in their finest afternoon party clothing. Christopher took in a deep breath, knowing that he was going to have to be polite, so as not to upset his mother at all.

“Good afternoon,” Mr. Devereux said with a giant smile. “My goodness, Lady Fitzhugh, your gardens look stunning. The blooms are colorful and vibrant, just like a painting.”

It was clear this comment was made just to try and lure Christopher in to the conversation, but he did not cave. Mr. Devereux did not know enough about art for them to have a meaningful conversation, so there was nothing to be said.

Instead, he greeted everyone and exchanged polite pleasantries, trying to ignore the way that Henrietta was endlessly fluttering her eye lashes at him. It was clear that she had strong intentions today, which was challenging.

He truly did not want to get caught talking to her for too long today. Especially as he now knew that Elliot Belmont’s name was on the guest list as well. He hoped to get some clarification from his friend, and to find out how his surprise visit to Clara’s home had been received.

As the Devereuxs moved into the garden to wait for other guests to arrive, Christopher’s heart sunk a little because of the rest guests were just as unwelcome in his mind.

Graham and Julianna, here to remind him just how much of a disappointment he was.

“Good afternoon, Mother.” Graham spoke a little too loudly in Christopher’s opinion, but of course Leonora embraced him happily. “You have outdone yourself. This might well be your finest dinner party to date.”

“I quite agree.” Julianna said as she curtsied to Leonora. “I am sure everyone will have a wonderful time today.”

Christopher watched as his mother blushed and shone with joy. “Thank you very much. I appreciate you noticing that. I have been hard at work all morning.”

Christopher could hardly be bothered to listen to the inane chit chat. Now that Graham was around, it was highly unlikely that Leonora would bother to pay much attention to him. At least until she wanted to work on matchmaking between Christopher and Henrietta, of course. But the longer he could put that off, the better.

Just as Christopher was mentally planning his escape from this conversation, he spotted a sight that made his heart skip a beat. Elliot had arrived, and he had Clara on his arm. He did not know that she was going to come today. He had hoped, but had never been given the chance to ask for sure. But she was here, and looking beautiful in her lilac colored gown with her hair swept over her shoulder, tumbling down her back in lovely looking curls.

The smile on her face also shone in her eyes, which brought Christopher back to life. Her presence was truly welcome, and he hoped that today things would be far more successful than when he turned up at the Belmont’s home. He wanted his mother to like Clara, and to see her as a very suitable prospect for him. Much more than Henrietta.

Elliot steered Clara over for polite greetings, which caused Christopher’s heart to absolutely race. The closer she got to him, the more inspired he felt by her.

“Good afternoon, Lady Fitzhugh. What a wonderful party you have thrown today. It looks absolutely beautiful. Now, I do hope it is no trouble, but I have brought my cousin with me today. Lady Clara Belmont. I stole her away from her family’s plans for the day so I could have her on my arm. I do hope you do not mind.”

Leonora would not let her real feelings show, even if she was not happy about this, but judging by the smile plastered across her face, she really did seem pleased.

“Oh you know that you are always welcome to bring someone with you, Lord Belmont. I adore meeting members of your family. Lady Clara Belmont, did you say?”

As his mother fawned over Clara, Christopher caught Elliot’s meaningful grin. Christopher had to hide a grin at this strategic assistance for their fake courtship. Now that his mother had met Clara, it might be a little easier for things to progress.

Clara seemed a little more reserved. There was a taut nervousness dancing in her aura, but time would likely make that disappear. The more time that she spent here, the easier it would hopefully be for her to relax.

It made his heart sink a little as Elliot and Clara went to mingle with the rest of the guests, but at least he knew that he would get the chance to spend more time with her over the course of the day which made him feel a little better.

Before the guests were seated, Christopher noticed his Aunt Abigail waving him over. He made his way through the mingling guests to greet her with a friendly embrace. Abigail had always been Christopher’s favorite relative for her wit and warmth. He could not wait to see what she had to say. At least with Abigail, he could be much more honest about things.

“How are you?” Christopher asked smilingly. “It is so good to see you.”

“I am doing rather well. Enjoying this party very much. What about you?”

“Yes, I am fine…” The fa?ade fell away a little when his aunt gave him a knowing look. “Well, I might not be having the best time.”

“I am sure your mother will be very unimpressed with you, since you are not spending all your time talking to Miss Henrietta Devereux.”

Christopher rolled his eyes. “I am sure. It feels a little like the only reason she wanted a garden party was to give me the chance to talk more with Miss Devereux.”

“So, you are still feeling the pressure then?”

Christopher sighed heavily and nodded. “I have no intentions toward Henrietta beyond politeness. I have told my mother this over and over again. Yet she will not hear me.”

Abigail gave him an understanding smile and patted his arm. “True connections can not be forced. As soon as you start to feel that, you will know.”

Those words struck Christopher hard because he was quite sure that he had already experienced that feeling, and it was centered around Clara. She truly was the only person who had made him feel that sort of excitement.

He parted his lips, about to explain to his aunt this, but before he could get any words out, Leonora’s voice announced that tea was ready to be served. It was time for the guests to make their way over to the large, beautifully set table for tea.

“Come and sit with me,” Elliot said as soon as he got close enough to Christopher to speak.

But before Christopher could agree to make sure that he was nearer to Clara, giving them plenty of time to talk, his mother grabbed his arm hard. She was not about to waste this time. She wanted him next to Henrietta since this was likely the point of the party.

He could not disagree with her wishes, not without making a fuss, and he knew that his mother would never forgive him if he made a scene.

Unwillingly, he took the seat that his mother had chosen for him, putting him right next to the very over-eager Henrietta, of course. But what he was not expecting was for Elliot to ensure that Clara was sitting directly across from him. He likely had Christopher’s best interests at heart, but it had made everything that much more awkward for him.

How was he supposed to manage this? All he wanted to do was talk to Clara, to see if she was looking forward to their theatre outing, but he was not sure he could.

“Hasn’t your mother thrown quite the party?” Henrietta asked with a giggle as she leaned in closer to Christopher. “I love the flowers that she has on display. She really does know how to arrange the gardens. I am impressed by her. I think she has wonderful taste.”

“Yes,” Christopher agreed, unsure as to why Henrietta always wanted to talk about flowers. “I am sure my mother will be very pleased to hear that compliment.”

“I have told her already. We were talking earlier on, so she knows how much I am in awe of her.” Henrietta sipped her tea and edged nearer to him again, forcing him to turn away from Clara, who he really wanted to be looking at. “I was also talking to your mother about my next musicale, and she has suggested that you should come and watch me. She thinks you will be very interested in my acting and singing, and that you would love to be in the audience. I have always been complimented on my voice and I would love to have you hear me.”

Christopher murmured a noncommittal response. He was not quite sure what he was supposed to say to that. It seemed like his mother had already signed him up for something that he was truly uninterested in.

Unable to keep his eyes off of her, Christopher subtly stole a glance at Clara, catching her amused smile. It was very difficult for him not to return the look, but he did not wish to make Henrietta suspicious. He was sure that she would make a scene if she thought that his eyes were drawn elsewhere, even if he had not given her any indication that he wanted to look at her.

Not that she was paying much attention to what everyone else was doing. She was far too busy trying to sell her musicale to him, so he could see her sing like an angel.

But it was Clara who had him struggling to breathe normally. The sight of the sun light catching her hair. His heart started to pound in his throat, and he honestly started to feel a little dizzy. No woman had ever made him feel like Clara did.

There was a part of him that wished this ruse was not just a fa?ade. He wished it could all be real, because the idea of being betrothed to someone who made him feel this way was wonderful. If he was going to marry anyone, it would be her.

But he did not know what was happening in Clara’s mind. He had no idea how she was feeling, and he could not ask Elliot without threatening the plan that they both needed.

Once Clara met his eyes again and she gave him a clandestine little nod, his resolve was bolstered to ignore Henrietta and focus on getting to know this fascinating woman he felt undeniably drawn to.

Whatever the conclusion of their union, it was going to be positive. They were here to help one another out, and there was no denying that they always had a lot to talk about. Even if they only ended up having a friendship, Christopher would be happy about it.

Although he might not admit it out loud, but he could not deny it to himself, that there was a little piece of his heart wishing that friendship was the minimum that he could get from Clara. If their chemistry was anything to go by in the few moments they had spent together, then they deserved so much more.