Chapter 24

Men are truly the most confusing creatures to exist!

Alice could only shake her head as she headed back to where the other young ladies were situated in the gardens of Fitzroy Hall. The entire ground was festooned with banners and ribbons as gaily colored as the guests themselves.

Picnic blankets were laid out with canopies above them to filter out the harsh sunlight, and the most sumptuous fare had been laid out for the young women to enjoy while excitedly awaiting the results of the gentlemen's hunt.

She spotted Scarlett and the others seated under one of the canopies and hurriedly walked over to them.

"My dear, why the long face?" Scarlett exclaimed as Alice sat down beside her in a bit of a huff. The redhead looked at her with some concern but could ill conceal the merriment dancing in her eyes. "Do not tell me that you have been pricked by the Duke of Thorns?"

At the mention of her brother, Evie immediately perked up. Her eyes narrowed as she leaned towards Alice as well. "You must tell me if he has done anything untoward, Alice," she told her with a shake of her head. "Fake betrothal or not, Grandmama and I shall sort him out for you!"

Alice laughed at this and patted the younger lady's hand, her spirits immediately buoyed by their company. "Come now, where is your sense of your loyalty towards your brother?"

"My loyalty to him includes calling him out when he is being an odious beast," Evie scoffed with a defiant tilt of her chin. "And I know very well just how exasperating he can be, so you need not be shy on my account!"

"I am sure you do, my dear. But it is nothing I cannot handle, I assure you."

Those words seemed to mollify Evie for a bit, and she settled back, her gaze returning to the tree-lined edge of the woods that the gentlemen had disappeared into earlier with their rifles slung over their shoulders.

"You look like you hardly slept a wink," Scarlett remarked in a low voice. "Is it possible that he…" she trailed off, her meaning as obvious as the glint in her eyes.

Why did everyone just assume that?

Alice shook her head. Was that regret she felt? She could hardly tell, for Scarlett immediately let out a faint noise of approval.

"Well, he certainly knows how to conduct himself properly at the very least," she said with a pleased smile. "I cannot say that his behavior towards you has been exemplary as of late, but at least he was gentlemanly enough to refrain from sullying your reputation right under his roof."

"If he did, then Grandmama would have him scurrying to the Archbishop for a special license posthaste!" Evie affirmed with a nod. "I shall make sure of it myself!"

Alice hardly believed that even the formidable Dowager Countess of Wellington could force Colin to do something against his will, but she just nodded as her two friends expressed their approval of Colin's restraint.

She felt a gentle hand on her shoulder and turned slightly to find Phoebe looking at her with some concern. "You… are not disappointed, are you, Alice?"

"Of course not!" Alice replied quickly. Much too quickly, for it drew the attention of the two other young ladies as well. She immediately lowered her voice and leaned in. "I would not have known how to explain why His Grace would be walking with a limp if he did!"

Evie burst out in laughter. "I knew there was a reason I liked you at first glance!" she exclaimed, happily clapping her hands together. "It is a shame regarding your arrangement with Colin—I would so have loved to gain a sister in you, Alice."

Her words warmed Alice's heart, and Alice found herself longing for the same things that Evie had expressed. A real betrothal to Colin, however, was nothing but a lovely fantasy. He had expressed early on that he had no such intentions of marrying her—or anyone else for that matter.

A pity. He would have made a young lady exceptionally happy.

And that was definitely not because of what she had experienced at his hands…

The thought of it made her cheeks bloom wildly with color, and she instinctively squeezed her legs shut, as if that simple motion could dispel the memory of his fingers in her most intimate place.

"Alice, are you all right?" her younger sister asked her with a frown.

Alice smiled wanly in reply. "Y-yes, I am. It is probably just the heat and being outdoors…"

Scarlett glanced suspiciously at her. "Eh? But it is not that hot if you ask me…"

Fortunately, it was at that time that a horn sounded, announcing the end of the hunt. An excited gasp arose from the crowd of young ladies. One even let out a faint squeal which caused Alice to wrinkle her nose a little.

The Dowager Countess's claim that the winner would be able to claim all of a young lady's dances for the ball that night had ignited something else amongst those in attendance. There were many who had suitors amongst those who participated in the hunt. Besides those, the four Wolves—all of them dukes—had also participated.

The rules of etiquette dictated that a young woman dancing with a certain gentleman twice in one night was showing him particular attention, and practically a declaration that they were soon to wed. Three times would have caused a scandal.

Unlike all the others around her, Alice did not harbor such romantic fantasies. She had seen Colin just earlier, had witnessed firsthand his disdain for hunting. In truth, she was a bit relieved about it, as she hardly found the notion of shooting hapless prey entertaining. In that aspect, she could concede they were well-matched.

In other aspects…

She shook her head and smiled ruefully to herself. It did not really matter if they were well-matched or not. If Colin had no desire to wed, then there was hardly any point to it.

She could only wish that things were different. That he would see her and feel differently about marriage.

As for now, she hardly felt any excitement over the results of this hunting competition.

* * *

Couldn't Grandmother have chosen something else besides hunting?

Colin trudged miserably back to the picnic grounds with nothing to show for the past few hours he had been wandering aimlessly around in the woods. He had not lied to Alice when he said that he knew this place like the back of his hand, but he truly loathed the concept of hunting overall.

His father had been an avid hunter when he was alive, and whatever the man enjoyed doing, Colin made certain to develop an abject aversion towards it. His grandmother knew this very well, and he was sure that she had some ploy up her sleeve for her to include hunting in the house party's activities.

She really did not think I would win just to claim Alice's dances for the entire evening, did she?

Even if he did not win, there were ways he could dissuade her from dancing with any other gentleman tonight.

Like monopolizing her attention.

He shook his head when he realized the direction his thoughts had taken. He was supposed to be avoiding her and the bewitching effect she had on him, not devising ways in which he could monopolize all of her attention!

"That was a rather poor showing of skill right there," Daniel remarked quietly, falling into step with him.

Colin smiled sardonically at his friend. "As the host, I could not possibly win all the challenges my dear grandmother set forth, could I? That would be the height of injustice, and nobody else would find enjoyment for the rest of their stay."

"True," Daniel replied. "Our friend, though, has applied himself most assiduously to the task at hand." He turned towards Ethan, who was happily walking ahead of them with a sizable yield for his efforts in the woods.

"Let him have his fun." Colin shrugged.

Just because he did not enjoy hunting did not mean he was going to ruin it for everyone else. If Ethan wanted his fun, as a friend, Colin was not going to stand in his way.

They reached the end of the tree line, and the chatter from the picnic grounds became more distinct. Even amongst the gaily dressed crowd, his vision seemed to zero in on a particular dark-haired young woman in a sage green dress. Unlike her companions, she did not seem as enthusiastic about the results of the hunting competition.

Colin felt a heaviness in his chest that he could not explain when he saw her reaction.

"You have only yourself to blame for that," a dark voice intoned wryly.

He turned around to find Hudson with his rifle slung over his broad shoulder. His friend wore the same grim look he always did, but there was a trace of something else in his eyes. Pity, perhaps?

He never thought the day would come when Hudson would actually feel much for anyone, even pity.

Colin managed to eke out a slight smile. "Well, I cannot just hoard all the prizes as a host," he told him in as genial a manner as he could hope to portray.

Hudson just nodded. "I hope you realize just how much you are losing by choosing to let go."

With those parting words, his friend walked towards the picnic grounds, his strides practically eating the ground. Colin watched as Hudson laid his quarry along with those of the other gentlemen who had participated in the hunt.

As expected, it was Ethan who garnered first place in the competition. Colin felt the weight in his chest lift, feeling naturally happy for his friend.

As cheers rose up, he could make out a few young ladies blushing and whispering amongst themselves. Even if Ethan was a member of the Wolves, his reputation and charm were significantly better than those of Colin and his other friends. It was only natural for young ladies to fall for him.

"Now, as I have promised, you get to claim all of the dances of a young lady of your choosing!" Lady Wellington announced, beaming widely.

Ethan let out a teasing grin. "All, you say?"

A handful of young women practically swooned at his words, and Colin could only shake his head. Ethan always had a flair for theatrics, and he had no qualms whatsoever about using it on women.

His grandmother smiled serenely at his friend. "I did say all," she clarified. "Although, I will not be responsible for the chaos your choice might cause."

"Your advice is duly noted, My Lady." Ethan grinned widely. "As for my choice?—"

A hopeful gasp arose among his captive audience as his eyes seemed to survey the young ladies in attendance. One of them fanned herself most arduously as she gazed up hopefully at the most charming member of the Wolves.

"I choose Lady Alice Barkley."

A sudden hush fell on the crowd, and Colin saw nearly a hundred pairs of eyes swivel towards him and then back at Ethan again. He felt his smile slipping away as he turned his shocked gaze towards his friend, his mind reeling.

Who did Ethan choose again?

Colin could only watch as Ethan shot him an apologetic smile before walking over to Alice and handing her the ribbon he had won. At that moment, a fury unlike any other erupted within him.

"Lady Alice Barkley, would you allow me the honor of claiming all your dances tonight?" he heard Ethan say in a charming voice that would make any woman drop all pretense at modesty.

Say no, say no, say no…

Alice looked up at Ethan as though she was confused. His eyes narrowed as he watched them talk for a while—with Ethan trying to charm her, no doubt—and then, with a soft smile, she accepted the ribbon with a smile that seemed to Colin was far more dazzling than the sun.

"The honor is all mine, Your Grace," she replied with a slight curtsy.

As the crowd burst into applause, only one thought was on Colin's mind as he watched that scene.

Friend or not, I am going to kill him!