Chapter 19

Knock, knock.

George's stomach flip flopped as he banged on the door.

This was not going to go down well.

But as he lifted his fist to knock again, he felt no guilt.

It was time for him to make an unprecedented move.

Still, he stiffened his spine as the door swung open, and he found himself face to face with his brother, for the very first time since the false letter which made him miss the ball.

Gregory had answered the door himself, which was unusual, but maybe he did not want the footman greeting everyone when he was trying his best to show off.

It was a little strange for George to be face to face with his brother like this, knowing what he had now become acutely aware of.

But George was not about to let Gregory know that he could sense his brother's hate.

"Good afternoon," George said, with a much-too-bright smile. "Good to see you, Gregory."

Gregory's cheeks shone red with anger as soon as he spotted who was on the other side of the door. George knew there was a reason that he had not received an invitation to the events of the day, but as soon as he heard about them, he also knew that he was coming.

"What are you doing here?" Gregory demanded in a pinched tone of voice. "I was not expecting a visit from you today."

George smiled. "I should not have to alert you when I am coming to my own home. This house is technically still mine too, do not forget? I thought that it was such a shame that we missed one another at the Warren's Arms, so I would make up for it now."

George did not wait for his brother to invite him inside. That was never going to happen when he had a lot of guests in there already, whom he wanted to make a positive impression on. He simply side-stepped Gregory and walked down the hallway to greet the other people there. It was a little strange though, to be back in this house after so many years. For a long time, he had no believed this would ever happen. He thought when he left for Sweden, he would never return.

He did not think he would ever need to come back.

"Good afternoon, how nice it is to see you," George made a point of calling out to everyone he came across, knowing that it would upset Gregory. The more people that saw George, the less likely Gregory would be to kick him out. Anything to save face in public. "Welcome to our home, thank you so much for coming today."

After he had been left sitting in that nasty bar for hours, waiting for a reconciliation that was never going to happen, George felt like the gloves were off. If Gregory wanted to turn this into an unnecessary war, then that was exactly what would happen.

There was already a crowd of guests in the yard, some of them partaking in lawn games. Shuttlecock, Croquet, Ludo… but that was not what George had come for. He did not need to impress the ton or make an effort to mingle. He was searching for one person in particular, and he would not stop until he sought her out.

After all, there was no way that Gregory would host such an event without Lady Sophie Dashwood there. Not when she was the woman he wished to woo.

If only he saw her for who she really was, and not what she could offer him. If only Gregory could see how wonderful a person she was, but he did not care for that, just as he did not care for George. It was actually unlikely that Gregory cared for anyone at all.

Other than himself, of course.

He only wanted Sophie's family money and that was not fair. It was not going to happen.

There she is!

Relief flooded Gregory the moment he rested his eyes upon Sophie. She was with some friends who seemed to be teaching her the rules of Grandmother's Trunk. He loved the way that she was laughing with them and looking like she was having a wonderful time. That immediately calmed down the racing anger in George's heart.

Gregory did not yet have her in tears, which was just wonderful.

George paused for a moment, to simply watch her. To soak in her lovely smile and shining eyes. The feelings that he had been trying his hardest not to acknowledge came flooding to the surface once more. Keeping her away from Gregory was hopefully going to be easy, but he was starting to worry that he might not be able to keep her away from himself.

It was only because of her that George wished everything had happened differently. He enjoyed being a self-made man in Sweden. He had loved his life there, but just to make him good enough for Sophie, he wished that he was the one to inherit the lordship.

Sophie must have sensed his eyes upon her, because eventually she lifted her gaze to meet his. As she smiled at him, a pinkness stained her cheeks, making her more beautiful to him than she had ever been before. All he really wanted to do was cross this lawn, to finish what they had almost started on the battleship.

Putting a stop to that kiss before it had even happened was one of the hardest things that George had ever been forced to do in his life, and every time he caught sight of Sophie, he regretted it more.

Perhaps he was not going to be able to kiss her in front of the ton, because of the scandal that would cause, but he was most certainly going to spend as much of the day talking to her as he could. Gregory had taken all her time at Hampstead park, and he had also danced with her at the ball he forced George to miss.

Now it was George's turn to monopolize her time, and he could not wait.

He decided not to wait. To cross the yard right away so he could speak with her. George could not ignore the way that excited anticipation surged through his veins. His pulse pounded with expectation. Never had he ever found himself so thrilled to speak with anyone.

In Sweden, he had been focused only on his work. He had decided a long time ago that no lady would want a disgraced lord, even with him moving away from London, so he had never sought to court anyway. But even if he had, he already knew that there was no woman who could have made him feel as Sophie did.

"Good afternoon, Lord Harrington," Sophie said with a sweet curtsy the moment George was in ear shot.

"Good afternoon, Lady Dashwood. Would you like me to give you a tour of the gardens?"

He could not help but notice the look that her friends exchanged behind her. This might have made him nervous if he was worried about the gossip. But the talk of the ton would likely work in his favor, and draw Sophie closer to him.

"Yes, that sounds quite lovely. Thank you very much."

The gardens had always been kept very well. His father had wanted to make a good impression on anyone who came near their home, so he had been sure to hire the best gardeners to keep the flower beds looking pristine. Thankfully, that was something Gregory had adopted. George could only hope that would continue, and that his brother would not waste all the family money, leaving him with no way to pay the house staff.

"Let me take you to see the orchids. I think you will love them most of all."

There was a reason George had suggested this, and it was not simply because of the beautiful flowers. But because it would offer a little privacy. A place where they could talk a little more honestly.

"Thank you very much for the post card," Sophie said once they had created some distance between themselves and everyone else. "I thought that was quite lovely. I have also been reading my book, and finding it thoroughly enjoyable."

"Does it make you want to be back on the water once more?"

George did not mean anything by this comment, so it confused him when Sophie fell quiet and thoughtful. "I do not think I will be going back on the water," she finally told him. "I believe we will be staying here in London."

She turned to face him, so he did the same.

He could not stop his heart from thundering against his rib cage.

There was a nervousness in George that he simply could not control.

"I think you have more friends in London than you realize," she told him delicately while moving a little closer to him. Thank goodness no one could see them. "It would be such a shame for you to leave."

"Do you think?" he asked her sweetly, before edging towards her as well. He inhaled deeply, breathing in her beautifully intoxicating scent. "Well, I am not in a hurry to leave."

Her fingers were so close to his that he could hardly stand it. It was lucky that no one was watching as he laced his hand with hers. They were both clearly very aware that this should not be happening, but neither of them was strong enough to stop it.

"I think you should most certainly consider staying longer."

"Perhaps I will." George's head tilted ever so slightly as he brought his lips close to hers. "Maybe I have a reason to stay now."

He did not say you, but that word hung in the air none the less.

George tried to recall his dream, and all the worries that came floating to the surface as he slept the night that his brother had abandoned him in the bar, but all he could really recall was the sensation of Sophie's lips as they finally kissed. That was a sensation he needed to experience for real, to know if his fantasies were correct.

Sophie's eyes had hooded over with desire. It was clear that she ached for this just as intensely as he did, which was what prevented him from holding back any longer. In his father's garden, right by the orchids, he blurred the line at long last and lightly pressed his lips against hers in the sweetest kiss ever…

At least, that was how it started, as a sweet kiss which made his heart flutter with delight, but soon the passion got the better of them. His tongue invaded her mouth, just as hers did his, and the desire intensified. George pulled Sophie closer to him until her whole body was pressed up against him, setting him on fire.

He absolutely had to break the spell before they really did lose their minds and they ended up doing something wild in the gardens. Something they could not take back.

"Perhaps we should head back," Sophie gasped as her hands flew up to her flushed cheeks. It was clear that she was on the verge of losing her mind as well. "Before our absence is noticed."

There were so many things George wished to say at that moment, but a thick ball of emotion had lodged itself at the base of his throat.

He could not say a word.

Instead he nodded and followed Sophie back to the party where the other guests were still playing games.

Fortunately, there was only one set of eyes upon them, which meant no one had really noticed their disappearance.

Unfortunately, the one person who was staring at them did not look impressed at all. He seemed positively angry, like he knew exactly what he had just witnessed.

Gregory.