Chapter 31

CHAPTER31

I had never thought that I would be this happy with a man.

At best, she had prepared herself to live a sedate life of contentment once she was wed. She had never found a gentleman who made her feel the way Andrew did—like being with him did not mean the end of all things fun and exciting in her life.

In fact, it was quite the opposite. She felt as if her life had only just begun now that she was with him.

She could still laugh with him and tease him, and he, in turn, could still frustrate and infuriate her just as much as he titillated her senses. Dancing with him was never just dancing. It was almost like fencing, and they were both duelists engaged in a battle of wits and composure.

All my life, I never realized that this was what I have truly wanted. To have someone match me head-to-head, toe to toe. Someone who will stand up to me and for me. Someone exactly like Andrew.

“I hope I am the reason behind that smile.”

She looked up to find Andrew regarding her with that arrogant smirk, his eyebrow raised.

They were alone on the balcony now, after having made their rounds around the ballroom. From the way people had been talking to them, one would think that they had just announced their betrothal. For Julia, it became tiring trying to maintain her smile for everyone, and she could tell that Andrew’s patience was at the end of the fraying rope as well.

Fortunately for the both of them, the balcony offered both a reprieve and a venue where they could catch their breath away from the maddening crowd.

“Why? Are you jealous?” she teased.

“I will not tolerate being cuckolded,” Andrew warned.

She rolled her eyes at him. “Lord Trowbridge, we are not married.”

Yet.

“True, but we are courting, and that is as close to it as it gets before marriage.” He regarded her with a stern glare. “Courtship is the prelude to betrothal.”

“Oh, there is no need to lecture me on the rituals of courtship, My Lord. I have been schooled in the art since I was barely a decade old!”

“Then you should know what it entails,” he scoffed.

She planted her hands on her hips. “So, you mean to say that you intend to sample the goods before making the purchase, is that it?”

He frowned. “God, woman, you make it sound so perverse.”

“You make it sound so perverse,” she flung back at him. “You just dress it up with prettier words.”

“Julia, that is not what I meant—”

She held up her hand and glared at him. “You have just ruined a perfectly good night for me right now, and I am going to walk away before I end up saying something that I will ultimately regret.”

She did not bother to wait for his reply when she whirled on her heel and left him standing there in the middle of the balcony, looking just as frustrated as she felt.

As soon as she reached the corridor leading to the ballroom, her breathing evened out, and she closed her eyes. She resisted the urge to pull her hair and ruin Harriet’s hard work.

God, I have forgotten how he makes me so angry sometimes!The only difference now is that I am willing to go back into that ballroom and make things right again…

Julia recalled the words her mama had said to her in the evening and could not help but smile a little. It would seem that mothers truly knew best.

Perhaps she and Andrew were both possessed with such strong personalities, and neither one of them liked to back down from a fight, but when it came down to it, she valued him more than she valued winning an argument.

It does not mean that I relish the thought of it, though. Love certainly does bring out the best and the worst in people…

Then, she stopped herself. Love?

She had never before associated any gentleman with that particular word. And Andrew certainly infuriated her more than she should love him.

She pursed her lips and closed her eyes as she counted to twenty. She would compose herself before she headed back into the ballroom to face Andrew and the other guests.

One. Two. Three…

As her breathing evened out and her heart calmed down, Julia smiled to herself. She had gone as far as nineteen when she heard a sort of scuffle going on in one of the rooms.

Frowning, she crept closer until she could make out two voices embroiled in a heated argument—one male and the other one female.

“I said unhand me, you brute!” the woman hissed. “You are hurting me!”

“I will not be denied by the likes of you!” the man growled.

From the way he was slurring his words, it was clear that he was intoxicated.

I am not going to stand by and let a man hurt a woman!Not if I can help it!

Julia pushed the door open, her eyes widening in surprise when she found Lord Morton with his hand wrapped around Lady Amanda Thornton’s wrist like a vise. Lord Morton looked visibly shocked to find somebody had barged in on them while Lady Amanda looked on the verge of tears.

“I believe,” Julia said in a cold, steely voice, “that the lady told you to unhand her, Lord Morton.”

Lord Morton appeared to be taken aback and dropped Lady Amanda’s delicate wrist. Almost immediately, she scurried away, her frightened eyes silently beseeching Julia to help her.

“Lord Morton,” Julia continued coolly, “you are in no fit position to return to the ballroom. Perhaps you should return to your rooms to cool your head.”

But Lord Morton appeared to have tossed his sanity to the wind as he lunged at her with a roar. “How dare you try and tell me what to do, you wanton—”

Julia reacted quickly, jerking her knee straight up between his legs, causing him to double over in pain.

“You she-devil!” he wailed. “I will make you pay for this—”

But Julia had already started running for the door. Fortunately, Lady Amanda also had the good sense to leave as soon as Lord Morton turned his attention to Julia.

At least I won’t have to take care of her, too.

With a quick twist of her wrist, Julia locked the door behind her and walked quickly down the empty hallway until she made her way back into the ballroom where she found Andrew standing by the door, waiting for her.

As soon as he saw her, he frowned. “Where have you been?” he demanded. “I have been looking all over for you!”

“Nowhere,” she answered quickly. “I went off to cool my head for a bit. I hope that you did not miss me too much.”

He looked at her suspiciously before his eyes softened in relief. “Julia, I just want to apologize for my rash words earlier,” he murmured. He cradled her head affectionately and then frowned. “You are missing a hairpin.”

She reached up for her hair immediately. “Am I?”

He nodded. “I recall it seemed to be around right here.” He tapped a curl that had gotten a little loose. “It looked like it was doing its damned best to try to outshine your eyes and failed.” He gave a lopsided grin. “Miserably, I might add.”

And just like that, all her anger towards him dissipated.

“I must have dropped it when I stalked out of the balcony earlier,” she admitted.

“I can help you search for it tomorrow.” He smiled at her as he offered her his arm once more that night.

Julia smiled back at him gratefully. “Thank you for your assistance, My Lord.”

“Anything to spend more time with you, Red.”

As they made their way around the ballroom once more, Julia caught sight of Lady Amanda. Fortunately, she did not seem visibly shaken by the ordeal with Lord Morton earlier and looked to be in incredibly good spirits.

However, just because someone looked perfectly fine did not mean that they truly were.

The first time a gentleman tried to take liberties with her, Julia recalled being so shocked that after she had shaken him off, she walked back into the ballroom looking for all the world like nothing happened. It was only when she finally got home and was alone in her bedchamber that she gave in to the feelings of disgust, anger, and guilt.

Like it was somehow her fault that he had accosted her.

Seeing how Lady Amanda had reacted earlier, this was clearly her first brush with such a beast. Julia might not agree with her most of the time, but that did not mean she wished for such evil to befall her.

Julia sighed as she tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, wondering where on earth her hairpin was. Her mother would certainly give her an earful for her carelessness, but at that moment, she did not really care.

Being with Andrew made her feel as if these trivialities did not really matter much. She loved being with him, craved to be with him.

And in the midst of a ballroom full of people, with her hand tucked safely into his arm, she still could not get close enough to him. She wanted to feel his bare skin on hers and not through the many layers of silk, velvet, and lace.

It was a delicious kind of frustration all on its own. One that had her gripped in some sort of toe-curling anticipation, wondering when they could be alone, together, once again…