Falling for His Practical Wife by Laura Martin

Author:Laura Martin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2021-05-12T11:31:53+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Dear Beth,

You would be so proud of me, attending a dinner party all without the comfort of my veil. I do have to admit to curling my hair so that it hung carefully over one cheek...nevertheless it is progress!

Annabelle felt sick as they stepped out of the carriage twenty minutes later in front of a grand house with a pair of footmen in pristine livery welcoming them. Her hands were shaking and she felt as though she might bring up her lunch and embarrass herself even more. Carefully she arranged the curls that hung down over her cheek, wishing now she had brought the veil. She had felt it would be an embarrassment to Leo, but now she just wanted something to hide behind.

As the door opened she wondered how many ways she could make a fool of herself tonight. Leo had assured her it would only be them and Lord and Lady Wilstow in attendance, but she didn’t doubt the Wilstows had many friends and tales of Leonard Ashburton’s strange wife would soon reach the ears of the ton in London.

‘Ashburton, it’s been too long.’ A large, affable man grinned and he shook Leo’s hand with vigour. Annabelle warmed to him immediately, he had a friendly, open face and a smile that seemed to welcome you in. Beside him stood a petite woman, dwarfed by her husband and even smaller than Annabelle herself. She was strikingly beautiful with copper-red hair and perfectly symmetrical features. Her eyes though, unlike her husband’s, were cold and flicked over Annabelle as if assessing her, before freezing on the scars on Annabelle’s cheek.

‘Meet my darling wife,’ Lord Wilstow said, gripping Lady Wilstow about the shoulders and presenting her as if she were a fine piece of art for their appreciation.

Leo bowed over her hand and murmured a greeting and Annabelle caught a glimpse of the man her husband must be in society. She knew he preferred the quiet life in Kent, but he did attend the balls and dinner parties in London. He knew how to greet people, how to behave, it was as natural to him as riding a horse. Suddenly she felt very unrefined.

‘May I introduce my new wife, Lady Annabelle.’

Lady Wilstow’s eyebrows shot up on hearing Annabelle’s title. Lord Wilstow was less perturbed and took Annabelle’s hand in his own as if they were old friends.

‘Delighted to meet you, Lady Annabelle. We never thought Ashburton would ever settle down, it is wonderful to meet the woman who persuaded him.’ As Lord Wilstow pulled her into the house and out of the shadows he caught sight of her scars. ‘Good Lord, what happened to your face, my dear?’

Annabelle froze, her mind completely blank, her tongue feeling as though it were attached to a heavy weight, unable to move. She felt her cheeks start to redden and knew with horror soon her blush would make the scars look even more angry just as everyone was looking at them.

‘A childhood accident,’ Leo said brusquely, ‘Nothing more.

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