Romance Me, Viscount (A Very Fine Muddle Book 1) by Kate Archer

Author:Kate Archer [Archer, Kate]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Historical
Publisher: Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2023-06-08T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Matthew could not be certain what he’d walked into when he’d arrived at the Benningtons’ drawing room.

Apparently, he’d been the subject of some discussion, concluding that they might have had a worse neighbor than he.

Another gentleman might have taken umbrage to such an assessment, but it was the highest praise he could recall receiving from the five sisters in recent years.

He’d been further surprised by how taken aback they’d all looked when he’d mentioned he’d often thought they could be worse too. They’d appeared to not have the faintest inkling of what trouble they all were. Only the earl and Darden had not seemed surprised to hear that opinion.

The dinner had been odd, to say the least. There had been no faces made at him from across the table, no jabs thrown, no insulting odes recited. Juliet had even asked him a very civil question about his favored horse.

What was happening?

They all seemed more sensible or reasonable or…not like themselves.

It began to dawn on Matthew that since he’d reined in his scolding, they had improved.

It was positively diabolical. His scolding was meant to prod them toward improvement, and yet they only improved when he stopped?

But perhaps it was only Darden’s presence. They did worship him, and perhaps they wished to please him.

Beatrice had been very quiet throughout dinner, which was not at all like her. He’d even tried to draw her out on two occasions, but she’d blushed and given short answers.

That was concerning. What was taking up all her thoughts?

If he knew Beatrice as he thought he did, there could only be one thing taking up her thoughts—romance.

Had Cahill made a move he was unaware of? Or worse, had Conbatten?

They had since repaired to the drawing room. Cordelia was consulting with Miss Mayton and Darden on how they would manage footlights and not burn anything at the same time.

This was considered from every angle, as everybody knew the earl would be unhappy if something were to catch fire. Not to mention Tattleton, who would have smoke coming from his ears were they to start a fire so soon on the heels of the last one.

Matthew sat next to Beatrice, waiting for Cordelia’s inevitable overwrought account of Desdemona to proceed. Cordelia liked to recite the end of Othello, removing everybody else’s lines but Desdemona’s. It made absolutely no sense, but they were all so used to it that it had somehow begun to make sense.

“I must ask, Beatrice,” he began. “That is, I mean, Lady Beatrice,” he said, correcting himself, “you seem very quiet and out of spirits this night. Are you well?”

She seemed surprised to be asked, or to even find him beside her, as if her thoughts had been very far away indeed.

“I am perfectly well.”

He did not think that was at all true.

“I only wondered if something had occurred to put you out of sorts,” he said.

“What on earth could put me out of sorts?” she asked.

If he knew that, he would not be asking. He

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