A Return to Hawthorne House by Kristi Ann Hunter

Author:Kristi Ann Hunter [Kristi Ann Hunter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oholiab Creations LLC
Published: 2022-11-04T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Why had he come tonight? Why had he even stayed in London? As of yesterday, Cressida was officially, happily engaged. Contracts had been signed, but the two had elected to wait and have the banns read and the ceremony performed near the beginning of the Season.

That didn’t mean preparations were waiting, though. In fact, this morning Cressida had bundled into a carriage to travel to her sister’s country house to begin planning.

The only thing keeping William in London was his new resolve to be the man Caroline needed him to be. Cressida had assured him all the arrangements had been made for him to gain an audience tonight, but she didn’t know how determined Caroline could be when she had made up her mind about something.

He wandered through the ballroom. What should he do until Caroline made an appearance? He didn’t want to dance with anyone else, which meant he needed to be careful where he stood. There weren’t so many people in the ballroom that he could easily hide. Fortunately that meant neither could Caroline.

Pausing near a pillar, he let his gaze roam the room. There were other widows in society, other women who would make decent companions and care for him and his home. Women whose children were all settled or at least out on their own. Women who had little to do with their grown offspring and would therefore bring no complications with them.

He couldn’t imagine even walking through the park with a single one of them.

He didn’t want a woman. He wanted the woman. He would rather hire out his spare rooms to younger sons in order to bring the life he was suddenly craving into his house than have any woman other than Caroline at his side.

The moment she entered the ballroom, he knew. The hairs on his arms danced as the very air he breathed seemed to change. His gaze went straight to her, as if an invisible string pulled every part of him in her direction.

Her deep, rich blue gown set off her blond hair and fair skin. From this distance, he could hardly see the blue of her eyes, but he could imagine how the gown would encourage them to shine. Her daughter was not with her. Instead, she entered the room on the arm of her younger son.

William blinked.

Lord Trent was in town? And Caroline had willingly left Miranda at home?

Her son’s gaze moved about the room much as William’s had done earlier, quickly passing over people. He was obviously searching for something—or someone—in particular. As soon as his gaze landed on William, it stopped. The blond head tilted, and his eyebrows rose in obvious question. What was the question, though? Was he telling William that protection had arrived?

Or was he asking if William wanted another chance?

Was it possible Caroline’s children wanted to help him win her over?

William’s heart pounded at the idea of expanding his family to include such strong men and women. It was obvious to him now

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