The Unforgiven (Echoes from the Past Book 3) by Irina Shapiro

Author:Irina Shapiro [Shapiro, Irina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Merlin Press LLC
Published: 2018-05-01T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 29

Madeline had worried about encountering all kinds of pitfalls during her first dinner party, but one thing she hadn’t anticipated was mind-numbing boredom. She wondered why George had even bothered to bring her as she added little value to the gathering, but she had noticed Mrs. Montlake sizing her up when she thought Madeline wasn’t looking. The Montlakes had a son of eighteen who had cast her shy looks all evening and tried to engage her in conversation while the guests were served pre-dinner cocktails in the parlor. Madeline enjoyed her mint julep a lot more than her talk with Gilbert Montlake, who was as tall, thin, and intense as his father. She was grateful when George joined them, rescuing her from Gilbert’s awkward attempts at flirtation. George seemed amused and treated Gilbert with great consideration, asking his permission to steal away Madeline for a few moments.

“What do you make of young Gilbert?” he asked with an amused smile.

“He’s nice,” Madeline replied. In truth, she didn’t think anything at all, but George seemed to expect an answer.

“He’s a fine chap, and an only son,” George added, his meaning clear. “And he seems very taken with you.”

“Is that why you brought me here?” Madeline watched George’s face carefully. She knew she’d be paraded in front of potential suitors eventually, but she hadn’t expected it this soon.

George leaned in and kissed Madeline’s cheek. “My darling cousin, I brought you here as my dinner companion. As a matter of fact, I wasn’t even aware Gilbert would be joining us. I’m devastated that you’d think I had ulterior motives for inviting you tonight.”

“I’m sorry, George,” she muttered, chastised. “I just thought…”

“Not to worry. Would you like another mint julep?”

Madeline nodded happily and George motioned for the maid to bring another drink. He raised his glass and clinked it with Madeline’s playfully. “To the most beautiful girl in the room,” he said and smiled.

She lowered her eyes as a tell-tale heat bloomed in her cheeks. No man had ever paid her a compliment before —well, no man besides Daddy—and she was overcome. George had called her beautiful. She caught Gilbert watching them from across the room, but pretended not to notice his wistful stare. He was nice, truth be told, but George was much nicer, and Madeline felt giddy with pride when he escorted her into dinner.

Talk around the dinner table centered mostly on politics, and the conversation became heated when the subject of abolition came up, as it inevitably did whenever men got together. Mr. Monroe, although amiable and charming, had some harsh views on slavery and believed that paying a man a fair wage for a day’s work was the way of the future. His wife, a pretty young woman with wide dark eyes and ebony curls, didn’t say much, but Madeline noted the look of panic in her eyes. No doubt this very conversation took place everywhere they went, and she knew exactly what to expect, and dreaded it.

“Ladies, why don’t

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