“Very well. Is that who you have been searching for?” He smiled as William’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “You have been looking across the ballroom for many minutes, barely catching my eye for a single moment.”
William immediately closed his eyes as if he wished to hide them from his friend.
“Foolishly, I have been looking for Lady Florence.”
When he opened his eyes, Lord Wiltsham was looking back at him in confusion.
“Why should such a thing be foolish? I thought you wished to marry the lady.”
“I did… I still do. But her father will not permit me to pursue her any longer.”
Lord Wiltsham’s smile dimmed.
“And might I ask if his reason for doing so was due to your financial difficulties at present?”
William nodded and ignored a slight tightness in his throat. He had thought Lady Florence to be the most beautiful of young ladies from the very first moment that he had set eyes on her, and had been eager to make her acquaintance. Everything had been going very well indeed, and he’d had every intention of proposing to her, but now that would no longer be a reality.
“He would not listen to you then?”
“No, he would not.” The smile he put back on his lips was strained. “He stated that without my fortune, I could not even court his daughter. I do not think that I will even be permitted in her company for long! I am afraid, however, that her father will tell the rest of society about my circumstances, and all will be lost. Thus far it was only the six of us who knew the truth – but now, however, there are seven. Lord Blackford could easily say something which would not only injure me but would also injure the rest of you.”
“That is concerning indeed. Then it is he you are looking for, yes?”
Again, William shook his head.
“No, it is not he. It is Lady Florence that I seek. Yes, her father has rejected me, but she has not. You may call me foolish, but I begged her to consider me, even though what news I had to share was not pleasant. I have not yet heard from her whether or not she will be willing to do so. If she gives me even the smallest hope, then I shall return to her father and beg him to reconsider.” Lord Wiltsham did not respond. A frown marred his brow still, but he did not speak. “You think me unwise.”
His friend looked over at him.
“Would you be very angry with me if I said that I did?”
“Why should you say such a thing? There was a connection between the lady and myself from the very moment that I saw her.”
“Mayhap you consider that there was such a connection, but perhaps she does not. I believe that if you do this, you will find yourself in even deeper sorrow than you are at present. You ought not to be pursuing her when her father has made his decision clear. Leave the matter as it is. Concentrate on finding the perpetrator behind the removal of your fortune and, mayhap, you will be granted the opportunity to have her in your arms again.”
“I cannot do that, for then she might have already taken up with another. I know that her father is very eager indeed to have her married off, and I shall be much too late!” William’s heart beat a little more quickly as he thought of a life without Lady Florence, and yet the more he attempted to hold onto that idea the more it felt as though it were slipping from him. “I do not want to be without the lady.”
“You may have to be.” Lord Wiltsham held up both hands. “I can see that you may well be irritated with me for stating it so plainly, but surely you can see the wisdom in my words?”
The truth was that Williamdidsee it, but he had no willingness to accept it. Biting his lip, he continued to look around the room to search for the lady but had no luck.
“I could always speak to that friend of hers, the one she is so often in company with.”
Lord Wiltsham left out a long sigh that told William exactly what he thought of such a suggestion.
“That way, I am not speaking directly to Lady Florence, but Iamspeaking to her friend, so that I might find out whether I have any hope. Surely you cannot disagree with that?”
“I believe that you are going to be greatly disappointed.”
Waving a hand in William’s general direction, he arched one eyebrow, as William nodded fervently, convincing himself that this was a very wise idea indeed. It seemed almost providential, then, that his eyes immediately fell upon the young lady in question. Quite certain that course of action was the right thing to do, he hurried towards her, leaving Lord Wiltsham to watch on, shaking his head.
His heart pounding a little more quickly as he approached the young lady, William cleared his throat and lifted his chin a notch. It seemed to take her a few moments to realize that he was coming with the intention of speaking to her, for she glanced at him and then looked away, only to turn her head towards him again.
“Good evening.” He offered her a short, sharp bow which seemed to catch her a little off guard, for she stepped back with wide eyes and did not immediately return with the gesture with a curtsey of her own. “Miss…”
For what was the second time, William realized that he could not recall the young lady’s name. This seemed to frustrate her, for she frowned hard, her lips pulling downwards.
“Miss Lawrence.”