Nodding, Adele made to dash away before she remembered to slow her steps. Edith smiled at her friend’s intentional calmness. After all, it would not serve them if the entire hall took note of what was going on.
Focusing her thoughts, Edith signaled to a footman, then instructed him to escort Lord Halston to the upstairs parlor as well. All the while, she could all but feel Lord Whickerton’s eyes upon her, and she longed to hasten back to him.
But not yet.
Ignoring the confused expression upon his face as she walked past him, Edith approached Lord Aberley and Lady Mary. Both were completely absorbed in their conversation, their eyes aglow in a way that brought a smile to Edith’s face. “Pardon me, Lord Aberley,” she addressed them, wishing her next words need not be spoken. “Your father and Lord Ashbrook bade me fetch you to the upstairs parlor. I believe it concerns your nuptials to Lady Adele.”
A hard lump settled in Edith’s belly as she saw not only the expression on Lord Aberley’s face fall but Lady Mary’s as well. Yet, their reaction was the confirmation she needed to proceed with her plan.
Lord Aberley cleared his throat, suddenly unable to meet Lady Mary’s gaze. “Of course. Yes. Certainly,” he murmured, too overwhelmed to even question why his father would send Edith instead of a footman.
Mumbling an excuse to Lady Mary, Lord Aberley fell into step beside her, his arms linked behind his back, his gaze fixed ahead.
“May I ask you a question, my lord?” Edith asked as they left the great hall and proceeded toward the stairs.
Lord Aberley inhaled a slow breath, his shoulders tense. “Certainly, Lady Edith.”
“Do you even wish to marry my friend?”
Clearly shocked by her words, he paused mid-step, then turned to face her. His mouth opened and his lips moved, and yet no words came out.
Edith smiled at him. “I understand,” she said gently, before they continued on their way. She could feel him glance at her every so often, his lips parting as though to ask a question. But he did not.
When they reached the door to the parlor, Edith turned to look at him once more. “Let me speak first,” she urged, meeting his eyes imploringly.
Lord Aberley hesitated, a frown drawing down his brows. Again, he seemed on the verge of asking a question when he sighed and then simply nodded.
Pushing open the door, Edith walked inside, Lord Aberley following on her heel, and found herself facing not only Lord and Lady Ashbrook’s questioning eyes but also Lord Halston’s. If possible, Adele looked even paler than before.
“What is this?” Lord Halston asked as he looked past her at his son. “Why are we here?”
“Is there something the two of you wish to share with us?” Lady Ashbrook asked her daughter, and Adele turned pleading eyes to Edith.
Steeling herself for what lay ahead, Edith straightened her shoulders. “In truth, it is I who asked you all here,” she looked from Adele to Lord Aberley, “because there is something that you need to know.” She smiled, ignoring the hopeful expressions upon the parents’ faces as they looked at their children. “Lady Adele and Lord Aberley…are in love.”
At Edith’s words, wide smiles came to the parents’ faces while Adele began to sway on her feet, her strained eyes seeking Edith’s, who did not even dare glance over her shoulder at Lord Aberley.
“However,…not with each other,” Edith added the second Lord Halston opened his mouth, no doubt, in order to congratulate the happy couple.
Now, however, he froze, his eyes narrowing as he turned to look at his son. “What is the meaning of this?”
Again, Lord Aberley’s mouth opened and closed without a word leaving his lips.
Looking from one father to the other, Edith smiled at them. “It actually is quite simple, your graces. While your children have found that a deep friendship connects them,” again, she smiled at the two fathers, praying that neither Adele nor Lord Aberley would contradict her, “they’ve each lost their hearts to another.” While surprise showed upon the parents’ faces, Adele and Lord Aberley seemed deeply unsettled to have their innermost feelings revealed in this way. “They have come here today to ask for your blessings to marry the ones they love.”
Swallowing, Edith braced herself. Even though her plan was well-thought out, it was hard to predict another’s reaction. What if she had miscalculated? What if this would end badly? What if—?
“Is this true?” Lord Ashbrook asked his daughter. He stepped toward her, his eyes seeking hers.
Adele swallowed hard, her hands trembling. “It is, Father. I’m so sorry. I never wanted to disappoint you, but I…I…” She looked past her father’s shoulder at her mother.
Lord Ashbrook sighed, then turned to smile at his wife, who stepped forward to stand at his side. Then he looked at Lord Halston, something silent passing between him and his old friend, before he met his daughter’s gaze once more. “Am I correct to assume that it is the Scot who has won your heart?”
Edith smiled as Adele’s eyes widened dangerously.
Lady Ashbrook chuckled, exchanging a smile with her husband, who then once more looked at his old friend. “What do you say, Halston?” A smile played over his lips as he arched his brows. “Friendship was enough for us, was it not?”
Inhaling a deep breath, Lord Halston glanced at his son, who stood rooted to the spot, eyes slightly widened as he observed the scene before him. “I cannot say that I have noticed any partiality toward a certain lady on my son’s part,” Lord Halston grumbled, a touch of disappointment in his voice.