“Any you would like,” she said.
That might have surprised him or confused him or met with utter indifference, but in that precise moment he spotted Tabitha standing a bit further in the room, serenely examining a portrait of two children.
Adelaide was not merely content to be forgotten; she felt a surge of pride at having predicted precisely that.
“Miss Summerfield.” Young Mr. Lexington’s greeting and accompanying bow was everything proper and respectful. It was his eyes that Adelaide studied. And what she saw there confirmed what she had come to suspect.
She needed only the briefest of glances at Tabitha to reconfirm what she already knew on that score.
They were both a bit besotted with each other.
Adelaide watched them as the afternoon wore on. Tabitha was at ease with the good-hearted gentleman in a way she wasn’t with anyone else. And he showed himself delighted by her company, whether they were passing a quiet moment or he was teasing a smile from her.
It was precisely what she’d hoped to see, and proved one more piece in the complicated dance she was attempting to execute.
Chapter Ten
Jack never would have imagined when the Season began that he would be spending its final weeks answering the summons of a matchmaking matron. Yet, here he was, arriving, as instructed, in the Barrington House book room, ready to do whatever she deemed necessary. Were she not the only hope he and Odette had, he might have objected.
He stepped inside and saw not Mrs. Northrop, but Odette. She offered her hands in welcome. He took them both, raising one to his lips.
The door closed behind him. Without releasing Odette’s hands, he looked back. Mrs. Northrop gave him a nod and a smile, then crossed to a chair not far from the door and sat. She took up a book, opened it, and began to read.
“She thought we would appreciate some time together,” Odette said.
He returned his gaze to her beloved face. “Truly?”
She nodded. “We cannot be entirely alone. Were we to be caught out in utter privacy, it would ruin us both.”
“But might solve our problem.”
She smiled and laughed a bit. “A slightly better option than Scotland, but not by much.”
He released one of her hands, freeing his to brush gently along her cheek. “If only we were home in Somerset. There were far more opportunities to see each other.”
She leaned into his touch and closed her eyes.
He slipped his other arm around her waist and pulled her close. She rested her head against his chest.
“I do love you, Odette,” he whispered.
“And I love you. I have for ever so long.”
He kissed the top of her head, his arms wrapped around her. How long it had been since he’d last held her. Long minutes passed as they stood in each other’s embrace. If fate had chosen to be kind, this would not have been such a rare occurrence.
“How was your day, darling?” he asked.
“Lovely.” She made no move to pull away. “Today was the Summerfields’ at-home. Tabitha and I were able to speak for over an hour. The more I come to know her, the more I like her.”
“I believe Terrance could say the same thing.”
She tucked herself more snugly against him. “Mrs. Northrop believes Tabitha is fond of Terrance as well.”
“Truly?” He looked over at Mrs. Northrop.
For a lady who could not possibly have helped overhearing their conversation, she was doing an admirable job of paying them no heed.
Jack lightly kissed Odette’s forehead, something he’d taken to doing in the weeks before she’d left for the Season. He’d not been permitted to do so even once the past months.