Page 11

“When do you think we should have it?” Tiffany asked. “What about this upcoming weekend? I do not believe there are any major events that we would miss.”

“There does seem to be a bit of a dearth in the schedule. There’s Lady Cowper’s tea, but she’ll hardly miss us.” Astrid tapped her lip with one finger as she ran down the possible events. “I believe Lord Hesper was trying to organize something for Ranelagh Gardens. And there is a new opera at the theater, with that Italian singer that everyone is so excited about.”

“Oh, I forgot… I did want to hear her sing…” For just a moment, Tiffany looked regretful, then she sighed and shook her head. “But as Sebastian said, we cannot take too long, and if we do not do it this weekend, I think it will be several weeks before we can. There are too many major events scattered throughout the next few weeks to be able to get away for even a few days in a row.”

“I will happily take you to see her wherever she goes next. Or send you with Gregory to the location.”

“Or perhaps you shall come with your new fiancée,” Tiffany replied, her eyes sparkling with warmth.

“Perhaps.”

“Well, then. I must be going. I must return to my grandmother,” Mei said, setting her empty teacup and saucer down on the table. “Thank you so much for the tea.”

“Thank you for coming to warn me.” Tiffany got to her feet, holding out her hands to Mei so they could exchange cheek kisses again, Astrid and Bolton only a moment behind her.

“I should be going too,” Bolton said. “I can escort Miss Hu out.”

“Thank you, Sebastian. Lady Astrid and I will put together the invitations to this house party and begin organizing immediately.” Tiffany beamed at her brother as they embraced.

“Is there anything I can do to help? Anything I should do?”

“As long as you show up, we will have the rest well in hand,” Tiffany told him, patting his chest.

Bolton smiled down at her, a sincere smile of warmth and love. It made Mei’s heart ache in envy a bit. She loved her grandmother dearly, but there had been times she’d wished for someone else as well. An aunt or uncle. A sibling. Someone closer to her age to share the hardships of life with. Someone she could lean on.

Especially as her grandmother’s advancing years made Mei worry more and more about how alone she would be once her grandmother was gone. She did have her friends, but it was not the same.

“Miss Hu?” Bolton said, turning toward her and offering his arm.

When she laid her fingers against the smooth cloth of his jacket, Mei realized that this was the first time they’d ever touched. The awareness of him flowed over her, sparking from her fingers and traveling up her arm and down through the rest of her body, leaving her suddenly breathless. It was a wonder she did not trip as he led her from the room.

She could hear Tiffany and Astrid behind her, already conversing about plans for the house party.

Taking a deep breath, Mei let it out slowly, battling the butterflies that had startled in her stomach. It was not as though she had never been escorted by a duke. She was used to being around the powerful and the handsome. But something about the Duke of Bolton had set off a reaction inside her that she could not explain.

“Thank you for both warning my sister and keeping our arrangement in confidence,” he said in a low voice as they walked down the hallway. She could feel her skirts brushing against the side of his legs, changing the way the fabric moved next to hers, emphasizing their closeness in a way that made her feel decidedly nervy.

“I told you I would.” She replied a little more tartly than she would have if she did not feel so off balance. The combination of his closeness and her reaction made her want to bristle like an unhappy cat. That or purr and curl up closer to him. Neither of which was an acceptable response for a lady and especially not for a matchmaker.

“I still appreciate it. You learn quickly in the ton that what a person says and what a person does can be very different things.”

“Believe me, I know. It is part of why I am so determined that what I say and do are in alignment.” She felt his gaze turn to her, studying her. “My, ah, my grandmother’s clients need to be able to trust me. To trust both of us. They are letting us lead them in one of the most important decisions of their lives, one that will affect them for the rest of their lives. We would be irresponsible not to honor that trust.”

“I wish more people were like you. That is another aspect to a person’s character that is important to me that I now realize I did not mention earlier.” He smiled at her, and the butterflies in Mei’s stomach started doing loops. “My duchess needs to feel that responsibility to our estate and our people. They are in our care, and they need to be able to trust us to lead them and to honor their work.”

Bloody hell.

It was not the first time Mei had gotten to know a client better and discovered that she actually liked them as a person, but it was perhaps the most unexpected time. Even more unfortunate, she’d always found the Duke of Bolton to be attractive but to have him be actually likeable…

She cleared her throat. “The house party will hopefully help reveal parts of the ladies’ personalities, including their attitudes about how they see their position in Society.”

The duke smiled, which made her insides feel warm and rather squishy in an embarrassing manner. Fortunately, he was immediately distracted as they entered the foyer, because the Duke of Clarence had clearly just arrived home. He brightened as soon as he saw his best friend.

“Sebastian! What are you doing here? And Miss Hu.” He nodded at her, and Mei immediately released Bolton’s arm to dip into a deep curtsy.

“Your Grace.”

“Well met, well met, the pair of you. Where are you off to?”