Viscount Henry Musgrove groaned as his sister, Claudia, sat down at the piano and began her daily practice.

“Not today, my dear sister,” he moaned, closing his eyes tightly. “Pray, do stop, I beg you. I shall even pay you to stop, such is my agony.”

Claudia huffed but, much to his relief took her hands from the keys. “You are in rather a bad mood this afternoon, Henry. Whatever is the matter?”

“I am not in a bad mood,” Henry replied, firmly. “My head is aching.”

“And that is entirely your fault,” Claudia replied, with not an ounce of sympathy. “As you can see, I have no such headache.”

“That is because you did not drink nearly as much as I,” Henry muttered, leaning forward to put his head in between his hands. “Please, Claudia, no more music for the time being.”

Rather irritated, his sister came to sit with him, her face lined with irritation. Henry breathed a word of thanks before leaning back and resting his head on the back of the chair, closing his eyes tightly.

“You did not speak to Jacintha yesterday evening.”

His eyes flew open.

“Lady Jacintha, I should say,” Claudia muttered, with a slight shake of her head. “Not that you are not aware of whom I refer to.”

“No, indeed, I am very much aware of Lady Jacintha’s presence at the ball last evening,” Henry replied, sitting up a little straighter. “I made to speak to her, of course, but – ”

“You did not try to speak to her in the least!” Claudia exclaimed, her shrill tones making him wince. “Do not try to lie to me, Henry, I was well aware of your movements last evening – or your lack of them. Why did you not speak to her?”

Henry cleared his throat and gave a slight shake of his head. “I intended to, of course, but I did not know how she would receive me.”

“A poor excuse,” Claudia muttered, shaking her head. “She asked for you, of course. I told her all about Lady Hereford!”

Groaning, Henry dropped his head into his hands. “Leave off, Claudia!” he said, his voice muffled through his hands. “Lady Hereford and I shall never court, shall never marry. We are not all that well suited, despite what you think.”

“I think she is rather pretty and exceptionally well-bred,” Claudia replied, with a slight sniff. “She would be good for you, Henry.”

He did not answer, wishing Claudia would stop foisting ladies on him. He did not need any of them, and certainly not someone he was not in the least bit attracted to. Lady Hereford was, of course, proper and sensible, but that ignited no spark in him. There was no fire, no sense of attraction between them. That was not what he would be looking for, for he could not even contemplate a marriage without that.

“Regardless, I warned Jacintha away from you,” Claudia continued, somewhat airily. “I thought it best she knew your true character before thinking of continuing your acquaintance. That was some years ago now, and she need not continue it further. Not when it could potentially harm her reputation.”

For a moment, Henry was struck dumb, aghast at what his sister had done. He watched as she sat there primly, a small smile on her face, as though she had done him some kind of service.

“Claudia, I did not wish her to think ill of me!” he exclaimed, his headache roaring into life as he spoke. “What did you think you were doing?”

She blinked at him, as though astonished. “Why? You don’t care what a friend from long ago thinks of you, do you? Given that you are so willing to bring shame and embarrassment to the rest of the family, why would it matter what one acquaintance thinks of you?”

Henry closed his mouth, unable to come up with a significant retort. Claudia, looking quite satisfied with herself, rose from her chair and sighed heavily, her hands on her hips. “Is there ever going to be a time when you change, Henry?” she asked quietly. “Are you ever going to stop all this nonsense and begin to honestly search for a wife? You know how papa despairs over you.”

“Nonsense,” Henry blustered, waving away her concerns at once. “They do not care tuppence for my behavior, whether it is good or not. All they seek is the continuation of the family line, the heir that I must present.” He sniffed and shook his head, ignoring Claudia’s disapproving look. “You need not look at me with such frustration, my dear sister. I am quite sure you can be good enough for the both of us, especially given that you are to be wed very soon. Surely that will take mama and papa’s attention away from me for a time!”

For a long time, Claudia simply studied him, her face rather despondent. She did not criticize him nor complain but, eventually, she simply dropped her hands to her sides and began to walk away from him.

“I do not think you know the damage you are doing, even to yourself,” she said, softly, looking over her shoulder. “This is not the man you once were, Henry. I am glad I did not introduce Jacintha to you. She would have been even more disappointed had she met you in person.”

Closing the door behind her, Claudia quit the room and left Henry entirely alone. He rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair, trying not to let what his sister had said move its way into his heart. He rather enjoyed this life of doing exactly what he pleased. It felt like freedom, given that he had spent a great number of years doing exactly what his father had told him. It had not been unpleasant, simply a lot of hard work, but ever since he had come of age, he had delighted in doing exactly what he wanted instead of what his father wanted. Of course, that had brought his papa some angst, but Henry had taught himself not to care. His life was already mapped out, a life filled with responsibilities and duties to the title, so why should he not enjoy himself for a few years before that happened?

Throwing himself up from his chair, Henry began to pace up and down the drawing room, finding it harder and harder to battle the thoughts that came his way. He tried to tell himself that he did not care that Jacintha had been disappointed by the news that he was something of a rogue, tried to ignore the hurt that stabbed at his chest, but it soon became overpowering.

Hurrying from the room, he strode to the stables and, within a few minutes, was riding in the confines of Hyde Park. It was early enough that the fashionable lot was not yet out, which gave him very few acquaintances to greet. He appreciated that, his concentration entirely on galloping.

Pulling the horse up, he began to trot across the grass, relieved to discover that his headache had finally gone. Perhaps a ride in the fresh afternoon air was the key to ridding him of it, in which case he would do it much more often.

The park was beautiful, touched by the loveliness of summer. The trees and shrubs practically glowed green, the flowers bringing scents to his nose.

It reminded him of the day he had been with Jacintha in the gardens.

A loud groan escaped his mouth as Henry dropped his head, frustrated with himself. He had not intended to think of her again but it seemed impossible for him to forget her. When he had first seen her last evening, it had taken two glances for him to realize that it was she, his mouth falling open before he had managed to snap it shut. She was more beautiful than he remembered, her blue eyes alighting on him for just a moment before she had turned her attention away again. Her rich brown hair had been swept up with pearls and other gems glistening all through it, matching the shimmering of her cream gown. He had hardly been able to take his eyes from her, finding himself almost in a trance as he watched her. The conversation he had been having had come to an abrupt halt, the music of the orchestra fading as he watched her. Her movements were graceful and fluid, carrying herself with an almost regal air as she danced. He had found himself deeply jealous of the gentleman who partnered her, wishing it were he who stood in that man’s place.

Why he had not gone to introduce himself, he did not know. Was it because he had grown a little embarrassed by his behavior, quite astonished to realize just how deeply he had been affected by her presence? Was it because she had turned away from him, had not so much as smiled at him? Had he been afraid of what she would say? After all, he had found himself greeting Lady Harmonia with very little qualms, although he had found her assessing gaze a little discomfiting.

“I was rude,” he muttered to himself, hating the fact that his sister was quite right in that regard. He could not expect her to come and speak to him, for it was his duty to do so. He should have gone to speak to her as soon as he could, for having greeted her sister, it was only right that he should greet Lady Jacintha as well, especially given that they had been the closest of friends.

Will Henry and Jacintha re-establish their relationship? Would she even want him? Or will some other man come along and steal her away from him? Check it out by downloading the book at the Kindle Store –