Belle of the ball by Donna Lea Simpson Read Free Book Online Page B

much about her own awareness of the physical attraction that existed between them. She might be innocent—in fact he was sure she must be—but there were passionate depths to her that were unexplored. But he would not be the one to plumb them; that honor would be reserved for the rich husband she was no doubt laying her snares for. Too bad.
    He escorted her back into the ballroom just as the set was changing. Her next partner claimed her and she was led into the line, just as her friend, Eveleen O'Clannahan, drifted toward him. Little Miss Swinley had an almost comical look of dismay on her face, and he wondered what she was worried about.
    "Mr. Westhaven, you and my friend disappeared for quite some time."
    He grinned at her. "Do men and women not lose track of time in England, when they are finding each other's company fascinating?"
    "Is that what happened?"
    "Certainly. She was asking questions about my experiences in the Canadas. Tell me, Miss O'Clannahan, is Miss Swinley wealthy?"
    The young woman's reddish eyebrows raised in surprise. "That is a question I cannot and will not answer, sir. And it is not the done thing to ask, you know."
    "Now, if there was one woman in this room who I thought would enjoy flouting convention, it would be you," he said. Miss O'Clannahan was the type of woman who would do well in the wilds of Canada, he thought. From their brief conversation earlier, he thought she had a mental toughness that she hid from the world.
    "It is not convention I would be flouting by giving you that information, but friendship. That I will never abandon."
    He bowed slightly. "I honor your circumspection, and your loyalty."
    "I can tell you a little about Arabella if you are interested." She glanced at him sideways, and took his silence as consent. "Arabella Swinley is the daughter of Baron Swinley, who died a few years ago. Before his death she spent little time with her parents. From what I can gather—for you must know, delicacy forbade me asking direct questions—her mother. Lady Swinley, had no use for her before it was time for her come-out, so she spent all of her school holidays with her cousin Miss Truelove Becket, now married to a wealthy viscount down in Hampshire, somewhere. I think Miss Becket was a good influence on little Arabella, but since she has been with her mother, she has learned to think differently about some things. I worry about that."
    Marcus glanced sideways. This was a new side to Miss O'Clannahan, whom he had taken for a rather cynical, hard-edged young woman. "Her mother is not a healthy influence?"
    "Her mother," the lady said, acidly, "is a mercenary, money-grubbing— I have no words for what I think of Lady Swinley and her effect on Arabella."
    At that moment, Arabella sailed by in the arms of a young man. She was smiling up at him and gaily laughing, but even from a distance Marcus could see a hint of desperate eagerness in her flirtation. "Who is that fellow?"
    Eveleen peered rather short-sightedly at Arabella's partner. "Oh, that is Bessemere, next Duke of Haliburton. Poor fellow, he is this year's prize. Rather like a stud bull, don't you know? Everybody's preferred stock."
    Marcus gazed at him with disdain. "That child? He looks frightened, as if the world is out to bite him. He would not last two minutes in Canada. What makes him such a prize?"
    "He is the next Duke of Haliburton," Eveleen said, patiently. "He is the Marquess of Bessemere, in his own right wealthy, and when he becomes Haliburton, he will have access to millions—literally, millions of pounds. And it is rumored they are looking for a match for him this year But his mother will never choose someone like Arabella. She is wasting her time on him. She is too low-born and too poor."
    "Do you mean she is flirting with him to try to gain his attention?"
    Miss O'Clannahan turned and placed her hands on her hips. "See here, Westhaven, just how long have you been out of the country, and what have you remembered