William Cooper entered the morning room of his family house to find two women sitting in the plush armchairs, sipping cups of tea.
"Good morning, Ma." William was mentally deciding how best to leave the room as fast as possible, not wanting to get into a conversation with them right now. He turned to the second woman. "Good to see you, Mrs. Fortescue."
"Have a seat, my dear!" Mary Fortescue said in a thin, high-pitched voice. She wore a long gray dress and had powdered hair with little flowers in it. "Your mother and I were just discussing Laura!"
Reluctantly, William sat down. "I hope she is doing well."
"Oh, no need to pretend now, William." Mrs. Fortescue let out a loud laugh. "We all know you two are good friends who keep in touch."
"If you say so, Mrs. Fortescue," William said carefully.
"I was just telling Duchess Norfolk here that Laura spends too much time with her books. It's time that she settled down. What do you think?" Mrs. Fortescue looked at William.
To an outsider, it may seem that she meant for her writer daughter, Laura Fortescue, to marry William Cooper. However, the truth was far from this. William's older cousin, Richard Gilmore, who William had been close with when they were children, was a wealthy businessman who Mary Fortescue had had her eyes on for quite some time now. She wanted Richard to ask for Laura's hand and was always dropping hints to William that he should persuade Richard to do so. William would do anything but this, despite the fact that his mother had recently taken to acting as her best friend's advocate and occasionally asking William to "talk to Richard."
"I think you are right, Mrs. Fortescue." William had learned that the fastest way to get away from women was to agree with everything they said. He turned to his mother. "Ma, I just remembered I have some important engagements this afternoon. I better get ready."
"All right, dear." His mother smiled, unsuspecting. However, Mrs. Fortescue gave him a disapproving look and replied curtly to his good-bye.
William heaved a heavy sigh as soon as he left the morning room. He was relieved to be away from this ordeal, even though he knew that one day or another, he would have to face them again.
He had not entirely lied about his engagements this afternoon, though...
= = =
"William!" Laura cried as he entered her study, where she had been bent over a book just a moment ago. "About time!"
William smiled broadly. The servant who had shown him in stood at the doorway to the study.
"Miss Fortescue, would you like me to get some refreshments for Lord Cooper?" the servant asked.
"Tea, please." Laura turned back to William as the servant bowed and left. "Do sit down, William. Has my mother been giving you trouble recently?" She looked amused.
"Well, she is at the family house right at this moment, and she did try to talk to me about a certain subject this morning before I escaped." William could not help but be in a good mood whenever he was around Laura. Her cheerful smile and laughter could lift anyone's spirit, apart from the fact that she was absolutely beautiful, at least to William. She had long black hair that had a slight wave to it. Her eyes were dark brown and almond shaped and her complexion was pale, enhancing her cheekbones. She was tall and always wore simple garments that, for some reason, added to her charm. She had already published two books and was working on a third one, and all at such a young age.
But not young enough. She was a few years older than William, but that didn't matter to him. She was his best friend, almost like a sister, just like their mothers were best friends.
Laura laughed at what William had just said. "I apologize, William."
"Well, I cannot say that I am not used to it."
"How is everything at school?" Laura changed the subject. William knew she didn't like thinking about her mother's obsession with Richard too much.
William shrugged. "Andrew just will not stop having his 'fun.'"
"That boy always was difficult to control," Laura said fondly. "Has he been causing too much trouble lately?"
"Well, his new target is a girl, so you can imagine." William rolled his eyes.
"The new girl at Oxford I heard about? Poor thing!" Laura's eyes were wide. "What did she do to offend our little hero?"
"She spoke up against him in front of all the students. Before that, she stopped someone from jumping off a roof." William did not have any patience for talking about his best friend's tactics right now. He turned to the parchment and books sprawled out on the desk in between them. "How fares the book?"
"Not as well as I would like." Laura's smile faded a little. "I just can't seem to figure out what Dean is supposed to do next. I tell myself that he..." William watched her as she talked about the characters in her book as though they were real people. He watched as her eyes came to life and the color rose in her cheeks, as her voice became more and more passionate with every word and her gestures became more animated.
It was in moments like these that he realized he sometimes wished he was a character in her book, for he longed to hear that passion in her voice when she talked about him.
= = =
Nancy was turning onto Josmead Street when she heard someone call out to her from behind. She turned around to see William Cooper hurrying toward her.
"What are you doing here, Lord Cooper?" she asked, surprised.
He stopped in front of her. "Miss Brooks, my very good friend Laura Fortescue has invited you to a ball at her family house tomorrow night. She apologizes for the short notice and would be delighted if you would be able to make it."
"Laura Fortescue?" Nancy's eyes widened. "The writer of The Hearth?" William nodded.
"Why has she invited me? How would she even know about me, my lord?" Nancy said, trying not to sound impolite.
William smiled slightly. "I told her about the warm welcome my friends at Oxford gave you, particularly Andrew. She wanted to make amends on his behalf, I suppose." He held out the invitation card. "She would be glad if you could make it."
"Thank you." Nancy accepted the card uncertainly, unsure of what this was all about.
"Don't worry. It is not one of those extremely fancy balls of the season in London. It is kind of like a get-together ball being held by the Fortescues."
Nancy nodded. "I will try to make it." She wondered if he knew that she did not have the faintest idea how fancy a fancy ball of a season in London may be or that she had never in her life been to a ball before.
= = =
"William Cooper? The son of the Duke of Norfolk?" Her mother sounded stunned as she stared at Nancy, who sighed.
"Yes, Mama."
"He invited you to a ball?" He mother clapped her hands together. "How wonderful!"
"He didn't invite me, Ma," Nancy explained patiently. "Laura Fortescue invited me. William Cooper just gave me the invitation card."
"Nevertheless, he is an acquaintance now." Her mother sounded satisfied. "Think about it, Nancy. This might just be your chance to enter the high-class society."
Nancy frowned. "I don't see how. Nor do I want to enter any high-class society."
"Well, if William Cooper decides to ask for your hand in marriage..." Her mother's voice trailed off as her eyes glazed over, presumably thinking about what would happen if such a scenario took place. Nancy sighed again but did not say anything. She found her thoughts wondering to a certain other person from the "high-class society," as her mother had called it. She still felt a strange mix of emotions whenever she thought about Andrew Montgomery. She quickly pushed him from her mind. She always told herself strictly that he was a vile and arrogant man, but there had been something about him and their latest encounter that made her heart think otherwise. Nevertheless, she knew it would do well not to dwell on him.
She decided to bring her mother out of whatever daydream she was in. "Mama," she said loudly, "I need a dress."
Her mother's eyes focused on her as she smiled widely. "Leave that to me, dear."
= = =
Nancy stepped out of the hackney her mother had insisted on hiring for her. She wore a dress of flowing, silky, brilliant emerald green fabric that went perfectly with the color of her eyes. It fell in elegant folds to the ground from her waist, where a silver chord twisted around her torso. It was one of the dresses that had been abandoned by the lady who had ordered it after her mother had stitched it. Nancy had left her hair naturally curly, with half of it pinned up on top of her head and the other half falling across her shoulders to her waist. A few strands framed her face. Her mother had insisted that she wear a circlet of delicate white and yellow flowers around her head. Nancy had been reluctant, but she thought it looked rather nice.
She looked up at the Fortescue mansion, awestruck. It was not as large as some of the mansions Nancy had been to while delivering clothes, but the architecture was beautiful. The garden surrounding the footpath that led to the gate was filled with tulips and daisies arranged in what were obviously well-thought-out patterns. The gate was golden brown with an intricately curved frame. The same frame was on the windows.
She walked down the pathway to the gate uncertainly. More people were arriving in carriages, walking meaningfully through the front gate. All the young women were accompanied by a male relative, be it a brother, father, or husband, or else they arrived with their mothers, sisters, or other female companions. Everyone seemed to have a chaperone there, save for her. Nancy told herself it did not matter, but that didn't prevent her from feeling a twinge of awkwardness. She wondered how people would react to her presence. They probably will not even notice, she told herself. But a part of her knew that they would always notice a lone young woman.
As she entered the gate, she saw the unmistakable form of William Cooper standing near the main entrance, dressed in an elegant and expensive-looking waistcoat with breeches and boots. He was accompanied by a beautiful young woman who could only be Laura Fortescue. She wore a long white dress with a silver net layering all around it, silver embellishments at the waist, and a similar-colored lace trimming. Her hair was arranged in loose curls that fell around her shoulders. As Nancy watched, she greeted a middle-aged couple, pointing them inside. William leaned over, whispering something in her ear at which she laughed. Nancy vaguely realized that she had never seen William so happy and relaxed before. Just at that moment, William turned around and his eyes fell on Nancy, standing uncertainly by the gate. He raised his eyebrows in surprise before smiling and waving her toward them.
"Miss Brooks, what a please to see you here," he said when she approached them. Laura turned around.
"Nancy!" she exclaimed, her face lighting up. She gave her a one-armed hug. "William has told me much about you."
"Not everything, I hope." Nancy kept her voice light and joking, but she wondered what William had actually told Laura about her.
Laura laughed easily. "Not everything, but I hope to hear that from you. William and I stepped outside for some fresh air, but we should be going inside again before my mother sends servants in search of me." She rolled her eyes. "William will escort you, Nancy."
Nancy stopped in her tracks, surprised. "Why?"
"Well, you can't go inside alone," Laura explained matter-of-factly. "You have to be escorted by someone."
"By someone who is related to you, I thought."
"Hmm, but there is no one here who fits that criteria."
"It's all a bit ridiculous though. I can walk perfectly well on my own. I thank God for that."
Laura looked mildly surprised by her bluntness but laughed it off. William, however, looked amused. "I told you this is what Andrew likes about her."
"And William was right; she really is beautiful." Laura entered the ballroom.
"Um, what?" Nancy asked, but William held out his arm for her to hold and then led her into the ballroom behind Laura. It was huge and filled with people: women wearing elegant dresses of all sorts of colors, men wearing coats and pantaloons. Nancy concentrated on not tripping over her dress, not noticing the people around her. If she had been a bit more attentive, she would have noticed how many people—men in particular—were giving her admiring looks. Nancy saw Roger Green walk over to them, grinning broadly.
"The great Nancy Brooks, who is too good for everyone, actually decided to grace us with her presence." His voice was teasing. "You look spectacular. May I have this dance?"
"If you insist." Nancy accepted his hand. He led her to the dance floor. The next song was just starting.
"Lord Green—"
"Roger."
"Roger, I don't exactly know how to dance."
"Not to worry, Nancy. I'm glad there is something you don't know how to do." Nancy rolled her eyes. Roger placed her right hand on his shoulder and his left hand on her waist. Holding her other hand, he led the movements. "See, you're not too bad."
"And why have you suddenly decided to be nice to me?" she shot.
"Oh come on, Nancy, I always liked you." He grinned.
"Which is why you were so actively involved in bullying me, of course."
"That was just fun and games." His smile faded a little. "Only, I know Andrew takes it a little too far sometimes."
"A little too far?" Nancy snorted. "He just drove someone to suicide once. Not too much of a big deal."
"Well, now that you're here, I am sure he will change. I can already see it, to be honest."
Nancy frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"Don't you know?" Roger pretended to look horrified. "Andrew is completely besotted with you. I thought it was obvious."
"Andrew hates me," Nancy corrected, wondering if this was Roger's idea of a joke.
Roger shook his head. "No, Nancy. At first I thought this was only an obsession that went as far as you being one of his targets he would try to drive out of the school, but this is definitely something more..."
The song ended and Roger led her off the dance floor, where they were joined by Benjamin Soulden.
"Well, if it isn't my favorite little Brooks," he said when he saw Nancy.
"You don't know any other Brooks," Nancy pointed out.
Benjamin rolled his eyes. "It was an expression, Nancy." They continued their bantering, and strangely, Nancy felt comfortable with them. Maybe they weren't so bad after all...
= = =
Andrew watched from across the ballroom as two of his best friends talked and laughed with Nancy Brooks. He liked that his friends were getting along with her, but he would rather she was with him instead. The admiring looks she was getting from the other men there were also making him irritated, even though he knew he had no right to feel that way.
"Andrew, stop sulking and go ask her to dance." Laura took a seat beside him, at the table he shared with Duchess Grafton, who was absorbed in conversation with Laura's parents. Andrew's mother was a cousin to Laura's father by marriage. This was one reason Andrew had spent a lot of his childhood in Laura's company, the other reason being that Laura and William had always been inseparable as children.
"Go away, Laura," Andrew said without taking his eyes off Nancy.
"This is my ballroom. You can go away if you like."
Andrew sighed and turned toward her. "She just gets on my nerves, you know? She says all these things to me that no one would ever dare say, and...I don't understand the way I feel about her."
"Andrew, in order to get her respect, you have to give her respect. I can tell she is not like the rest of your insipid followers. Besides, I think you need to hear all the things no one else will ever say to you."
Andrew glanced at where his mother sat, his thoughts swirling. Nancy was the only woman who had ever caught his attention, but he had a feeling this was never going to work out.
= = =
Nancy didn't know if it would be impolite to leave so soon. Roger and Benjamin had become caught up with other guests, and she was getting rather bored of roaming around alone. She wandered through a doorway in the corner of the room and found herself on a large balcony. She saw a young man and woman appear from one of the shadowy corners and disappear back into the ballroom. Nancy breathed in the cold, fresh night air and took a seat on one of the benches, looking up at the stars.
"All alone at such a fancy ball, are you?" The voice came from behind her. "What would your mother say?"
"Not to talk to strange men, perhaps." Nancy continued gazing at the stars as Andrew Montgomery sat down beside her.
"But I am not a stranger." He followed her gaze to the stars.
"Strange, though." She felt an odd sense of peace and melancholy in the cold, silent night, away from all the noise of the ball.
"No more strange than you." His voice was soft.
Nancy shrugged. "I suppose constantly bullying people who are helpless against your power is not considered strange enough among your sort of people." There was not any bitterness in her voice; she was merely voicing her honest opinion.
He was quiet for a while before he responded. "I am starting to see how immature all that has been."
"Is it true that you are the one who drove Jonathan Gale to try to end his life?" she asked quietly.
"There is no direct answer for that, Nancy." He looked down at his feet.
"It is either a yes or a no, Lord Montgomery."
He looked up at the use of his title. "You can call me Andrew." Then he was quiet again. "It is true that I am the one who gives the orders to target certain students who displease me. But people take my orders too seriously."
"To please you in order to win the favor of your family?" she asked. Andrew smiled at her directness.
"Gale was like you—refusing to give in and ask for forgiveness. So, he thought that instead of dropping out of school or apologizing, he would just kill himself. That is hardly my fault."
Nancy gave him a piercing look. "Don't defend your follies, Andrew."
"I'm not," he said hurriedly. "I didn't say it's his fault either. I'm just trying to tell you that...I didn't mean for him to do anything of that sort..." His voice trailed off. "The two boys who attacked you...I took care of that too." His voice was hard now.
Nancy looked at him questioningly. He continued. "I don't think I have ever been more angry than when William told me what they tried to do to you."
"The status quo really does benefit your family." She tore her eyes away from him and looked back at the sky. "You have too much power. No one should have that much power."
He was quiet for a long time before he responded. "The 'status quo' does not benefit my family. It has certainly benefited my parents, but it has done anything but that for my family. Let's just say that we have ended up being a group of people who share the same name and occasionally try to interfere in each other's lives. Maybe—maybe—we were a happy family once. But who has time to remember insignificant things like that?" He smiled bitterly.
Nancy looked at him, feeling uneasy. It was easier hating him from a distance. "Why are you telling me all this?"
He shrugged, looking up at the stars. "It's just that right now, at this moment, here with you, I feel content...and happy. I feel like there are no pretenses or barriers." He looked back at her. He reached out, brushing a strand of hair from her eyes. She immediately tensed.
"That does not change anything," she whispered. "You are still you and I am still me."
"And?" he said softly, playing with her hair.
"And we should stay away from each other." Her voice was barely more than a whisper. She was becoming uncomfortably aware of his physical presence.
He purposefully leaned forward. The amused gleam was back in his eyes. "Why?" he drawled slowly. "What are you so afraid would happen if we do not stay away from each other?"
"I am sure your parents would not approve..." she began, flustered, unable to think clearly with him so close to her. "And anyway, you almost killed me..." His fingers were now resting on the back of her neck, his thumb running lightly over the skin behind her ear. "Would you stop that?" She was beginning to get annoyed by her sudden inability to think clearly.
"You have no valid reason to give me." He smirked. She tried to speak but was still too distracted, and he took advantage of the moment and leaned forward, closing the distance between them, pressing his lips to hers. Her mind told her to push him away, but she felt her body returning the kiss. It was gentle at first and then became more intense before he pulled away, resting his forehead against hers as they tried to catch their breaths. "Did I mention you look beautiful tonight?"
She broke the contact between them, moving away slightly. "Go away, Andrew."
"Tell me I am not the only one who feels the connection between us, Nancy."
She looked away from him. The truth was that she felt it too—that strange attraction toward him that was becoming stronger and stronger as time went by. Her mind was still processing what he had told her about his family, but she was beginning to realize that maybe the fierce face he put up for the rest of the world was just a façade. Maybe there was a different person beneath all of that. Maybe that was his only way of coping with all the power and responsibility on his shoulders.
When she remained quiet, he spoke again. "All right,you don't have to say it. But I know you feel it too." He smiled arrogantly. "Youwill admit it eventually." And just like that, he stood up and walked back intothe ballroom, leaving Nancy to try to figure out what had just happened.
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