The Footman and I - Valerie Bowman Page 0,25
my place to say anything, my lady.” He continued his rigid posture, looking past her head toward the windows. The picture-perfect footman on the job.
Hmm. Obviously, she’d have to do some prodding if she were going to get him to tell her his true thoughts. No doubt he felt as if he couldn’t be honest with her because she was a guest. “You’re wondering why I caused you to spill the wine on purpose?” she prompted.
He inclined his head to the side. “I have my suspicions.”
She eyed him carefully. “Which are?”
He finally met her gaze, but his back remained ramrod straight and his arms remained folded behind his back. He stood with his feet braced apart, almost as if he were standing on the deck of a ship. “My guess is that you were eager to leave the room,” he said.
She couldn’t help the smile that popped to her lips. “Was I that obvious?”
He inclined his head. “You seem to have quite an aversion to Sir Reginald, my lady.”
Frances laughed. She’d never had such a candid and inappropriate conversation with a servant, but for some inexplicable reason it felt as if it was the most normal thing in the world to be standing with this footman in his employer’s library discussing why she disliked the suitor her mother had chosen for her. She bit her lip. “I suppose you must think I’m terribly ungrateful.”
His chin inched slightly higher. “Why would I think that, my lady?”
She sighed. “Because Sir Reginald is an excellent prospect, or so my mother tells me. I should be flattered that he’s paying me attention, instead of fleeing from it.”
Mr. Lucas dropped his gaze. The look on his face was no longer one of amusement, it was more like…empathy. “I’m certain that’s not for me to say, my lady. But I will say that it seems to me it might not be the best choice to marry a man whose surname is the same as your Christian name.”
“That’s precisely what I’ve been saying,” she replied with another laugh, delighted that she’d finally found someone who agreed with her on the topic. “Mama refuses to listen.”
“Well, she should listen,” he replied. “It seems as if it could cause a variety of problems.”
She blinked at him as if he couldn’t be real. She’d never met a man who thought the way she did. The men she met tended to either say things she heartily disagreed with or things that bored her silly. She honestly couldn’t recall talking to a gentleman who’d truly made her laugh before. She’d already laughed multiple times in Mr. Lucas’s presence. It felt odd but wonderful.
“I couldn’t agree with you more.” She gave him a tentative smile. “But even if his name was different, I fear I wouldn’t be interested in Sir Reginald.”
He cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. “That’s none of my business, my lady. I—”
Oh, dear. Had she made him uncomfortable? She hoped not. She clasped her hands together in front of her and took a deep breath. For some reason it was important to her to make Mr. Lucas understand that she wasn’t some spoiled, ungrateful little debutante. “It’s not that I think I can do better,” she blurted. “I’m certain Sir Reginald will make a fine match. I just…hope it won’t be with me.”
For the first time, Mr. Lucas let his body relax and he stared at her with a serious look in his eye. “Any gentleman of the ton would be lucky to have a lady like you at his side, Miss Wharton.”
She gazed at him for a few minutes. Oh, heavens. The man was a dream. What a perfectly lovely thing to say. She wanted to sigh. She wanted to thank him. She wasn’t certain either would be appropriate.
She swallowed and straightened her shoulders. “I know it must be difficult for you to appreciate my feelings,” she continued, forcing herself to carry on with her explanation. “It’s different for my class.”
“How so?” He tilted his head to the side. His dark-green eyes seemed to look into her soul.
She splayed her hand in front of herself as if it might help explain. “As a servant, you are allowed to marry as you desire. You don’t have to worry about silly things such as dowries and titles and families. It’s all quite a lot of nonsense, I assure you.”
His brows shot up. Was it her imagination or had the hint of a smile come back to tug at his