she still managed to smile. Why was that?
Miss Blackmore shifted her gaze and rose, effectively breaking the spell that had come over him.
“Come along, Kitty,” he said, gruffer than he had intended.
As Edward led his sister to the coach, he cursed himself for showing even the slightest hint of vulnerability around Miss Blackmore.
No.
He would need to be mindful never to do that again.
Dressed in a yellow gown with puffy sleeves, Katherine had just exited her bedchamber when she saw Hannah walking down the hall.
“Are you excited for the dinner party?” she asked.
Hannah’s lips pressed together. “Frankly, I am worried that Miss Olivia is unprepared for this dinner party.”
“She will be all right.”
Appearing unconvinced, Hannah pressed, “I just hope that she remembers the advice that we gave her to help from blurting out whatever is on her mind.”
“You have worked most diligently on helping Miss Olivia, and I have no doubt that she will shine this evening.”
“I truly hope so,” Hannah replied. “Or it could be an utter disaster.”
Amelia’s cheerful voice broke through their private interlude. “I am excited for this evening,” she said, coming to stand by them. “We haven’t had a dinner party in ages.”
“Shall we go and greet our guests, then?” Katherine asked.
Together, they walked down the stairs and headed towards the drawing room. When Katherine stepped into the room, she saw Mr. Dunn was sitting in the corner with a book in his hand, and the blonde-haired Miss Olivia was sitting across from him with a bored expression on her face.
“Good evening,” Katherine greeted them.
Miss Olivia perked up and quickly rose from her seat. “Good evening, Miss Blackmore.” She came to stand next to her and lowered her voice. “Mr. Dunn refuses to speak to me, and I have tried multiple times to start a conversation.”
“Be patient with him,” Katherine encouraged.
Miss Olivia frowned. “When I told him that I find dams to be rather dull, he informed me that I was of little use to him.”
“Oh, dear,” Katherine remarked. “That was poorly done on his part.”
“I thought so, as well,” Miss Olivia confirmed, “but I kept my opinion to myself.”
“Well done,” she praised. “You have come a long way.”
Hannah spoke up from next to her. “Did your mother choose not to accompany you this evening?”
With a shake of her head, Miss Olivia shared, “No, she was not feeling up to it.”
“I am sorry to hear that,” Hannah replied.
“But my mother insisted that I attended this evening,” Miss Olivia said. “She said I needed to spend more time practicing mingling with other people.”
“I think that is for the best,” Hannah remarked.
Katherine let out a sigh as she turned her attention towards Mr. Dunn, who was still intently reading his book. He hadn’t even bothered to glance up since they’d entered the room. She decided she needed to rectify the situation.
She approached Mr. Dunn and greeted him in a cordial voice, “Good evening, Mr. Dunn.”
Mr. Dunn let out a huff of annoyance as he lowered his book to his lap and rose reluctantly. “Good evening, Miss Blackmore,” he responded with a slight bow.
“How are you this fine evening?” she prodded.
“I would be better if you would let me continue reading about dams,” he muttered, holding up his book.
She took a step closer to him and suggested, “It might be best if you avoided reading for the remainder of the evening.”
He stared at her, aghast. “But whatever will I do?”
“You can work on your polite conversational skills with the other guests,” she replied with an encouraging smile.
“That sounds rather boring and not nearly as interesting as dams.”
“I assure you that is not the case when it is done correctly.”
Mr. Dunn looked unconvinced and glanced down at his book. “I will try, Miss Blackmore.”
“That is all I can ask of you,” she replied.
As she turned back towards the door, she saw Kitty and Lord Berkshire as they stepped into the drawing room.
“Good evening,” she greeted.
When Lord Berkshire addressed her, he looked as if he had eaten something that hadn’t agreed with him. “Good evening, Miss Blackmore.”
Kitty didn’t share her brother’s disdain and smiled broadly at her. “What fun we shall have this evening!”
Miss Blackmore returned her smile. “I agree, Lady Kitty.” She gestured towards Miss Olivia. “Have you met Miss Olivia Burk?” she asked. “She is the second daughter of Lord Vincent.”
Miss Olivia pointed at Kitty’s white dress with a pale pink overlay and said, “You have a lovely dress.”
“Thank you,” Kitty responded.
Smoothing down her own blue gown, Miss Olivia shared,