A Secret Affair Read Online Free Page A

here … alone?” Annie stood on tiptoes, obviously searching for Charlie in the crowd behind Frances.
    Lily greeted Frances warmly with a smile.
    “Oh, Annie. I cannot believe I ever allowed you to talk me into bidding on him!” Frances put her hands to her cheeks. “I’ve spent the last twenty minutes in the coach trying to keep my face from bursting into flames. I mentioned his fabric. I’m a complete ninny.”
    Annie remained on tiptoes. “Whatever are you talking about? Where’s Charlie? Didn’t he come with you?”
    “Of course he came with me. He brought Mama and me here. Mama just went off in search of her friends. She’s pleased as punch even if Papa is still a bit miffed over the money. But I feel like a fool.”
    Annie’s face fell. “A fool? Why?”
    “Because I paid an exorbitant amount of money for Mr. Holloway to escort me here and now I have absolutely no idea what to do with him.”
    Annie’s tinkling laughter greeted Frances’s ear. “Don’t know what to do with him? Why, Frances. I thought it would be obvious. Talk to him, flirt with him, dance with him. You have the entire evening to spend in his company. As you said, see if you two get on. Ask him what he likes to do and tell him what you like in return. At any rate, you should be with him and not me. Your poor papa and his pocketbook would quite agree.”
    Lily nodded sagely. “I agree too. Where is Mr. Holloway, Frances? Did you send him off in search of lemonade?”
    Frances glanced over her shoulder. “I’m not certain where he went, to be honest.”
    “The study, no doubt,” Annie added.
    “Yes, that’s where Jordan and Devon are,” Lily said.
    Annie patted Frances on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. He won’t be gone long; he knows he needs to spend time with you.”
    Frances twisted the fingers of her left hand. “But that’s just it. I don’t know what to say to him.”
    Lily pointed across the ballroom discreetly with her fan. “Look. He’s just come back into the room. Don’t say anything, dear. Go dance with him. Have fun.”
    Frances spun around, swallowing. There he was, all tall, dark, and handsome. Why, the man was so good-looking he made Frances’s knees weak. But she refused to be a ninny. Yes, it was true that she fancied him madly. Any girl with at least one functioning eye would. And the man may not be titled, but he came from an impeccable family and had a large settlement from his mother’s estate upon which he lived comfortably. He was exceedingly eligible.
    But what she liked about him—really liked about him—was that Charlie Holloway was ever so smart. Intelligent, really. She’d heard him speak about the plays of Shakespeare, the pensioning of an estate manager, and the history of Egypt, all with the same clever wit and knowledge with which he appeared to approach everything.
    She’d been listening in circles when he probably hadn’t even realized she was there. Eavesdropping again. But what had started as mere interest had quickly turned into a full-blown infatuation. That’s why she’d bid on him. Well, that and Annie had mercilessly goaded her into it. And once Lady Harcourt had begun bidding, well, Frances couldn’t help it if she was a bit—ahem—competitive. It had driven her mad, authorizing Annie to up the bid by a few paltry pounds each time. Once it had become clear that Lady Harlot, er Harcourt, wasn’t about to stop, Frances had marched out there and put an end to it.
    Lady Lenora had been tempted to best her; it was obvious. Her bright green eyes had flashed with anger, but in the end, one-hundred-fifty pounds had been too much for her. For that matter, Frances’s father had been none too pleased with the amount, either, but when she made an argument about how all the money went to the poor animals at the Royal Society, her papa had firmly patted the head of his beloved Labrador retriever, cleared his throat, and nodded.
    Frances turned around and straightened her