Her Sudden Groom Read Online Free PDF

scratches of Caroline’s quill. It was enough to put someone to sleep. So tranquil and quiet, with only a hint of soft noise. He rubbed his eyes. He needed to be thinking of possible brides, not the relaxing sounds of the room.
    Closing his eyes tighter, he tried to dredge up pictures of last year’s left over debutantes. But not one image came to his mind. Instead, he could only picture Caroline. And not just because she was sitting next to him just now. He remembered the blue dress she’d worn the first time they’d met when she attended that Society meeting some four years ago and how it had matched her beautiful blue eyes perfectly.
    Now that he thought about it, not a thing about her had changed. From the raven hair pinned in an elaborate coif that showcased its length and beautiful curls, to her alabaster skin that covered her dainty facial features, she was exactly as he remembered. When he’d first met her, he’d struggled, much like he did now, to stay attentive to his task. Her mere presence was far too distracting.
    “ You could ask Olivia,” Caroline said, shocking him to the core and putting an abrupt end to his pleasant thoughts. There was absolutely no way he was going to ask Lady Olivia to marry him.
    “ I don’t think so,” he said smoothly, trying to blink the image of Lady Olivia out of his mind.
    “ Probably just as well. She might drive all the members to leave. Then you’ll be worse off than you are now.”
    “ Exactly so,” he agreed, relaxing. She’d been talking about for membership into the Society , not for marriage. He needed to relax or he was going to give himself away. Furthermore, even for membership there was no way Lady Olivia’s name was ever going to join the roster.
    Caroline laughed lightly, drawing his attention back to her. She was a pretty young lady, he had to admit. Why Marcus had left them alone together was beyond his comprehension. “I’ve written a treatise and you’ve written four words,” she said with a slight shake of her head.
    “ Sorry, I’m not quite finished.” He hoped they could leave it at that.
    “ It’s fine. Hmm, what about your cousins?”
    He almost choked at her suggestion. His three cousins, Brooke, Madison, and Liberty hadn’t a speck of interest, neither did their husbands. “Not interested, I’m afraid.”
    “ Write them down,” she said, tapping his paper with the end of her quill. “You’re assuming they’re not interested. You must ask to know for sure.”
    No, he was fairly certain those six were not interested in marriage to him. But to appease her once again, he wrote their names down.
    “ That’s a start.” She tucked a long, curly tendril of dark hair behind her right ear. “You’ve got nine names. However, you think six will not join. Which means you need to come up with more names.”
    He wanted to groan. Of course he needed to come up with more names. Out of the nine he’d listed only two could be considered potential brides. And that potential hung by a thread. He’d never been good with the fairer sex. Never. They were either put off by his scientific interest, cowed by his intelligence, or were dismissive of him in general before even meeting him. On the few occasions he’d tried to become acquainted with a young lady, it had never ended well. For some reason he couldn’t explain or fathom, he was awful with unspoken responses. He had no idea how to read facial expressions or interpret “unspoken or implied messages” as his mother referred to it. Quite simply, if a person didn’t come out and say it, he had no idea what they wanted.
    With gentlemen he could use the old friend routine . He’d call them old fellow or chum, or try to talk to them using ridiculous words or phrases. It had always worked for him at school and in Society. It made him more acceptable, it seemed. But he couldn’t talk that way to females. He couldn’t call them old fellow, or chums. Nor could he use simple language with