Magical Weddings Read Online Free PDF

hairstyle as elegantly messy as Lady Hester’s. Celia looked past the two of them and her gaze caught on Simon, who appeared refreshingly normal in comparison.
    He was the tallest of the gentlemen, and his raiment was the simplest–with only a fanciful bit of embroidery on his waistcoat relieving the stark contrast of black coat and white linen. If that was a borrowed set of evening clothes, Celia concluded, the footman pressed into service as his makeshift valet must be very skilled indeed.
    Lady Stone raised her glass. “Now our little party is complete, and we all have nothing to do for the next few days but have fun and get Imogene safely married. Come here, Celia, and let me introduce you.”
    Though the drawing room had seemed crammed with people, by the time the dinner gong sounded a few minutes later, Celia thought she had everyone straight. The gentleman with the beaky nose was Lord Lockwood, and the one with the messy hair was Baron Draycott. It turned out that Lord Stone had been standing off in a corner wearing an abstracted air. In fact, he looked as though he wasn’t quite certain what all these people were doing in his house, much less whether he was supposed to be enjoying himself. The last gentleman, Celia recognized when she took a closer look; though she’d never been face to face with him before, everyone in the neighborhood knew Lady Hester’s brother, Viscount Billings.
    “We’re going to ignore etiquette rules,” Lady Stone said cheerfully. “Jane has it all planned so at dinner each evening, you’ll be matched with different partners. Line everyone up, my dear.”
    Celia found herself partnered with Lord Lockwood. Close up, he was clearly the oldest of the party–she’d guess he was at least forty, and as he bowed before her, she noticed the patches where his scalp showed pink through his thinning mousy-brown hair. Simon appeared to be taking note as well; he caught her eye and shook his head a fraction. She remembered him saying,
We must hope that he retains his hair and a reasonable number of teeth
, and clenched her jaw as she laid her hand on Lord Lockwood’s sleeve.
    The corner of Simon’s mouth twitched as he offered his arm to one of the Carew sisters–who seemed not to see him. “My lady,” she whined. “I thought you said I could…”
    Lady Stone cut the girl off before she could finish her sentence. “Nonsense, Dimity. You should have been taught to take turns and share your toys years ago.”
    Celia couldn’t quite smother a smile at the idea that Simon was going to get exactly what he deserved for pushing himself into the party–being condemned to spend a couple of hours in company with that young woman.
    “You look quite pleased with your circumstances, Miss Overton,” Lady Hester cooed under her breath as she laid her hand on Baron Draycott’s arm. “Though perhaps you shouldn’t be. Lady Stone is so fair-minded. Why, it’s almost as though she were handicapping a horse race by giving a head start to the very weakest runners.”
     
    ****
     
    Miss Carew eventually unbent and began speaking to him, though Simon didn’t fool himself that she had suddenly found him charming. Perhaps she was too bored to be silent any longer. He was relieved when Lady Stone finally signaled the end of dinner and the ladies withdrew, leaving the gentlemen to their port.
    The butler set the decanters on the table, cleared the last of the crumbs, and departed. Across the table Baron Draycott leaned forward on his elbows and said confidentially, “Did I hear Lady Stone say Miss Overton is a close relation of yours, Montrose?”
    “A cousin, yes, but not very close. We have a great uncle in common, no more.”
    Draycott nodded. “Ah. That would be the weaver, I suppose?”
    Simon tried not to show his annoyance.
    “Don’t fly off into the boughs,” the baron said quickly. “I admire a man who can make something of himself. Especially when it lets him fund a dowry for a girl as