To Capture a Duke's Heart Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Just as it seemed that you were quite taken with him .”
    Eleanor returned Penelope’s grin with a sheepish smile.  “I shall have to thank Mother for partnering us at dinner, for he was ever so pleasant and far easier to converse with than I would ever have imagined.”
    “Was he?”
    “Oh, my yes.  We discussed all sorts of things in fact, for he is exceedingly knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects.  But not only that, for surprisingly we share a number of common interests as well.”
    “Ah.  So it isn’t just his devilish good-looks that have caught your fancy then,” Penny remarked with a playful waggle of her eyebrows.
    “Yes, well, there is clearly no denying that he is ever so easy to look upon,” Eleanor acknowledged with an impish lift of her own, chestnut-colored brows, and then promptly raised her hand to her lips to stifle a giggle. 
    “And what of you?” Eleanor asked after a moment, eyeing Penny intently.
    “Me?” Had Eleanor noted her fascination with the Duke of Ainsworth at dinner?  Oh dear, had the duke noticed as well she wondered in dismay?
    “Perhaps I’m mistaken, but it did appear as though you enjoyed being partnered with Lord Wexley.”
    “Oh, yes.  Yes I did,” Penny replied, feeling no small sense of relief.  Perhaps her interest in the duke hadn’t been so obvious after all. “He’s quite charming and possesses a delightful sense of humor.”
    “Hmm.”  Eleanor regarded Penelope with a contemplative expression.  “Is it me or does your tone reflect a decided lack of enthusiasm?”
    “Does it?”
    Eleanor’s eyes narrowed.  “Your rather lackluster response wouldn’t have anything to do with the Duke of Ainsworth, would it?”
    Uh oh.   “Don’t be silly.”  Turning away from her friend’s speculative perusal, Penny tried to appear nonchalant as she took a sip of her tea; but she could still feel the weight of Eleanor’s concentrated gaze as it remained fixed upon her. 
    “Penny?”
    As luck would have it, Penny was saved from responding to Eleanor’s prodding as Lady Gilchrist beckoned to her daughter a second later. 
    “Eleanor, dear,” the countess called.  “Come tell Lady Hatton that amusing anecdote you shared with me the other day, the one about the humming bird and Mrs. Beavin’s new parasol.”
    “Coming, Mother,” she answered, before turning back to Penny with a sigh.  “Honestly, she’s made me repeat that silly story at least a half a dozen times already.” Nonetheless, Eleanor set down her teacup and rose dutifully from the settee.  “We’ll have to continue our discussion later, I’m afraid.”
    Though Penny nodded, she was secretly relieved to have been given a reprieve, at least temporarily, for Eleanor’s assumption was far more accurate than she cared to admit.  Not that she didn’t wish to confide in her friend, of course, but quite honestly she was wholly disconcerted by the astounding degree to which her brief introduction and subsequent observations of the duke had affected her.  Besides, it was rather embarrassing really, for it wasn’t as if anything would ever come of her silly, girlish fascination with the ton’s illustrious and assuredly most sought after bachelor.
     
    It was only later, when the gentlemen had finished their port and joined the women for the brief trek from the drawing room to the music room that Penny noticed a small section of trim along the bottom of her gown had come loose and was now dragging upon the floor.  “Oh blast!” she muttered under her breath.  She must have trod upon her hem at some point during the evening.  Frowning as she studied the damage, she feared that the delicate stitching would only continue to unravel unless she saw to its repair as quickly as possible. However, with the musical performance soon to be underway, she doubted that she had enough time to summon one of the Cunningham’s maids to assist her with the task before it began.  It would