A Dance with the Charming Baron, page 1
A Dance With the Charming Baron
A REGENCY ROMANCE NOVEL
ALICE KIRKS
Copyright © 2020 by Alice Kirks
All Rights Reserved.
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Table of Contents
A Dance With the Charming Baron
Table of Contents
A Dance With the Charming Baron
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Epilogue
A Wallflower's Darling Lord
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 1
A Dance With the Charming Baron
Introduction
Miss Eliza Dowling is belatedly coming out into society in the hope that she might meet a potential suitor who will make her heart race. When she crosses paths with a handsome childhood friend, she finds herself captivated by his mesmerising gaze. Her life will soon take a strange turn, though, when the man she daydreams about is to marry the daughter of a wealthy noble. Feeling emotionally wounded and struggling to forget him, she shifts her attention to a charming Viscount, until she realizes she is about to make the biggest mistake of her life. Will Eliza manage to tame her overpowering feelings and forget this elusive dream forever? In the end, will she discover the path to the happy life she craves?
After his father’s death, Derrick Blackwell has inherited the title of the Baron, and now it’s time for him to find a suitable wife. Even though in his heart, Eliza is a woman worth dying for, he knows that his mother would never allow a match with someone of a lower status. When he sees her with a charming Viscount waltzing around, pangs of jealousy soar through his heart, though he knows there’s nothing he can do but stand by. Yet, the moment he discovers that the same man who sets his sights on Eliza, is also the main suspect of a series of disasters, Derrick is determined to solve the puzzle and do whatever it takes to protect the woman he loves. Will the caring Baron uncover the truth? Will he prevail against the Viscount, defy his mother’s orders and choose a wife on his own terms?
Eliza and Derrick might come from two starkly different backgrounds, but their feelings for each other are too strong to be buried. When external circumstances insist on keeping them apart, the two of them have to find the strength to claim their happiness. Will Eliza and Derrick save their love before everything turns to ashes? Or will insuperable obstacles keep them from following their heart?
Chapter 1
As Mary pinned the last curl into place, Eliza looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her hazel eyes sparkled, and the hair she usually referred to as “mousy brown” in colour seemed to shine in the candlelight on this particular night. The string of pearls around her neck sat just right about her collarbone, and Eliza even thought her upturned nose looked a little more regal than it ordinarily did, balanced out by her narrow chin.
“Mary, you’ve done a marvelous job, thank you,” Eliza said, turning to thank her young chambermaid.
“I think you look ever so pretty ma’am. I wouldn’t be surprised if every eligible bachelor attending the ball asked you to dance,” Mary replied with a small curtsey.
“Oh Mary, I’m not quite sure I would know what to do if such a thing were to happen. If I meet just one eligible bachelor, I shall deem the night a success.”
“I should think you’ll be fighting off the suitors! Word of your beauty has spread far and wide, and it’s been a mystery to many as to why your father has kept you out of society for so long now. But perhaps I speak out of turn on this account,” Mary said bashfully.
“Not at all, that’s quite all right. Thank you, Mary, you may go,” Eliza said, and Mary took her leave. The truth was that the chambermaid had struck a nerve with the 23 year-old. It had been a mystery to her indeed as to why her parents had prevented her from entering into society until now. It was true that in the countryside it was quite common for young ladies to make their introductions later, but in London, most of Eliza’s friends had been out since the age of 20.
Mr. and Mrs. Dowling, however, were protective of their only daughter, and Eliza was constantly jealous of how much freedom was afforded to her older brother Edward by comparison. Her father had long been grooming him to take over the family business, but Eliza had been kept to the estate just outside of London in Winchester, where she focused on her studies. She longed to develop more connections, and she treasured the ones that she did have. Though they had no titles, the Dowlings were respected as one of London’s finest factory-owning families, boasting several well-to-do and well-connected investors, and both of Eliza’s parents hoped that she would make a good marriage. For her part, Eliza simply hoped that her mother and father would respect her wishes when considering a match. Though she’d never experienced love herself, Eliza could not imagine life, or a marriage, without it.
“Eliza? Come, come, we’re all waiting!” called Mrs. Dowling from the hallway as she swiftly passed.
“Coming, Mother!”
Considering herself in the mirror one last time before joining her family, the thought crossed Eliza’s mind that she might indeed meet her future husband that very night. The notion brought a hopeful smile to her face, and she smoothed down the front of her lavender dress, bracing herself for change.
The ball was hosted by Lord Sherridan, and though it was not in London, many of the capital’s elite would be in attendance. After that evening, if everything went well, her father and brother would take her into the city for the season and Eliza could hardly breathe for excitement.
“One might think you’d never been to a ball before,” Edward said, chuckling at the wide-eyed innocence on his sister’s face as he helped her out of the carriage and she took in her grand surroundings.
“Don’t tease your sister like that,” Mrs. Dowling said shortly after, chastising her cheeky son. “Come, Eliza, your moment has come! I must insist that you enjoy every minute of it.”
Inside the grandiose ballroom Eliza peered up at the shimmering chandeliers, and gazed around at the stunning skirts, spinning and waltzing around the dance floor. “Try to seem vaguely sophisticated,” she said to herself, as she refocused on the announcer in front of her.
“Mr. Matthew and Laura Dowling, in attendance with their son Edward Dowling, and introducing their daughter, Eliza Dowling,” the announcer said loudly and sharply. Without a title attached to the family name, their presentation went relatively unnoticed by the crowd, though a few heads turned and Eliza knew they were for her. Proudly, she stepped forward, enjoying the attention.
Gazing around the room, Eliza searched out familiar faces, and found a few. There, coming towards her, was Derrick Blackwell, along with his cousin Leo, and they were certainly a welcome sight. As his father had been an early investor in the Dowling factories, Derrick and Eliza had grown up with one another, fast friends from a very young age. They shared a passion for music, and had the kind of teasing relationship one could only have with an old friend. It was not entirely a brotherly or sisterly relationship however, and it never quite had been. Though they were very comfortable in each other’s company, as they grew older there developed an unspoken understanding that if their circumstances had been different, they may have been a good match for the other. Baron that he was, however, Derrick had been told over and over again by his widowed mother that he needed to find a strategic marriage for himself. Seeing the connection from an early age that her son had developed with Eliza, Honoria Blackwell became concerned when she witnessed the two pretending to be husband and wife, though the children were too young to understand the symbolic nature of their games. Ever since then, Honoria had encouraged the friendship but made sure that both of the children understood that was all it would ever be.
Because she valued her friendship with Derrick so much, Eliza had taken his mother’s words to heart over the years, and understood that their acquaintance would always remain platonic. Throughout their friendship, Eliza had pushed aside any developing feelings she felt coming along. Despite her best efforts, there were times when she would catch sight of Derrick’s handsome profile, or the look of his dimples smiling in her direction, and her heart would flutter, thinking of what might have been. But it did no good to dwell on what couldn’t be, and Eliza had tried her best to put all romantic thoughts of Derrick out of her mind. Given her years of practice, she was fairly good at it now.
“Miss Dowling, you are looking very purple this evening,” Derrick said, referencing her dress and kissing her hand.
“Very purple? You know, Derrick, you may simply say that I look nice and be done with it,” Eliza said, enjoying the banter and smiling.
“Derrick has never truly understood how to properly compliment a lady. May
“Ah, the Blackwells have arrived. Can I leave you safely in the company of these brutes, Eliza? I see Lady Danton over yonder, and I should like to orchestrate an introduction,” Edward said, edging away from the small group. Eliza noticed that her parents also had wandered off, and her father was talking to some politician or other.
“We’ll take good care of her, not to worry,” Derrick assured Edward, and Eliza’s brother skipped off towards the young lady.
“Can’t resist a pretty face, can he? Not that many of us can,” Leo said with a smile. Leo Blackwell was very similar to his cousin Derrick in many ways, with the same dark brown, almost black hair, and stark grey eyes. Where Derrick was taller, with shoulders that filled out his jacket nicely, Leo was slimmer, with a more mischievous glint in his eye.
The dance ended, and the floor emptied to prepare for the next group of dancers. Eliza couldn’t take her eyes off all the beautiful dresses swirling around the room, and suddenly she felt quite simply dressed by comparison. Looking around at the ladies tossing their heads in laughter, and lifting champagne to their lips delicately, Eliza desperately wanted to be like one of them. Her mother had had a distinctly middle-class upbringing before she married Eliza’s father, so she was unable to teach her daughter the etiquette of the fine society which their hard-won fortunes now afforded them. Eliza’s governess had done her best to impart all the wisdom she could, though Eliza had had few opportunities to practice her manners. Because of this, she felt stiff among such respected company, and wished to have as much fun as all the other ladies in the room seemed to be doing.
“It seems as though you could do with a spot of fun, Eliza. Would you care to dance?” Derrick asked, holding his hand out to Eliza, who took it gratefully.
“Yes, thank you. I did not expect my parents to abandon me so quickly. How am I to be introduced into society if there’s no one to make my introductions?” Leading her out onto the dance floor as the musicians started the next song, Derrick laughed at Eliza’s complaint.
“Not to worry, I’m sure your parents are spreading the word about your presence, and preparing the crowds so as not to overwhelm them with your beauty and wit all at once,” Derrick said with a smile, as they stepped in time with the music.
“Oh, save your teasing of me for another day Derrick, I beg of you. I feel like a child and an old maid all at once here, ignorant of such festivities, but too far along in years to explain it. I will never understand why my parents waited so long to introduce me into society.” The song clipped along, and Eliza turned up the middle of the column of ladies and gentlemen, lightly stepping towards her new place in the line.
“I was being quite serious on one account,” Derrick said, meeting up with her once more in the caper.
“Yes? And to which account might you be referring?” Eliza asked skeptically.
“You do look quite pretty tonight, and none of my teasing can take away from that.” He looked straight into her eyes as he said this and Eliza almost tripped over the hem of her dress, taken aback at his sincerity. It wasn’t like Derrick to compliment her, and she knew that if his mother was within earshot he would never say anything so flattering.
“Th-thank you,” Eliza replied, stumbling over her words.
“I’m sure your parents have already identified half a dozen young men anxious to make your acquaintance.” Derrick looked away from Eliza’s words, and the moment ended abruptly. This was the Derrick she was accustomed to. “And it would seem there’s one that already has his eye on you.” Derrick nodded towards where Edward was standing, conversing with a taller, handsome man who happened to be staring straight at her. Eliza blushed and looked away quickly, embarrassed to have been caught staring back. She wanted to look at the man again to get a better view of him, but the dancing turned them away and he was out of sight once more. Speaking of such things with Derrick had always been uncomfortable, so she turned the focus towards her partner’s marital prospects.
“And you, Baron Blackwell? Are there any fine ladies in your purview?”
Derrick turned his head in surprise, as it was not often that the two old friends spoke of love and marriage. At least not since they’d played at it as children. “Oh, you know my mother. No one is quite good enough, and she simply will not entertain anyone that I suggest. Though she still seems to find a way to blame me for her lack of grandchildren.”
“Are there ladies that you have suggested to her?” Eliza could feel the tension between them growing, though logically it was silly to not be able to discuss such topics, old friends as they were.
Derrick did his best to deflect the question. “Here and there. I am not so much like my mother that I think there are no accomplished, learned, respected and well-to-do young ladies in existence, and nor do I think my wife need be all of the above. Simply finding an enduring love and respect should make me happiest, I do believe.”
He looked at her again as he said this, and Eliza’s heart skipped a beat. She ought never to have brought up such a dangerous topic. They were headed towards perilous ground, and Eliza’s heart was at risk. She’d vowed to herself long ago not to fall in love with Derrick, the one man she could never have, and it would do no good to break that promise now. The world was her oyster, and it had only just opened up for her. Eliza’s prospects were promising, and if she allowed her affections to be caught up with Derrick Blackwell, she might neglect other perfectly acceptable gentlemen in the fray.
The song ended, and Eliza felt Derrick’s hand reluctantly let go of hers. They caught each other’s eyes and he flashed her a sad sort of smile, as if he was bidding her farewell. It only served to confuse Eliza, as she wasn’t going anywhere and neither was he.
As they walked back towards Edward, and the handsome stranger standing with him, Eliza left all thoughts of Derrick’s odd behaviour behind. Here was a good-looking gentleman who could not take his eyes off her after all, and perhaps one who didn’t have a meddling mother to keep them apart! It was unfair of Derrick really to pay her such compliments, and give her such significant looks when he knew that nothing could come of it.
“Dear Eliza, there you are. I’m very glad to see that the colour has returned to your cheeks. May I present to you Viscount Heath Ashby of Watton, gentleman extraordinaire and decorated officer. Ashby, this is my sister Eliza. You may recognise her by her eyes as wide as that of a doe. This is her very first ball, and I do believe she’s been looking forward to it fiercely since the age of twelve.”
Eliza glared at her brother and blushed hotly, as she curtseyed to Ashby and he bowed politely back. His face was kindly, and despite his somewhat imposing stature there was something sweet about the way his blue eyes looked into hers. Based on appearance alone, he seemed the kind of man who would be good at cheering up those around him.
