Roderick was no coward, and though he had no desire to speak with the current Earl of Wright, he could not afford to openly cut the man either. All that was left was to endure the awkward encounter.
His half brother was less than two years older than Roderick, but he stood a couple of inches taller. His fair hair was brushed back from his face in an elegant style, while Roderick’s dark locks fell haphazardly over his forehead. The two men couldn’t have been more different in looks or manner, except for one thing—they shared the same striking blue eyes of their father.
The earl approached with the confidence of a man born to his station, fully aware his place in the world towered over most.
It annoyed the hell out of Roderick.
“Bentley,” the earl said stiffly as he came to stand before Roderick.
Roderick held back the smirk that threatened whenever he faced his father’s ever-so-noble legitimate son. He gave a shallow nod instead. “My lord.”
The earl frowned, apparently hearing the note of sarcasm in Roderick’s voice. Unfortunately, Roderick’s unwelcoming attitude did not succeed in dissuading the man from continuing the conversation. The earl glanced about the room before turning his gaze back to Roderick and lowering his voice.
“There is something on which I wish to speak with you.”
“I am not interested.”
The earl stiffened his stance, straightening his spine. “Since our father’s death—”
“Your father.” Roderick’s jaw tightened. “I had no father.”
Two pairs of blue eyes stared at each other for a few brutal moments before the earl shifted his gaze and took a deep breath, releasing it in a way that sounded suspiciously like a sigh of resignation.
“You will not even consider hearing me out?”
“To what purpose?” Roderick asked.
Wright stood proud and unwavering against Roderick’s acid tone. The balanced brace of his feet, the way he clasped his hands behind his back and held his chin at just the right angle, all displayed his inborn confidence. But as seconds slid by, Roderick saw his half brother’s gaze slip occasionally to the side to glance at the guests around them.
It was not every day someone witnessed the heir and the bastard in open conversation.
Roderick imagined how they must appear to onlookers—one fair brother, one dark, one noble, one disreputable, both supremely uncomfortable. He couldn’t help but find the humor in it, and a grin tugged at his lips.
The earl noticed his humor and arched an eyebrow in question.
Something unspoken passed between them in that moment. A subtle, unintentional communication.
One corner of the earl’s mouth curled as he seemed to understand Roderick’s amusement. Before he changed his mind, Roderick replied, “Come by the club sometime and we can talk.”
The earl gave a small tip of his head in acknowledgment, then turned without a word and strode away.
Roderick decided not to dwell on the odd encounter. He would listen to whatever the man had to say about their father and then be done with it.
Casting his gaze over the room once again, he hoped to see Lord Michaels so he could offer his congratulations on the man’s anniversary and then make his escape.
The ballroom had filled exponentially while he had stood in awkward conversation with the earl. Guests moved in slow, undulating waves around the perimeter, while dancers jostled about in the center. Just as he was about to give up on speaking with his host and get himself out of there, something extraordinary caught his eye.
His chest tightened painfully and a chill spread to his extremities.
He hadn’t expected to see Emma tonight. Hadn’t anticipated what it would feel like to witness her again in her natural state.
His modest little bookkeeper was elegantly dressed in a gown of pale blue. Her honey-hued hair was styled in an intricate woven mass at her crown, with gentle wisps falling against her cheeks and teasing the length of her neck.
She stood beside a gaggle of matrons and chaperones. One slim hand rested on the back of a chair occupied by an elderly lady with ink-black hair and lips tinted a ruby red, who held a pair of opera glasses to her face as she scanned the room.
While he stood transfixed, Roderick watched two young ladies approach on the arms of their dancing partners. Though the ladies were both brunette and obviously younger, the family resemblance between the three women was unmistakable.
The gentlemen bowed and took their leave, leaving the ladies to themselves for the moment. That was when Emma glanced up. Her gaze swept toward him, and Roderick reacted on instinct, turning away to melt into the crowd around him.
Unfortunately, he made it only a certain distance through the crowd before his retreat was blocked once again. He hoped it was far enough to get him out of Emma’s range of sight.