A Thin Line Read Online Free

entering the parlor.   “Lord Dewhurst, I am so sorry to have kept you waiting.   If only I had known you were coming by today, I would have rearranged my plans.”
    “Oh, do not worry yourself, Miss Simmons.   Her Grace has been more than accommodating,” he stood and crossed the room, took Mikala’s glove-covered hand and bent over to kiss it.   Before her stood the true image of a dandy, as he tried to emulate the very look of Lord Byron.   Dewhurst’s light-colored hair lay in curls about his head.   His eyes were a nondescript gray color that leaned more towards being blue.   He dressed in the latest fashion and women practically threw themselves at him.   She had to admit that he cut a fine figure, broad of shoulders and narrow at the hips with long legs.   Kala could not understand why he chose to court her.   She knew that men found her attractive, but there were others more attractive and with more money than she.   Something about him just did not sit well with her, so she always made certain they were never alone.
    “It is very good to see you, won’t you sit down?” She asked indicating the chair as she took the seat next to the quiet but observant Drucilla.    
    “Thank you,” he moved to the indicated chair and perched on the seat as if he might take flight at any moment.   “I had not seen you about in several days and became worried you had perhaps snuck out of London without us knowing.”
    “No, Lord Dewhurst,” Mikala chuckled throatily.   “I merely turned my ankle and had to wait for it to heal before going out.”
    “I hope it was nothing serious.”
    “Nothing that a few days rest couldn’t cure.   It was very sweet of you to come by to check on me.”
    “I must admit, I have ulterior motives,” Dewhurst gave a lopsided grin.   “I have received an invitation to the Chatham’s ball this evening and had hoped I might talk you into allowing me to escort you.”
    Mikala thought quickly before replying, “That is very kind of you, but I will actually be riding there with my brother and his wife.   But if you would like to meet us at ten in front of the Chatham’s, I would be more than delighted to accompany you inside.”   They heard a knock at the front door.  
    “I will be honored,” he stood and approached Mikala.   She quickly came to her feet so as not to feel at a disadvantage.   Dewhurst took her hand once again and brushed a kiss over the back then bowed low for Drucilla.   “Your Grace, it has been a pleasure.   Miss Simmons, until this evening.”
    “Until this evening,” she said.   When he left the room, she collapsed in an unladylike heap on the chair he just vacated.   She heard the exchange of male voices in the hall and assumed that Richard had arrived home and exchanged pleasantries with Dewhurst in the foyer.
    “What was that fop doing here?” A familiar voice asked before the butler could announce him.
    “Southerby!   Where were you a few minutes ago when I truly needed saving?” Kala stood and greeted him warmly.
    Viscount Justin Southerby stood tall and broad-shouldered, but one could tell his superfine had not been padded by anything but his muscular form.   He had blonde hair with auburn highlights and his eyes sparkled green.   He spoke with just a hint of a Scottish brogue.   Southerby had been actively flirting with Kala since she began her season, neither feeling they fit in very well.   Being a mere viscount, he felt inferior to others of the ton , especially since he came in line for the title quite accidently when his brother died of a fever leaving only a daughter behind.   Society also did not approve of his mother’s Highland background.   Now Southerby trolled the waters of the ton to find a wife, and it appeared he had chosen to court Kala.
    “Where were you when I needed you?” Kala asked Southerby teasingly.
    “What do you mean?”
    “You failed to ask to escort me to Chatham’s ball tonight and now