No Man's Bride Read Online Free

him.
    “Hmm?” Quint stubbed out the cheroot and watched Westman lift his arm to hail a passing hack. Westman was about the same height as Quint and an imposing figure. The hackney driver swerved to stop at the corner.
    “The Beaufort do. Are you going? If so, we can share this coach.”
    For a moment, Quint had no idea what Westman was talking about, and then it came to him in a rush. Elizabeth. The Beaufort ball. He had told her he would be there at eleven. He pulled out his pocket watch, glanced at it.
    “Damn!” It was after midnight.
    Westman raised a brow at him. “Is that a yes or a no?”
    “It’s a yes, but goddamn me. I had no idea it was so late.”
    The two men started down the steps. “Arguing a bill like the Valentine-Cheswick Reform Act can make a man lose his sense of time. I watched the debate. Your efforts were well worth it, I’d say.”
    “If only the ladies would take your view of things.”
    “Women take an interest in politics? What kind of country would this be then? But I see your predicament. You are late for an engagement.”
    “Very late.” It was so late, in fact, that he dared not even return home to change his clothes.
    The roads were crowded and blocked with the carriages of the ton scurrying to this rout or that soiree, and the journey to the Beaufort ball took the better part of an hour.
    The time in the hackney gave Quint plenty of time to think how to apologize to the beatific Miss Elizabeth Fullbright. They hadn’t been engaged more than two days, and already he had disappointed her. Damn! He could not afford to lose her as he had so many other suitable ladies.
    He was an intelligent man, and it wasn’t like him to make the same mistake over again. But here he was, once again, allowing his work to get in the way of his wooing. He should know by now that no lady liked to feel as though she ranked second to public policy. And wasn’t Elizabeth Fullbright at the ball, feeling that way right now?
    He would not lose her. He needed a wife, and not just any sort would do.
    His wife should be an intelligent woman. She had to be able to entertain his political friends. Her conversation, the habits of her mind, her wit and vivacity, would be on display for all.
    In addition, his wife should be charming. Society would be her playground and her classroom. She should be at ease with all classes and sets; however, her background must be impeccable.He did not care about money. He had money. But his wife’s family had to be respectable. Quint would brook no scandal.
    And, finally, his wife had to be beautiful. Quint had noticed that men with beautiful wives generally went further than those married to less attractive ladies. Quint intended to go far—all the way to the post of prime minister.
    Love did not fit into Quint’s notion of marriage. His mother and father had not loved each other when they married—the idea was preposterous. But they were quite fond of one another now, and Quint was certain that, given time, he would come to love Elizabeth and she him.
    The hack finally stopped, and he and Westman went inside the ball, parting after the butler announced them. Immediately Quint began to search for Elizabeth.
    One problem with his list. The women who fit its criteria were usually in high demand by other men as well, and many of those gentlemen had far more time to attend the theater, musicales, and the routs the ton hosted than a man such as he—a man concerned with the welfare of his country—had at his disposal.
    No wonder he had been eager to secure Elizabeth. Now that they were betrothed, no other man could touch her. She more than met the requirements on his list, and though several rumors concerning her father—his activities, morals, andscruples—gave Quint pause, the fact that Edmund Fullbright was the brother of a wealthy, powerful earl eased Valentine’s worries. Most importantly when it came to Elizabeth, she had accepted his marriage proposal.
    Still searching