Читать книгу The Reluctant Bride - Meg Alexander - Страница 2

“Help me. Isham is sure to be on time….”

India was right. They had not long to wait. As the clock struck four, Lord Isham was announced and shown into the parlor.

As he bowed to her mother, India stole a critical look at him. His manner was correct, his bow perfection, but his presence shattered the genteel atmosphere in the room.

India glanced down at her hands and found that they were trembling. She had summoned all her courage for the coming interview, but it was deserting her fast. Now she longed only to get it over with.

It seemed an age before her mother rose.

“Will you excuse me, sir?” she said. “India would like to speak to you.”

Isham merely bowed and held the door. As it closed he turned and leaned against it. For a panic-stricken moment India felt trapped. She was forced to suffer his long, assessing stare.

“So you are to be the sacrificial lamb?” his lordship drawled at last. “What a fate, my dear!”