*My Novel Ch. 1*

-Bath, January 1820

Standing at the window of his bedchamber Damon Worthington watched the snow fall in the garden of Worthington Estate. The landscape was a beautiful sight in the winter, a blanket of snow covering the mountaintops and hills. It made everything seem very peaceful. However, Damon's thoughts were far from the landscape, they were on his ailing father, who was extremely ill with fever. This illness has been affecting him for months now, the doctors suspected he would not make it through the winter, they were surprised he had survived thus far.

Damon was so entranced with his thoughts he did not hear the light knock on his door. The knock came louder, jerking him out of his thoughts. He bade the visitor to enter.

Entering the room with a solemn look on his face was his butler, Rickshaw.

"My lord, I am sorry to have to give you the news, but your father has just passed on from the fever."

Damon's gaze dropped to the floor as grief washed over him. He had not expected it to come so soon, but it had.

"Very well Rickshaw; I shall take care of things." He managed the words with much difficulty.

Things were now his responsibility, for he just became the Seventh Earl of Worthington.

-London, 1825


Sinking into the pillows on her bed, Emily Collums took comfort in their softness, allowing relief to flow through her. She had attended dinner and danced the night away at two lavish balls, she was completely exhausted. The beginning of the Season seems to be full of social engagements for the members of the ton to attend each night.

Emily's thoughts shifted to her quest on finding a husband. She has no idea on how she is going to manage to be wed by the end of the Season. She is nineteen years of age for goodness sakes, it is time for her to settle down. Her social standing and dowry are not the problem, nor are her looks. She just has no interest in any of the gentlemen attempting to presently court her.

Becoming frustrated with her thoughts, she climbed under the blankets and allowed herself to drift to sleep.

***********

Stepping in the door of Lady Michaels' ball, Damon concluded that it did not feel as odd as he had thought it would. It did not seem as though he had avoided the ton for the last five years since his father's death.

His aunt, Lady Canterbury, is the one responsible for his return to the bright lights of the ballroom. Every year she would visit the Worthington Estate and pressure him to come back to London, and make his return to the ton. The conversation they'd had that finally persuaded him to make his return remained in his mind quite vividly.

*********

"Damon, you have had time for yourself, now it is time for you to come into London for the Season."

"Aunt Cynthia, I have told you, I shall return to London when the time is right. And at this moment I do not feel as if it is the right time."

"My dear nephew, as much as you deny it, tis the proper time."

Damon started to open his mouth in protest, but she held up her hand in order to stop him, and continued.

“You are now twenty-two, you need to find yourself a respectable young woman to become your countess, and provide you with an heir. The title is what is at stake.”

Stopping, she allowed all she had said sink into him. The hardness on his face vanished; instead frustration took its place. She had a point. He did need to find a woman to take the title and responsibilities as his countess. So to please his aunt and fulfill the duties of being an earl, he shall return to the ton and find a bride. However, she will be one of his choosing. The last thing he would do is fall in love, that is the one thing he will never allow himself to do again, since every person he has ever loved left him.

Lady Cynthia could tell her nephew was deep in thought. The expression on his face kept changing as though he were fighting a battle with himself. She knew he had considered her words and was now trying to decide which course of action to take. She tried to determine what he was going to do, but his face continued to change and it was hard to read. Finally he broke the silence that filled the room.

“All right Aunt Cynthia, you win. I shall return to London at the start of the Season, and look in the ton for a proper young woman to become my countess.”

Lady Canterbury’s face filled with joy. She had finally persuaded her stubborn nephew to take on the responsibilities of being the head of his house. She knew that things would be changing for the better very quickly now that Damon had agreed to make his return.

********

That was the reason for his being here now, standing in the hall, about to enter Lady Michaels’ ballroom with a scowl on his face. Looking back on the conversation with his aunt, he could not fathom why he had allowed her to convince him to make his return to the ton. Then he realized, just as he had at the time, that all of her arguments had been legitimate and his had not, so he had reluctantly agreed.

Finally he was announced to his lordship and her ladyship. Plastering on a smile he gracefully bowed to her ladyship and nodded to his lordship.

Smiling, Lady Michaels allowed Damon to raise her from her curtsy.

“My lord, I am so pleased to see that you have returned to London. As I am sure there is a reason for your return, I am also sure that there is one for you to grace us with your presence in the ton. Is there perhaps a certain young lady you are interested in?” The look on her face told him that like his aunt, she thought his return was long overdue.

“Ah, yes. You may give my aunt, Lady Canterbury all of the credit for my return to London, for she insisted that my London residence was in need of some life. I concluded that since I happened to have come during the Season, I must come to see how you were faring. Mother would not have wanted me to loose touch with you. And as for the question of the young lady, I have not been in touch with the social circles for so long, I am afraid there is no particular woman in my life at the moment.”

“Yes, you are right, your mother surely would not have wanted that. She and I were wonderful friends. The details of her tragic death still remain in my mind. I am truly sorry for your loss. And I am sorry about your father as well.”

“As am I.” those were all the words he could manage to say for he could feel the pain sweeping in like a fierce storm.

His mother’s memory was buried deep within him, he could not deal with those feelings, not now, maybe not ever.

He had seen the look in Lady Michaels’ eyes, saw the hurt in them just before she had turned to greet her next guest. Burying the thoughts of his mother back where he had kept them so carefully hidden for all these years, he began his search for a bride.

*********

Emily frantically searched Lady Michaels’s ballroom for someone to rescue her. Spotting Lord Donaldson heading her way, she did not want to put herself through the torture of being in his company. He has been trying to court her for the last two years, and does not know how to take ‘no’ for an answer. He manages to track her down one way or another at every ball she attends, he must think something is the matter with her, for she is constantly having to excuse herself to the withdrawing room so she does not have to remain with him.

In her hurry to flee, she was not paying attention to where she was going and literally ran into some gentleman. Feeling her body falling backward she knew there was no way for her to regain her balance and tried to prepare for the worse. Suddenly, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her preventing her from greatly embarrassing herself.

***********

Damon stared at the woman whom he had his arms wrapped around. He had been absent-mindedly surveying the room while lost in his thoughts, and had not seen the beautiful young woman coming straight towards him. Because he had been so careless and allowed his thoughts to take him away, there was no way in which he could have avoided the collision they had just had.

He set her back on her feet, and once he made sure she had regained her balance, did he allow his gaze to travel up her body. The cut of her burgundy gown flattered her well; the color matched her full, sensuous lips. Roaming his gaze over her face, he noticed she had wonderful features and the most entrancing emerald eyes. Her golden brown hair, falling in perfect ringlets around her oval face, and perfect olive skin, accentuated her eyes emensely.

************

Surprised, Emily stared wide-eyed into the face of the gentleman who had rescued her from making a fool of herself by falling to the floor.

Once he set her back on her feet she realized how handsome he was. His raven-black, tousled locks fell elegantly above the most exquisite blue eyes she had ever seen. His jaw, strong and chiseled, ran to a pair of luscious lips. Her gaze traveled to his muscular chest, mere inches from her breasts.

Suddenly becoming aware that he still had
her wrapped in his arms, and that it was not proper, Emily took a step backward. She looked down at the muscular arms encircling her, then back up at his face.

Slowly releasing her from his arms, he stared into her eyes and elegantly bowed.

Regaining her composure, Emily dipped into the required curtsy. Taking her hand he rose her before he spoke.

“Allow me to introduce myself, I am Damon Worthington.” The words flowed easily out of his mouth.

“Pleased to make your acquaintance. I am Emily Collums.”

The words she spoke came out with the grace she was taught to say them in. His words sank in, and it suddenly occurred to her that she was speaking with the Earl of Worthington. Shock was written all over her face.

“My lord, pray forgive me. I was not paying attention to where I was going.” The apology came out, as she took a breath and was about to continue, a smile formed at the corner of his lips and he interrupted her.

“Miss Collums, tis quite all right. Twas as much my fault for I was lost in my thoughts and not paying attention to where I was heading as well. And seeing as you are not hurt, I rather think things turned out for the best.”

Relieved that he was so forgiving and that things were well, she allowed herself to relax and smiled at him.

Offering his arm to her, he continued to speak.

“ I know that I have been away from the ton for a few years, but it is still customary for a gentleman to offer a lady his arm and stroll is it not?”

His questioning gaze was on her face. Placing her fingers on his arm, she looked into his eyes as she responded.

“Yes my lord, it is. And it will be my pleasure to stroll with you.”

“Trust me Miss Collums, the pleasure is all mine.”

Emily could not believe she was on the arm of the Earl of Worthington strolling around the ballroom. His appearance had been a shock since he had been out of the ton for five years. She vaguely remembered him, for his last year before his disappearance had been her first year coming onto the town.

*********

Glancing down at the young woman on his arm, Damon tried to decide whether or not he could remember her from before he took his leave from the ballrooms. Collums. The name sounded familiar, but he was positive he did not recall an Emily Collums. He finally concluded that she was too young to have been out at the time or she had just made her appearance on the town and she had not appealed to him.

Strolling around the ballroom they were stopping constantly to greet the many guests present. Many of them remembered Damon and after their initial surprise at the sight of him, were quite pleasant in expressing the fact that they were happy to see that he was back in town.

Just as they had departed from a group, the sounds of the first waltz floated across the room, reaching their ears.

"Would you do me the honor of accompanying me in a waltz Miss Collums?”

"Why yes my lord, I would be happy to.”

As they twirled around the ballroom, Emily could not help but be surprised that he waltzed so well. He anticipated every turn, and whirled her around with such elegance and ease. She felt as though she were in a trance, she felt safe and good in his arms, it seemed like she just floated across the room. Emily was disappointed as they turned the last turn and the last chord was played. However, she curtsied and allowed him to raise her and said her goodbyes as was required. A lady did not share two dances in a row with a gentleman for people would think scandal if there was no agreement between the two households involved.

*******

Throughout the duration of the evening, Damon could not keep his gaze off the young woman he had shared the first waltz with. Even as he danced with many of the other young ladies whose mothers had practically shoved into his arms for a dance he often found it a strain to keep his eyes fixated on them. The ladies were pretty enough, but none appealed to him as Emily Collums did, she had an air about her that suggested she could knock any man's feet out from under him with her wit and charm if she chose to do so, the room lit up when she smiled, and when he heard her laugh, it was like music floating across the room.

*******

"Emily, what is with you tonight dear? Didn't you hear Lord Spry ask for your hand in a dance?" Emily's mother scolded.

"My apologies, I'm just a bit tired from all the excitement."

Emily could not help but wince at the little fib she told, although it was not completely a lie. She was a bit weary, but not from the ball, that handsome Lord Worthington has occupied her thoughts ever since they waltzed together. Just remembering how he held her in his arms and whirled her around the ballroom, ignited feelings in her she never knew existed, she just could not figure out what they were or what they meant.

"It is quite all right Miss Collums, perhaps we may share a dance another time?"

"Yes, of course, Lord Spry. Now if you'll please excuse me, I must go to the withdrawing room for a moment." Emily dipped down into her customary curtsy she'd done numerous times with great finesse and ease.

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