Once Upon an Accident 02 - Lessons in Seduction by Melissa Schroeder Page A

ready to climb up the stairs and do something drastic.
    It was at that point that Anna noticed her and clapped.
    “Cicely, you look wonderful. See, Mother? I told you the scarlet would be glorious.”
    Anna’s excited voice cut through the trance that held both Cicely and Douglas immobile. Douglas broke eye contact, turning away, giving Cicely the ability to finally finish her descent to join everyone else. Her nerves still jumped, her body still hummed, but she offered the small group a smile as if nothing untoward had happened.
    “Thank you very much, Anna. I am sure everyone on Curzon Street is now well aware of your excitement.”
    But Cicely’s droll tone did nothing to suppress the younger woman’s excitement. “I told you that you would look beautiful in red, and I was correct.”
    “And so modest at the same time,” Sebastian said from the doorway to the library.
    Anna turned to face her brother. “Oh, pooh. If you had seen the way she balked at the colors Madame Genevieve and I suggested—”
    “If I keep listening to you, brat, you will figure out a way to lay claim to her beauty. And looking at our cousin, I can tell you that is all natural.”
    Cicely smiled at her older cousin. He’d always been kind, even before ascending to the role of earl and head of the family. But in the last two years, he had become more of an older brother, no longer the distant, brooding cousin. Since his second marriage, the spark of life in his eyes was easy to see.
    She curtsied. “Thank you for your compliment, Cousin.”
    He laughed and pushed away from the doorjamb. “Now that won’t do for a Ware.”
    Stepping forward, he grabbed her by her upper arms and pulled her closer to kiss her cheek. These displays of familial affection still confused and bewildered Cicely, but she no longer held herself stiffly away from him. She’d had little affection from her mother and father, but since moving in with this branch of the family tree, her cousins ignored her protests and treated her as if she were a sibling.
    “Sebastian, don’t muss her hair,” said Colleen as she descended the stairs. Tall, lithe, even after two children, and beautiful, she joined the group gathering at the bottom of the staircase, her smile as warm and welcoming as Sebastian’s and Anna’s.
    Sebastian slid his arm around Colleen’s waist and drew her nearer.
    Again, the Wares did not behave as much of society did. Even in front of family, signs of love such as this would never be accepted.
    At the moment, as she watched the couple, she did not understand why society frowned upon it. What was so wrong with a couple who loved each other showing it to the world?
    “Fine one you are to talk since you hate all the pomp of going out,”
    Sebastian remarked.
    Colleen chuckled at her husband’s comment because it was well known that she would rather do anything than go to the ton’s activities.
    When she turned her attention to Cicely, her eyes widened slightly and her smile warmed even more.
    “You do look lovely, Cicely. And—even though I know I will regret it later—I have to say Anna was correct about the color. But I have to give credit to my husband for the rubies. They are the perfect touch. You wear them beautifully.”
    “Thank you,” Cicely said.
    “I see that we are all ready to go and here is Fitzgerald with our wraps,” Victoria announced.
    As they donned their wraps, Cicely cut a curious look at Douglas who had been unusually silent and brooding during the entire exchange. “We need to hurry to make it before they start,” her aunt warned.
    Within minutes, they were on their way. She sat next to Anna as Douglas sat facing her beside her aunt. Even without much light she could tell he was watching her. The look in his eyes reminded her of an animal hunting. She shivered and pulled her wrap closer to her body.
    “Did you notice the way Douglas was staring at Cicely?” Colleen asked after she and Sebastian had retired to the