The Devil's Waltz by Anne Stuart Page A

tried to warn him off but he pays no mind.”
    â€œOf course he doesn’t—why would he listen to a woman?” Chipple replied. “So clearly I’ll have to step in to make certain he receives the message that his attentions are unwelcome. Do you expect there will be a problem?”
    Annelise remembered the cool mockery in Montcalm’s laughing eyes. “I don’t think he’ll give up without a fight. As you’ve said, your daughter is both beautiful and possessed of a remarkable fortune. Most men wouldn’t admit defeat lightly.”
    â€œThen I’ll have to make sure Montcalm understands,” Chipple said. “It’s a shame, though. She did seem to fancy him, and it got her mind off young Will until the little bas—er…until he showed up again. And a viscountcy was the most promising so far—I’d hate to settle for anything less.”
    Again, Annelise thought, there was the problem of not being invited to the more exclusive gatherings. But with determination, that could change—despite Josiah’s working-class drawbacks Hetty was really quite charming, and many society matrons would overlook the smell of the shop for such a well-endowed wife for one of their sons. “I think we need to be patient, sir,” she said carefully. “As long as Christian Montcalm knows that he’s wasting his efforts, and if it turns out that Mr. Dickinson is truly unacceptable, then we can move forward.”
    Indeed, it grieved her that the young lovers were going to be parted. Her sentimental streak was coming forth again—Will and Hetty had looked so sweet together.
    But the undoubted blessing of involving Mr. Chipple would be that Christian Montcalm would no longer trouble be Annelise’s responsibility. She had little doubt Chipple would make it very clear that any alliance was out of the question, and Montcalm would have nochoice but to turn his attentions elsewhere, sparing Annelise from her very disordered feelings.
    â€œTrust me, Miss Kempton. I’ll take care of Mr. Montcalm. In the meantime, you distract my daughter from any romantic memories she might harbor for Dickinson. She’s not marrying a farmer no matter how much she cries.”
    Had Hetty cried for Will Dickinson? Interesting, since she’d said her father would give her anything she wanted. Unless it interfered with his own ambitions, apparently.
    â€œCertainly, Mr. Chipple. In the meantime perhaps we might miss the ball tonight—Christian Montcalm is certain to be there, and you won’t have had time to discourage him effectively.”
    â€œOh, I will most definitely have enough time, Miss Kempton. I’m an efficient man, and once I decide on a course it’s as good as accomplished. I don’t expect you’ll be seeing Montcalm at Lady Helton’s, or anywhere else for that matter. I’ll make certain there’s no room for misunderstanding in my message.”
    She thought she detected a faintly ominous edge to Chipple’s hearty voice. Must be her wild imagination again. “In that case perhaps I should go and have a rest before the evening’s festivities. Unless you had something else you wish to discuss?”
    â€œNot at all, Miss Kempton,” he said, rising this time like a gentleman. “You’ve been very helpful to me. Go get your rest while I attend to business. I want you to be fresh enough to keep an eye on my daughter.”
    No one was ever that fresh, Annelise thought with a trace of asperity, noting that Chipple hadn’t suggested she might benefit from a beauty sleep. Like most men he would consider it a lost cause.
    But indeed, she was unaccountably weary after the stimulating day. It was the time outdoors, not the company that had exhausted her, she decided. After all, Christian Montcalm had only subjected her to his unwanted presence for a few short minutes.
    Annelise’s room was still and