New York City, New York

1867

Nora had been considering writing Felix another letter all morning. She'd sent the other one a few days ago, but yesterday Oliver asked what was written in it and upon learning of its contents, had promptly dropped his head into his hands.

"You mentioned me?" he'd sighed, exasperated.

"Why yes," Nora had rebuked. "I was just telling him of how we had picked out a Christmas tree."

"And did you add that we were very dear companions and absolutely nothing more?"

"Well...no," Nora had admitted.

Oliver went one to shake his head, launching into a very descript explanation of how precisely that would sound to Felix. And of course, Nora hadn't even thought about it like that. She didn't wish for Felix to get the impression that there was a romance between her and Oliver. The very image of Felix opening the letter and reading it as such made Nora feel uneasy.

So finally, she had sat down at her writing desk to pen another letter. She was just finishing it when she heard a commotion downstairs, the sound of men's voices floating upwards. Oliver had gone to the kitchen a few moments ago to fetch sandwiches, but Nora didn't know of any other men that would be in her home. Her father would be at his office until much later in the day.

Brushing off her emerald skirts absentmindedly, Nora made her way down the staircase. Upon seeing who was there, she froze, her breath leaving her in a rush of emotion.

It was Felix. And his Uncle Leo. They were standing in the foyer of her home as Oliver and a maid tended to them. Oliver was flashing them genial smiles while the two Englishman regarded him with perplexed expressions.

Oliver had the tendency to do that to people.

Immediately, a hand flew up to her hair, ensuring that she didn't have a fly away. Not that Nora could do much about her appearance now. Felix hadn't seen her standing there yet, but she doubted that she could retreat to her room unnoticed.

So instead, Nora took the opportunity to watch the scene unfold, focusing specifically on him. Felix. He was actually here, in the flesh.

He was, as always, terribly handsome. There was a reason that all the ladies would swarm Felix at balls. He was the epitome of all things English, with his slender but strapping form and neatly combed dark blonde hair.

Felix had all the grace befitting the son of a peer, not to mention the nephew of the queen, but Nora knew that the real reason women flocked to him was because of the glint in his eyes. And there was a hidden devilish smile that would occasionally reveal itself, in turn betraying Felix as something beyond a mere cordial gentleman.

It wasn't something she'd really noticed until this past year. And then once she had, Nora found that she couldn't look away from him, trying to figure out what the look meant.

Still, to this day, Nora couldn't look away from Felix. And even though she was already breathless upon seeing him there in her foyer, it was nothing compared to what she felt when Felix finally looked up, their eyes connecting.

"Nora," he breathed. Or at least she thought that's what Felix had said. It came out as barely a whisper, but she saw his lips move in the shape of her name.

The nerves in Nora's stomach afflicted her with the inability to smile properly, and her lips merely trembled instead. This was going wonderfully.

"Felix," she whispered back before forcing her legs to propel her forward. Clearing her throat, she managed to get a more proper introduction out. "My, Felix. Lord Farrington. How nice it is to see you here in New York!" she exclaimed. Felix stepped forward as Nora approached them, reaching down to grasp her wrist.

"I hope you will forgive the intrusion," Felix murmured over her hand as he bent to give it a kiss. Nora wasn't wearing gloves, and the intimacy of his lips against her bare skin made her knees quiver just as her lips had done. As his mouth peeled back slowly from her hand, Felix's eyes flicked upward.

Nora had prepared herself to see that glint in his eyes, but when their gazes met above her hand, she saw something she hadn't expected.

Uncertainty.

In the background, Nora heard the clearing of throats and awkward shuffling of feet.

"Lord Farrington," she heard Oliver's voice said. "I have, uh, heard that you have brought quite the printing press to America."

Nora spun around to see Leo giving Oliver a speculative look. "I'm a rather large proponent of the power of words, printed or otherwise. Perhaps you can use yours to explain precisely who you are? Considering you know a great deal about me already."

"Dear Lord," Felix muttered behind her while Oliver merely suppressed a grin.

Nora's friend glanced at her with raised brows. "I think we are all quite offended due to the fact that you did not account for my personal history within your letters to these fine Englishmen, Elinor. If they knew who I was, we might have avoided this...misunderstanding."

"I only wrote letters to one Englishman, Oliver," she ground out, ignoring the rest of what he had said.

"Yes," Leo jumped in. "As much as I would have welcomed correspondence from the lovely Nora, I have not been on the receiving end of any. As I believe we all know." One brow lifted on his forehead and then another until his expression once again matched Oliver's.

"Ah," Oliver said, grinning slyly. "But Lord Farrington, you cannot tell me that you do not know what letters I speak of and that you did not have a hand in such correspondence. After all, your concern at my presence tells me you are adept at meddling in affairs that are not your own."

Leo's eyes narrowed at Oliver. "And I suppose that you avoid the affairs of others, Mr. Rockwell? Tell me, do you open doors and greet guests for many unmarried women?"

Oliver's grin didn't slip. "If you have interpreted my words as passing judgment, please forgive me. For you are right, my lord. I am the most meddlesome of all." There was a quiet pause, and then Oliver added, "Also, as this house belongs to Mr. and Mrs. Williams, I can say that I have never once opened the front door for guests at an unmarried woman's home."

Leo rolled his eyes. "Unmarried women do not have their own homes."

"Precisely!" Oliver exclaimed, pointing one finger at Leo before turning to Nora with an apologetic look. "Quite unfortunate as it is, Elinor. I do feel terribly about that."

Oliver was the most exasperating man Nora had ever known, and he quite drove that point home when he added slowly, "Although...we should probably not mention to Mrs. Williams that I opened her front door, either."

"We should not," Nora agreed. "She would most definitely have a fit." Nora glared at Oliver even as she noticed a suppressed smile appear on Leo's face.

This was not how she thought this was going to go. Not that Nora had really had the chance to consider it without knowing that Felix and Leo would be arriving here today.

"My apologies to all for not introducing you right away," she added breathlessly. "Lord Farrington, Felix, this is my friend, Oliver Rockwell. We have been acquainted for many years. Our fathers are business partners." Nora attempted to emphasize the word friend, but she wasn't sure if she was successful in making her point.

Leo looked back and forth between the two of them a few times before surprising Nora. He threw back his head, filling the foyer with his unrestrained laughter. Then Leo glanced at Felix, who was still standing a pace behind Nora, and said, "I've decided I quite like him, too."

Nora turned to Felix as well, wanting to see his expression. He was tilting his head back and then forward again in a gradual nod, his mouth gaping open just a little bit.

"I do recall you telling me about your friend whom you had met through your father's business," he said, wincing apologetically. "I had just forgotten his name."

"Oh, I'm flattered to hear that you speak of me in your summers away," Oliver said to Nora, laying a hand over his heart in appreciation.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Oliver," Felix said, clearing his voice and nodding to him with a genuine smile.

"And I am very pleased to meet you," Oliver replied, smirking.

"Oh my!"

Nora's eyes flew wide open at the sound of her mother's gasp behind her. She had completely forgotten that her mother was even home and was now horrified that she hadn't quickly ushered everyone away, far from the prying woman.

Mentally fixing her expression to one that her mother would find acceptable, Nora spun around.

"Mother," she said. "Look who has come to visit! This is Lord Felix Graham and his uncle, Lord Farrington."

"Oh dear me." Her mother was patting down her skirts nervously as she took in the scene before her. Then she bustled to the guests and greeted them enthusiastically.

"Come in, come in! Dinner is to be served in not but an hour. Let us gather for refreshments in the parlor while we wait. Oh, how was your travels from Boston? Did it take very long? Should you like to refresh yourself?" Nora had never heard her mother speak so quickly. "If you don't have other accommodations, I do hope that you will consider staying here tonight. We have plenty of guest rooms available."

"Oh, we--" Felix began to say, but his uncle cut him off.

"That would be delightful, Mrs. Williams."

"Oh, lovely," Nora's mother cooed, clapping her hands together.

Nora sank into one of the sofas in the parlor, feeling unsettled. She knew that there was no way that she was going to be able to sleep when Felix Graham was under the same roof as her.

"That's very kind of you," Felix said smoothly to her mother before looking at her for...confirmation? Affirmation? Something of the sort. He sat down on the chair next to Nora and glanced back toward her mother. "I have already apologized to Nora, but I hope you can forgive our intrusion, Mrs. Williams."

"Of course! Our door is always open."

"Thanks to Mr. Rockwell, of course," Leo muttered, though he appeared amused now.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Nora's mother turned to Leo with a confused expression.

"Mrs. Williams," Oliver replied quickly, "Would you like me to ring for those refreshments?"

"Oh yes, please do," she said as Oliver quickly hopped away. Nora's mother swiveled back to Felix. "Now, tell me about spending the summers with my dear Elinor."

Felix grinned widely and uninhibited for the first time since he had shown up in Nora's home. The look melted her insides, which had been growing cold with the apprehension of not knowing what was going to happen next. He looked warm and inviting, like he always had—like a little slice of summer sun bursting into her parlor.

"Well," Felix said, "where do I even begin?"