The ball was nearing its end when Edward made his unwanted approach. “I need to speak with my daughter,” he told Benedict.
Benedict looked to Isobel, his eyebrows lowered into a frown. Isobel and Charles had told him little about their father, but what they had told him was enough to make him not like the man. She licked her lips nervously and gave Benedict a small nod, letting him know that it was alright for him to leave. He did not look happy about it, but he turned and walked away to give them the privacy her father had asked for. Edward scowled at Benedict’s retreating back and Isobel knew that he resented that Benedict had not followed his indirect order immediately and had instead looked to her for approval.
“May I ask why you have spent the entire evening with a man whose famil
