" Leo stared at them all blankly in the expectant silence. A disbelieving laugh escaped him. “You’re all mad if you think I’m going to be forced into a loveless marriage just so the family can continue living at Ramsay House.”
Coming forward with a placating smile, Win handed him a piece of paper. “Of course we would never want to force you into a loveless marriage, dear. But we have put together a list of prospective brides, all of them lovely girls. Won’t you take a glance and see if any of them appeals to you?”
Deciding to humor her, Leo looked down at the list. “Marietta Newbury?”
“Yes,” Amelia said. “What’s wrong with her?”
“I don’t like her teeth.”
“What about Isabella Charrington?”
“I don’t like her mother.”
“Lady Blossom Tremaine?”
“I don’t like her name.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Leo, that’s not her fault.”
“I don’t care. I can’t have a wife named Blossom. Every night I would feel as if I were calling in one of the cows.” Leo lifted his gaze heavenward. “I might as well marry the first woman off the street. Why, I’d be better off with Marks.”
Everyone was silent.
Still tucked in the corner of the room, Catherine Marks looked up slowly as she realized that she was the focus of the Hathaways’ collective gaze. Her eyes turned huge behind the spectacles, and a tide of pink rushed over her face. “That is not amusing,” she said sharply.
“It’s the perfect solution,” Leo said, taking perverse satisfaction in annoying her. “We argue all the time. We can’t stand each other. It’s like we’re already married.”
Catherine sprang to her feet, staring at him in outrage. “I would never consent to marry you.”
“Good, because I wasn’t asking. I was only making a point.”
“Do not use me to make a point!” She fled the room, while Leo stared after her.
“You know,” Win said thoughtfully, “we should have a ball.”
“A ball?” Merripen asked blankly.
“Yes, and invite all the eligible young women we can think of. It’s possible one of them will strike Leo’s fancy, and then he could court her.”
“I’m not going to court anyone,” Leo said.
They all ignored him.
“I like that idea,” Amelia said. “A bride-hunting ball.”
“It would be more accurate,” Cam pointed out dryly, “to call it a groom-hunting ball. Since Leo will be the item of prey.”
“It’s just like Cinderella,” Beatrix exclaimed. “Only without the charming prince "
― Lisa Kleypas , Married by Morning (The Hathaways, #4)
