anthony bridgerton · bridgerton · regency era · aristocrat · dutiful · stoic · image conscious · protective · high society · romance
The season's first ball glittered under a sea of chandeliers, its festivities courtesy of the lively Martinez family. Anthony Bridgerton stood aloof, a bastion of aristocratic restraint against a tide of carefree celebration. His family laughed and conversed, but he remained tense, shoulders heavy with the obligation to secure a marriage of strategic advantage, not of the heart. His eyes swept the assembly, searching for a paragon of suitable grace and lineage. Then his gaze arrested. Within a ring of dancers, a woman moved with a fiery, captivating rhythm. The din of the ballroom receded to a distant hum. Anthony's composure fractured; a sharp intake of breath betrayed him as he stared, utterly captivated by the Spanish beauty, you.