They all looked at her with some surprise.
“What did you say to him?” Eloise asked.
“Terrible things.” She put her hands to her face and mumbled into her palms. “I suggested this was all a grand hoax for him, that he was amusing himself at my expense because he was bored and thought it would be fun to set tongues wagging. I told him he enjoyed being a puppet master and pulling everyone’s strings to see their reactions.”
She now looked up to gauge their reactions.
They were all staring at her, saying nothing until Phoebe finally broke the intolerable silence. “No wonder he sprang up as though he’d sat on a nest of thistles.” But she began to laugh. “Well done, Adela.”
“What? It was not well done of me at all. He has been kind to me. In return, I slapped him in the face with my insulting comments.”
Phoebe shook her head. “No, my dear. You called him out on his game. Although, I truly do not think he considers you a game. You intrigue him.”
She shrugged. “I slammed that door shut pretty fast, didn’t I? I’m sure he thinks of me as an ingrate now.”
“No, you spoke the truth,” Phoebe insisted. “Once he calms down, he will realize you were right. Yes, he thinks most members of thetonare nothing more than simpletons and puppets. So do I, truth be told. But in amusing himself, he never considered that you are the one likely to be hurt. If he is angry, it is with himself.”
“I hope you are right. I felt the only reason he danced with me last night was to see the response he would rouse in others. He knew I dreaded it, but drew me onto the dance floor anyway.”
“Oh, that sounds frightening,” Marigold said, venturing a remark after avidly following their conversation. “One can keep silent if unsure in conversation, or watch others if unsure of which fork to pick up in the midst of a formal dinner. But there is no escaping a dance. You either know it or you will stumble and bump into others. There is no hiding from a dance.”
Adela nodded. “Yes, this is precisely why it terrified me.”
“I am glad he chose a waltz,” Eloise said. “He was never going to let you fall. Perhaps he was using you in order to create a stir, but he also sees you more clearly than you see yourself, Adela.”
The notion surprised her.
How could he know her so well on a single day’s acquaintance? “What do you mean?”
“You have strengths that you are not using because you are quite comfortable in your bluestocking ways. You blame the men for not appreciating your intelligence, but what have you done to show yourself to best advantage? Why did it take until last night for you to do something lovely with your hair or put on one of your prettiest gowns?”
Eloise was right.
Adela groaned. “I owe you and Phoebe an apology. You put your hearts into helping me this Season and all I have done is resist. Then, when the perfect opportunity presented itself in the form of the Duke of Huntsford, what did I do? I trampled it. Stomped on it. Crushed it beneath my boots. Now, it is too late for me to make amends. He will never speak to me again.”
Sophie glanced at her daughters. “If raising five daughters has taught me anything, it is that men who are truly in love do not go away. They stand their ground stubbornly and fight for what they want.”
“But this is entirely the point. The Duke of Huntsford does not love me. A deliberate man like him? How could he fall in love with me in the span of less than a day? He might have grown fond of me had I given him the chance. But he will never do it now.”
She buried her head in her hands once more. “I’ve chased him away and missed out on Dr. Nordberg’s lecture, too. Could this day possibly get any worse?”
CHAPTER 4
“GOOD EVENING, HUNTSFORD,”said his friend, Thomas Halford, the Earl of Wycke, finding him later that evening sitting alone in a corner of White’s, the gentlemen’s club to which they both belonged. “Why the glum look? It wouldn’t be trouble over a certain young lady you danced with last night, would it? Theonlyyoung lady you asked to dance at Lady Marbury’s ball, a gesture noticed by everyone, I might add.”
Ambrose groaned, for Wycke’s wife was a Farthingale…Honey Farthingale, which meant she had heard everything of what went on, not only last night but during his disastrous visit to Lady Dayne’s residence this afternoon.
He was curious to know precisely what gossip was being circulated. After all, he had a right to know what heinous deeds he was accused of committing. “What have you heard?”
“You know I never give credence to gossip.” He settled into the plump leather chair beside Ambrose’s and called for one of the club stewards to bring him a brandy. “Care for a drink, Huntsford?”
“No, I’m nursing one already.” He held up his own glass that shone half full in the amber glow of firelight. “Why are you here, really? Merely a coincidental chat? I know your wife sent you, so let’s skip the polite dancing around and just tell me what you know.”
His friend grinned. “I’ve only heard bits and pieces second hand, and we all know how things get distorted in the retelling. Whatever happened, it is obvious you are not happy about it. Why not seek out the young lady and talk to her privately about whatever it is that is bothering you?”
“She does not wish to speak to me.”
“Has she said so? Because I got the impression she does wish to see you. What she does not wish is to be used as a doll for your amusement.”
