Catherine walks as sedately as she can make herself across the small back lawn to where Lady Rosalie, MissRaught, and MissLinet are clustered across from the men.
Lady Rosalie hangs back while Miss Raught steps up to her, and Catherine endeavors to give Miss Raught her full attention. Her yellow dress is very charming, and her round face so excited.
“Thank you so much for the invitation,” Catherine says.
MissRaught beams at her, taking her hands and squeezing before dragging her back to MissLinet and Lady Rosalie. “Of course! We wanted you here, and we need to spend much more time together. It’s really a shame your mother’s kept you so busy. You would have made a wonderful addition to our walking party the other—”
“We ought not overwhelm MissPine, nor remind her of events to which she wasn’t able to attend,” Lady Rosalie cuts in.
MissRaught blushes and drops Catherine’s hands, nodding quickly in Lady Rosalie’s direction. Catherine has half a mind to swat at Lady Rosalie for taking the smile off MissRaught’s face. But at the same time... the look Lady Rosalie is giving her—the way her eyes sweep slowly up and down Catherine’s figure—
“Perhaps a round of battledore, to prevent any more verbal mistakes?” MissLinet suggests, pointing over toward the set of rackets and the small bucket of birdies by the fence.
Catherine blinks, rather having forgotten MissLinet was here at all. She looks quite lovely in a soft green dress and short white bonnet. The fact that she’s looking between Catherine and Lady Rosalie rather pointedly, and Lady Rosalie keeps shooting glares at her, probably doesn’t mean anything.
Why should it?
“Oh, that sounds perfect. I adore battledore,” MissRaught agrees.
They both look to Lady Rosalie.
Lady Rosalie smiles. “That’s a lovely idea.” She glances at Catherine and then at her friends. “All of us playing together should finally draw the boys over.”
Catherine can practically feel all four of them deflate with the thought.
She justhatesthis. Hates that she and Lady Rosalie are forced to fight over the oblivious Mr.Dean. Hates that MissLinet and MissRaught must watch their every word. They’re worth so much more than the attention of that pack of silly boys.
“My brother and I used to play with friends, facing off in pairs. Whoever misses the birdie loses a point, and it switches pair to pair,” Catherine suggests. “Adds a bit of competition, if you’re willing,” she says, looking among them.
“MissLinet and I against you and MissRaught?” Lady Rosalie asks.
“If you dare,” Catherine replies, smirking as Lady Rosalie’s eyes darken with challenge.
“Oh, we dare,” MissLinet says.
“As do we,” Catherine agrees, glancing at MissRaught. “Right?”
“Yes!” MissRaught says quickly. “We’re, um, we’ll, ah—”
“We’re going to slaughter you,” Catherine says, grinning as MissRaught cackles.
Lady Rosalie’s eyes narrow so, so deliciously. “Are you now?”
“Yes,” Catherine says, letting thessit tauntingly on her tongue.
Lady Rosalie steps closer, staring up at her. “You’re on.”
She reaches back, grabs MissLinet’s wrist, and stalks over to the cleared area at the back of the lawn where buckets of croquet mallets, battledore rackets, and various other lawn games have been spread out.
MissRaught giggles and takes Catherine’s arm. “This is going to be such fun.”
“I’ll go first,” MissLinet says, grabbing a birdie from the basket off to the side. “Come on, Henrietta, show me your stuff.”
Catherine and Lady Rosalie watch MissLinet and MissRaught bat the birdie back and forth with their rackets. It starts daintily and low, neither moving overmuch, but quickly, MissRaught begins to show a surprising competitive streak.
Catherine watches gleefully as she shoots the birdie this way and that, forcing MissLinet to lunge side to side, back to front, to keep the volley going. Catherine glances at Lady Rosalie, who doesn’t look the least bit surprised, nor particularly worried. Which must mean she thinks she’s better than Catherine.
Catherine bounces on the balls of her feet to warm up and hears Lady Rosalie snort. But when she looks over, Lady Rosalie’s rolling her wrists and cracking her neck.
