FOOT IN MOUTH
“Slow down, you little monster!” Lady Caroline Rutherford tugged at the leading string beginning to slip through her grip. “If you pull me into the water, this will be the last time I bring you to the park. Do you understand?” But she didn’t really mean it. Because Pip, her brother’s border collie, was a country dog, used to running untethered through the fields at home—much like Caroline herself.
It wasn’t his fault they’d had to temporarily move to the city.
She ignored a cold shiver as she recalled the reason for the move. Even a full year following the events that brought them to Mayfair, the recollection haunted her.
As it likely would forever.
“Shall I take the dog for you?” Eloisa, Caroline’s lady’s maid, watched her with an expression that fell somewhere between concern and embarrassment. “I can handle him, thank you, Eloisa.” Caroline dipped her chin to her lady’s maid—an irritant, ahem—a luxury she’d never asked for nor wanted. But then she forced a weak smile. Being foisted on Caroline as chaperone was hardly Eloisa’s doing.
Ever since her brother had unexpectedly become the Earl of Standish, Caroline, her mother, and her two younger sisters’ lives had changed dramatically.
And with that full year since her father’s death behind her, Caroline was expected to mingle with the ladies and gentlemen of the ton. Melanie, the eldest of her two sisters, would come out after Caroline secured a match, and although Josephine was still too young, her time would come soon enough.
So even though she found the constant round of festivities tedious, for the sake of her mother and sisters, Caroline would make the best of it.
If she could recover, that was.
Because two weeks ago, at the very ripe age of four and twenty, Caroline had debuted in a manner that surely would go down as one of the worst in history—embarrassing her family in the process.
And yet the world hadn’t ended.
Caroline fanned her face as the memory roused a flush of embarrassment. She’d never claimed to be swanlike, but under normal circumstances, she wasn’t the awkward person the ton believed her to be.
Based on one night. One minute. Less than that, really.
Because, apparently, the act of dressing up in pastels and lace, standing around a ballroom with her mother watching, and waiting for an eligible bachelor to seek her out—all in front of a room full of total strangers—stole any trace of grace Caroline thought she’d possessed.
Pip jerked on the string again, and before Caroline could tighten her hold, the unruly collie broke free—not toward the lake, but toward one of the ornate benches, where a gentleman sat reading a newspaper.
But it was not the man who had caught Pip’s attention. Rather, it was his well-mannered black and tan Yorkshire terrier, about one-tenth Pip’s size, who sat looking dignified beside him, a pretty little ribbon tied in a neat bow around her neck.
This could mean trouble. Pip was capable of impressive speeds and would only be caught when he was ready. Glancing around the vast swath of grass, Caroline winced. Would she bring more attention to herself by chasing after him, or by simply waiting for him to return?
A flurry of high-pitched barking erupted, answering her question for her.
“Pip!” Lifting her skirts so as not to trip, she ran after him. “Come back here, you monster!”
But, of course, Pip proceeded to lure the terrier away from her owner, who had set his newspaper aside to stare at the melee over his spectacles.
“No, no, no!” Caroline whispered under her breath. The very last thing she needed was to be involved in another embarrassing incident! She needed to secure the rebellious collie!
But as she approached the park bench at the center of all the ruckus, she noticed that although this fellow wore a fine wool jacket and elegant trousers, he wasn’t as fastidiously put together as most gentlemen of the ton.
And when his gaze caught hers, she noticed dark shadows beneath eyes the most stunning color of green she’d ever seen—vivid, with shades of evergreen.
Most notable of all, however, his expression lacked the disdain and disapproval she’d grown accustomed to.
Even if she did recognize a hint of laughter there. He seemed amused by the dogs, not by her.
“I’m so very sorry!” Caroline called out. “It’s just that…” She halted as Pip turned around and approached the man, nosing curiously at the leg of his trousers. Initially nervous, she was pleasantly surprised when the stranger reached down with an indulgent grin, ruffling the fur behind the border collie’s ears and then rubbing his hands along Pip’s back and neck.
“A fine dog. Did you say his name was Pip?”
Caroline exhaled, momentarily speechless. It hadn’t been very long since her disastrous come-out, but ever since, she’d been given the cut more often than not.
But this man—a literal stranger—watching her from behind gleaming silver spectacles showed only good humor and not a hint of judgement. He shoved back longer than fashionable locks of inky black hair and tilted his head, his sensuous lips lifting into a half smile.
