Greer nodded his satisfaction. “Are you heading for the dance floor?” he asked.
“No, we were going to make the rounds.” Looking behind her, she realized the rest of her group had kept walking and were now lost to her sight. “Would you care to accompany me?”
“I would be honored.” He took her arm, and she could feel the warmth emanating from him, particularly aware of his bare chest so close to her.
“You managed to find a very authentic costume,” she managed.
“Not really. If I’d had the brazenness of an Indian warrior, I would not be wearing this vest. The tailor I went to suggested I might not be allowed in without it, or if I was, the focus would be wholly on me rather than on the Prince and Princess of Wales.”
The man had been right about that. As it was, Beatrice could hardly credit she was walking through one of the most opulent homes in London, if not all of England, with a scantily clad, shirtless man.
Out loud, she mused, “I wonder what Lady Emily will have to say.”
He chuckled. “The odds I shall even see her tonight are very slim. I can hardly believe I found you for that matter. Another moment of your walking away from that mammoth fireplace, and I wouldn’t have.”
“When the flageolet sounds, or whatever they’re using here tonight, perhaps a trumpet—”
“Or twenty,” he joked.
“Indeed! I shall have to return to the Blenheim Saloon if I am ever to find my sisters again. That’s where they will go looking, perhaps after the dancing.” She tightened her grip upon his arm and pointed. “Look at that costume.”
“The wasp woman? Very clever.” They watched the lady stroll past with a black-and-yellow, sharply pointed front panel to her gown, and small wings protruding from her shoulders.
Greer pointed out the next stunning one, a woman dressed as a snowflake. “Now I can truly say that I have seen the elephant.”
“Where?” she demanded, craning her neck. Someone dressed as an elephant would be far more impressive than a wasp.
He chuckled. “Just a saying. I guess it’s an American one if you don’t know it.”
She frowned, shaking her head slightly.
“Have you ever seen one?” he asked.
“An elephant? Of course. This is London. There is almost nothing you cannot find here. Ten years ago, our Zoological Society traded a rhinoceros to the French for an elephant. Don’t you think that was silly of the French? I mean, an elephant! It’s the most amazing creature.”
“And that’s what the phrase means. I can’t imagine seeing a ball or even a group of people more spectacular than this one.”
“Very good, Mr. Carson. I like that.To see the elephant. I shall use it in the future.”
They continued their promenade. Beatrice couldn’t help noticing more than one lady gave her escort a second glance, and a third. It was not every day one saw so much of a man’s upper body. In fact, never.
There were so many daring and inventive costumes, Beatrice felt almost dowdy. “That lady is a rainbow,” Greer directed her gaze. “And that man can only be Henry the VIII. And you said I wouldn’t know one king from another.”
“I should have thought of something more exciting,” Beatrice fretted.
“You look absolutely perfect,” he told her, stopping their forward progress and gazing down at her. “Your dressmaker captured the color of your eyes exactly right in your gown, and the whole effect makes me feel as if you’ve brought a summer’s day, complete with green fields and sheep, right here into this palace, even without a crook in your hand.”
Her cheeks warmed. “That’s very kind of you. Certainly more thoughtful than what Lord Melton said.” She bit her tongue for even mentioning the man. She was not trying to make Greer jealous.Was she?
He frowned. “I’m surprised the man was able to find you. What did the churl say?”
She giggled. “He’s not a churl, for goodness sake. Simply reserved and a little—”
“Lifeless.” His forearm tightened and bulged under her fingers, causing her attention to be completely captivated for a moment. Never would she have guessed Greer had been concealing such a muscular physique under his clothing.
“You deserve someone more invigorating,” he continued.
And more fun, she thought.Like the man whose arm she was holding.
