“Let me,” Kate said. She leaned forward. Was it the sherry making her so bold? She lifted the ancient wig off of Mrs. Warbler’s head. The hair beneath was matted to her head and white. Mrs. Warbler closed her eyes as if ashamed. She even seemed to grow smaller.
Gently, Kate touched the hair and it sprang to life. It was actually very good hair. After years in the theater creating hairstyles for characters, she knew quite a bit about hair. “Do you have scissors?”
“What?No.” Mrs. Warbler brought her hands up to protect her hair. “I’m losing it. I don’t want it cut.”
“Trust me,” Kate said. “If you don’t like it when I’m done, then you can put the wig back on.” Mrs. Warbler’s brows came together. Gently, Kate said, “The wig seems to swallow your face. It overshadows your character.”
Ever so slowly, Mrs. Warbler lowered her hands. “Do you think?”
“I know. I have a good eye.” Now that she’d started, Kate was anxious to see if her hunch was true. “Trust me?”
Perhaps it was the sherry that lowered Mrs. Warbler’s inhibitions, but she did ring for the maid. “Scissors, Janie. Fetch the scissors.”
The moment Kate cut a lock of Mrs. Warbler’s hair, she knew she had the right of it, in spite of the maid wincing at the sight. The hair curled as if set free. Kate kept at it, trimming the hair until it was a mass of small, bouncing curls that framed Mrs. Warbler’s face in the most becoming manner and gave her a youthful, and modern, expression.
“Oh, miss,miss,” Janie said.
“What?” Mrs. Warbler said in alarm. “Is it terrible?”
Instead of answering, the maid said, “Let me bring you a mirror.”
“And a scarf,” Kate called.
“Do I look horrible?” Mrs. Warbler demanded, panicked.
“You will see.”
Janie returned with the hand mirror and, with great ceremony, Kate flipped it so that her hostess could see her reflection.
Mrs. Warbler gasped her surprise. “Is this my hair?”
“Undoubtedly,” Kate answered, very pleased with herself. “It looks like a London style. You could pass for the goddess Artemis.”
Holding the hand mirror, Mrs. Warbler angled her head this way and that. “My head feels lighter, as if I’m undressed.” She put a hand beneath her chin, smoothing it back. “But I do look younger, don’t I? Wait until the duchess sees me. She’ll be shocked. She thinks I look much older than herself... but not any longer.” She gave an impish smile to Kate. “Excellent work.”
Kate wondered if she had done herself any favors, and yet she didn’t regret Mrs. Warbler’s delight in the style. She began wrapping the scarf like a turban around the curls, letting them peep out beneath the purple material. “You could go anywhere in society like this.” When she’d finished, she picked up her sherry glass that had miraculously been refilled.
“I could.” Mrs. Warbler sounded almost giddy. She almost kissed herself in the mirror, until a movement outside the window caught her attention.
Taking a drink, Kate followed the other woman’s gaze and realized The Garland, the village tavern, was right across the road. The Earl of Marsden was leaving. He wasn’t alone. Brandon was with him.
Now, it was Kate’s turn to drain her glass.
“There they are,” Mrs. Warbler said with great forbearance, “the gentlemen of the Logical Men’s Society.”
“Logical men? Do you mean the bachelor society?”
With a sharp bark of agreement, Mrs. Warbler said, “I know, it doesn’t make sense.” She poured herself another glass of sherry. “Men carry on about their rational thinking. In truth, they are all tiringly predictable. They all like their meals served on the table and ‘you know’ in their bed. The rest is all filler in their day.”
Her bluntness got a surprised laugh out of Kate.
Pleased with herself, Mrs. Warbler leaned forward. “The Earl of Marsden is their leader of sorts, although our good doctor seems to be the chairman. Marsden’s grandfather started the society.”
“And the purpose of it?” The earl and Brandon stood discussing something quite earnestly.
“Silliness,” Mrs. Warbler said. “At least that is what the ladies and I think. They vow to have no interest in marriage, but as you can tell their numbers are small and there is even a gentleman I am quite fond of who is a member. But my hope is he won’t be for much longer.”
“There is?” Kate’s skepticism was clear.
