Lillian didn’t let the fact that she’d just taken a bite of her sandwich stop her from arguing. “But you are deeply in like with him,” she said, her voice muffled.
Eleanor nodded. “Yes, but it is notjustthat our social standing is so different.”
Lillian frowned, but her second bite had been too big for her to ask what other problem existed.
Mabel didn’t need to ask. She gasped and her hand flew to her lips. “Ohhhhhhh. It’sthe Captain. Where does he stand in all of this?”
Eleanor dropped her head into her hands. “I am deeply in like with him too.” It was such a mess. How had she gone from happily having no interest in any man to being besotted with two? Mabeltsked, and rubbed Eleanor’s shoulder. Lillian was more practical, handing Eleanor a sandwich with extra jam. When Eleanor was sure she could face them without her face flushing, she raised her head. “Am I terrible because I cannot choose one over the other?”
They shook their heads vehemently. “No. It is entirely understandable,” Lillian said. “Each of them suits you well, just in different ways. It is a difficult decision to make.”
Mabel sighed. “It would be lovely if you could have both of them.”
“Mabel!” Lillian tossed a napkin, which Mabel caught and threw back.
“Not both at the same time! Or even at different times. What I mean to say is that it would be lovely if they could be one and the same. One body. Both men.”
That would be the perfect solution; she’d even dreamed about it. But it was so, so unlikely. Unlikely to the point that hoping for it was worthy of Bedlam. Eleanor confiscated both napkins and put them behind her. “They are two men in two bodies, and it’s useless to wish otherwise. I must be realistic. It seems far more likely that the Captain and I would have a future together, don’t you think? Peter is a duke.”
She didn’t know exactly what the Captain’s social status was, but unless he was a prince, he was a much more realistic life partner.
Lillian shrugged. “Unless the Captain is in prison following whatever it was that detained him that night. We never ruled it out and it would certainly stand in the way of a future together.”
Eleanor sighed. “He is not in prison.”
Mabel waved her hand. “We need to ignore titles and potential criminal records. You kissed Zoo Man, and you liked it. You deeply likehim. You also deeply like Letter Man, but the two of you haven’t met, let alone kissed, and so you cannot make up your mind.”
“Precisely.” It was an impossible situation.
Mabel raised her glass. “Well then, you cannot make an informed choice until you kiss the Captain, too. That must be our next step. Cheers to all the kissing.”
“Agreed,” Lillian added. “So, how do we go about making that happen?”
Dear Captain,
I think it’s time we meet. Don’t you?
Dear Booklover,
Yes.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Of all days, Prince George had to have chosen this one to come to the damned zoo. The entrance had been crowded with carriages bearing the polished crests of society’s biggest gossips. Peter’s driver had known enough to continue past without slowing down. Three blocks away, he’d pulled over so that Peter could formulate a new plan.
Entering the zoo without attracting royal attention had meant that the plethora of flowers he’d purchased for the occasion had to be left behind. All he’d managed to bring with him was a bouquet of peonies in every color imaginable. It had not held up particularly well to being concealed inside the greatcoat Peter had borrowed. The outer flowers had lost petals and the whole thing was a little flatter than it had been a few hours ago. His only saving grace was that the prince had little interest in the Australian enclosure, preferring to ride the elephants instead. Peter wished him well, given he was likely sauced already and Eleanor’s information was rarely wrong.
Peter stood by the sign that listed facts about the echidna along with a detailed drawing of one, which was essential because the damn thing wasn’t showing itselfagain. In a perfect world, he and Eleanor would kiss, he’d spin her around,and then just as her feet hit the ground, the echidna, the wombat, and the platypus would all emerge from their hiding places in a display of solidarity and a sign that this marriage was meant to be.
But where lions could be enticed to show themselves with a slab of raw meat, echidnas ate ants, which were not as easy to procure. They had certainly proven impossible to contain properly, and by the time Peter had reached the enclosure, the box in which his gardener had put them was now empty and he’d had to shed his driver’s coat.
She would be here momentarily. He tried to calm his roiling stomach. It had been almost a week since they’d kissed and he hadn’t seen her since. Lady Wharton had attended events alone, and every attempt to casually run into her had failed. Receiving her letter to the Captain had done nothing to reassure him, because she was about to discover the truth and he had no idea how she would react.
In an ideal world, he would declare his love and she would do the same, and they’d be married before the afternoon was over using a special license that he’d already procured. He didn’t want to spend one hour more than necessary without her as his wife. He didn’t want to go one more night without her in his bed, or one more morning without them reading their newspapers together at the breakfast table.
But given his premature betrothal announcement the year before, the archbishop hadn’t been inclined to grant a special license, and that was entirely his own fault.
“Gah!” He put his hands on his head and stared at the roof of the enclosure, where at least three pigeons had roosted in the rafters and spiderwebs created patterns in the light that filtered through the dirty skylights and dusty air.
