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As they picked up their pace, Lady Asquith said, “Asquith, escort them, would you?”
“Of course,” Asquith replied.
“I’ll join you,” Preston added.
Ignoring everyone, Amelia advanced toward a cage positioned in a remote corner. “Well?” She held out her arm. “What do you think of your opponent, Miss Lenora?”
The strange creature stood on legs that were similar to a crane’s, albeit twice as long, had a body like a giant duck, and shaggy, fur-like feathers.
“Oh, dear!” Lenora exclaimed. “I have been grossly misled. If that’s an emu, then I must abandon my hopes. My rogue of an emu-master must have pit me against chickens-in-disguise.”
“Pfft.” Amelia rolled her eyes. “Are you saying you would win in a fight with a chicken?”
Lenora drew back in mock offense. “I dare you to bet against me.”
The lip quirk reappeared for a second time.
Befriending Asquith might have been more challenging than Lenora had expected, but with Amelia, she was confident of success.
She turned back to the emu. “Would you look at those eyelashes?” She fluttered her own. “What I wouldn’t give to have lashes like those.”
Asquith startled her by laughing aloud.
More than one patron turned to gape along with Lenora, and he covered his faux pas with a light cough, but his smile did not dim.
A genuine smile. Possibly the first she’d ever seen from him.
“You have a dimple,” she said.
The grin faded. “Do I?”
She nodded. “I’ve never noticed.”
Amelia’s gray eyes moved between them, while Preston watched Asquith as if he’d sprouted an additional head.
“The animals are the attraction, Pres,” Lady Amelia said dryly. She tugged on Lenora’s arm. “Wait until you see what’s next.”
At the following enclosure, Lenora placed her hand over her heart. She’d seen depictions of lions in books, statues, and even one carved into a memorable baptismal font, but never the real thing.
“Isn’t his fur the most divine thing you’ve ever seen?” Amelia asked.
“So soft.” Lenora nodded, entranced. “So beautiful.”
“So warm,” Asquith added. “Warmer, I would think, than your pelisse, Miss Lenora.”
Lenora sent Asquith a withering glance.
“I hope,” Preston said to his sister, “you’re not dreaming of trimming your coat with lion fur.”
A low growl rumbled in the lion’s throat.
Amelia took Preston’s arm and pulled him away from the agitated beast. “It appears he’s developed a distaste for you, brother dear.”
Amelia and Preston walked on, squabbling under their breath, but Lenora lingered. She gazed into the tawny eyes of the most terrifyingly beautiful animal she’d ever seen. She could not breathe.
What an amazing creature! What a vast and untamed world!
“You’re determined to make a conquest of Lady Amelia, aren’t you?” Asquith broke Lenora’s reverie.
