Very efficiently I was removed from the intimacy of the alcove and propelled more or less into the arms of a tall blond man of military bearing who showed a great deal of interest in my cleavage. My host prowled off in search of new prey.
Talking to the Colonel was not going to get me very far, I could tell that at a glance. He was already well on the way to being drunk and as he moved in closer, crowding me against a pillar, I said, loud and clear, ‘If you do not take your hand off me, Colonel, I am going to break your fingers.’
He recoiled, mouth open, and heads turned. I stepped away from him, smoothed my skirts down and headed for the ladies’ retiring room. As I reached the door so did the lady I’d exchanged cool looks with when I had first arrived.
‘Are you all right?’ she asked abruptly when we were inside.
‘Perfectly, thank you. I can deal with men like that easily enough.’
She sat down at one of the little dressing tables and leaned forward to study her reflection with clinical intensity. ‘They do cease to be amusing quite quickly,’ she remarked. ‘I am Genevieve Collinson. Lady Collinson. You have just arrived from America, I gather.’
‘Yes. I am Cassandra Lawrence.’
‘This is not a good hunting ground for unmarried ladies, Miss Lawrence. Much more fruitful for widows such as myself.’ Was I being warned off or simply warned?
‘I am not hunting,’ I said. ‘My cousin James Franklin brought me to see a little of London life. Our host is searching for the right person though, or so I gather from what he said.’
‘Yes.’ Her reflected gaze rested on the diamonds.
‘Borrowed,’ I said.
‘Ah.’ Some of the ice thawed, just a little around the edges.
‘To be frank, this party is not what I expected. The other evening I overheard two young
ladies giggling about an invitation to attend, which they were obviously tempted to take up, even though I can quite see they would be risking far more than they would by attending a forbidden masquerade. There are no masks for one thing. On the other hand, if imprudent and innocent young ladies are invited, one would expect to see some of them here.’
Lady Collinson smoothed the lace at her neckline and stood up. ‘As you so acutely observed, dear George is hunting. Or, perhaps, that should be shopping. And one does like to test the quality of the merchandise. One would not want anything shoddy, would one? If the chits take his lures then they are, by definition, unworthy of him. Enjoy your stay in London, Miss Lawrence.’
‘Thank you.’ But she was gone. And I had had quite enough of this atmosphere.
The behaviour had degenerated even in the short time I had been out of the salon. Couples were touching, some were kissing, and in one corner a card game was degenerating into something akin to strip poker.
I looked around for James and saw him in conversation with two other good-looking gentlemen of about his age. Behind me someone said, ‘That is Franklin, over there with Pemberton, is it not? You know, I never see him with a lady on his arm. Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?’
‘What?’ another man replied. ‘That he is – Oh, I don’t know, seems a decent young fellow, not that you see him at the club much, but I have never heard a whisper. Well, not since school days, but then, who didn’t in those days?’
Right. I sailed across the floor, dodging a determined attempt to swing me into a dance, and linked my arm through James’s.
‘Darling James, may we go now?’
He blinked at the endearment, but came willingly enough. I steered him towards a potted palm, just in front of where the two men still stood, and turned into his arms. ‘Kiss me, James,’ I whispered.
‘What?’
‘It’s all right, just pretend. I’ll explain in a minute.’
Whoever he normally kissed, there was nothing wrong with James’s technique as far as I was concerned. It was quite forceful for a first kiss, but then that went with the fevered atmosphere of the crowded room.
We peeled apart and I slid my hand into the crook of his elbow. ‘Now, look as though you can’t wait to get me home.’
‘I cannot,’ he said, his wry tone at odds with the sensual look on his face.
When we had finally fought our way out through the crush, retrieved our outdoor clothing and had the carriage summoned it was a good twenty minutes later.
‘What the blazes was that about?’ he demanded from the opposite seat.
‘I overheard two men speculating about you while you were talking to your friends. Nothing specific, just that they never saw you with a lady. And then something about school days and who didn’t then?