and reserved for gentlemen at any rate, not to mention the fact that sheâd practically have to raise her bent arm above her head in order to rest her elbow on the thing. She spied her sisterâs knitting basket and dismissed it in the same heartbeat. Sheâd rather be boiled in oil than found knitting, for goodnessâ sake.
What to do, what toâwait, the flowers! There must be five huge bouquets scattered about the room, each more lovely the other. How impressed the gentleman would be when he saw her handiwork. She raced to a round table holding a perfectly arranged bouquet and yanked four of the blooms from the porcelain vase. In an instant, three of them were on the tabletop, dripping water onto her skirt, and one was in her hand as she posed in the motion of sliding it in with its fellow blooms.
âAh, gentlemen,â she cooed, turning her head ever so slightly as Timmerly announced them, inwardly cursing the viscount for keeping good his promise to lend his help. Sheâd really rather heâd taken himself off somewhere, to amuse himself at somebody elseâs expense. âHow good of you to come. Timmerly, refreshments if you please.â
âYes, Miss Dany,â the butler scolded, bowing. âBut if you were to leave off playing with the posies, the countess would be that pleased. It took her ladyship and Mrs. Timmerly a good hour to arrange them this morning.â
The viscountâs bark of laughter accompanied the high-nosed butlerâs exit from the drawing room, leaving Dany with nothing to do but pick up the other blooms and jam them back into the vase. Butlers could be such prunes .
âI suppose Iâm caught out,â she recovered swiftly, wiping her damp hands against each other as she returned to the couch. âI was hoping to look accomplished, but the truth is, I have very few skills welcomed in polite company. Please, gentlemen, be seated.â
And the maddening viscount was at it again: âSuch as picking pockets?â
She turned to the baron, who was looking, or so she hoped, at least slightly amused. Therefore, she would be amused. âYes, my lords, although Iâd rather call it retrieving whatâs mine. Iâve now read it cover to cover, of course. How much is truth, sir, and how much could be termed a bag of moonshine? As for the signet ring, the tantalizing clue that just happened to be left behind to be found by your anonymous biographer? I would think both it and the veiled lady were only mentioned to encourage purchase of Volume Two. Do you by chance have a copy in your possession, or know where I might purchase one?â
The handsome, famous Cooper McGinley Townsend, who had been silent until now, his elbow propped on one arm of the chair, his chin in his hand, ignored the question to ask, âWhere is the countess? I would have thought sheâd had you bound and gagged and locked up in the nursery by now.â
âOh, ouch,â the viscount said, wincing rather comically. âDid that hurt, Miss Foster? I rather think it didnât, not from the width of that smile. We can safely ignore him, you know. Heâs been locked in an unpleasant mood all day. Not that heâs ever particularly jolly, being by nature a calm, sensible, nearly boring man. My friends and I tolerate him because of his good heart, you understand. Plus, heâs managed to rescue us from most of our scrapes since our boyhoods with his good common sense. Havenât you, Coop?â
Dany held her smile, but her heart had never been in it, so that her cheeks were beginning to ache. âThe trials and tribulations of being a hero must weigh heavily.â She looked almost boldly into those suddenly dark green eyes. She felt he could look straight through her, and it was unnerving, if also faintly delicious. âI feel absolutely terrible, an encroaching beast and any other vile thing you can think of, but I fear I must hold you to
Major Dick Winters, Colonel Cole C. Kingseed