When everyone had finished their cake, Edmund once again captured everyone’s attention and directed the men to the smoking room and the women to the drawing room, where they could play cards.
Chairs were shuffled, and the remains of the feast were left on the table, like a ruined city after an army had passed through. Rose was ushered along with the other women. So many people were moving that it felt as though she was carried along by a current.
Soon enough, she was in the sitting room. She played cards with Lydia and Mary while Amelia, Charlotte, Beatrice, and Agatha sat beside them, playing their own game. Conversation hopped between tables as well, while the cards were being shuffled.
Rose, Lydia, Margaret, and Mary were playing Brag. Clara was sitting beside Mary, although she did not have cards of her own.
“I do hope nothing is wrong with Alfred. It’s not like him to refuse to share everything with me,” Mary said.
“I am sure it’s nothing to worry about. I imagine he probably just wants to wait until the party is over,” Charlotte said reassuringly.
“Oh, I think I have won,” Amelia said, laying down her cards and tittering with laughter. Rose glanced across at their table and saw a line of diamonds laid out before her, numbered sequentially. They were playing Brag, and she had just scored a few high tricks.
“Diamonds for the diamond,” Beatrice said, beaming with pride.
Lydia squirmed in her seat.
“It must be beginner’s luck. Let’s hope I am so fortunate when it comes to a husband. Just think, Lydia, our husbands could be sitting in a nearby room as we speak,” she said.
“Perhaps,” Lydia said icily.
“When can we stop playing and watch the dancing?” Clara asked.
“I am not entirely sure. There might not even be any dancing tonight,” Mary replied.
Clara’s face fell. “But there has to be. I want to dance with Uncle Edmund!”
“If there isn’t any dancing tonight, then I am sure there will be some tomorrow. But anyway, it is getting late, and you should start bidding people goodnight.”
“I don’t want to go to bed. I am not tired,” Clara said, digging her hands in her armpits and adopting a harsh expression.
“Clara, please let’s not do this now in front of all these people. It’s time for bed, and that hasn’t changed just because we’re at a party. There will be plenty of parties for you to enjoy in the future. Now, say goodnight to everyone,” Mary said in a gentle but firm tone. She rose from her seat, and Clara jumped down, stomping her feet on the floor.
“Goodnight,” she said curtly, using the word like a hammer, and then marched out of the room. Mary gave a beleaguered sigh and chased after her.
Margaret continued chuckling.
“Clara is so much like you, Rose,” she said, shaking her head, before gathering up the cards and dealing them out again. Rose rolled her eyes and went to cross her arms, before she remembered that Clara had done exactly the same thing. She instead slipped her hands beneath her legs.
“I believe you must be misremembering. I was never that disagreeable,” Rose said.
“You’re that disagreeable even now,” Lydia said with a mischievous smile. Rose tilted her head and glared at Lydia, but before she could say anything in response, they heard a loud noise just beyond the door. It sounded as though something massive had bumped into the wall, like a battering ram.
But it wasn’t something massive. It was someone.
The great bulk of a man appeared in the doorway. A cloud of smoke came with him, making it seem as though he was bringing some fog along.
“My name is Leopold Johnshon, and I am here to declare my intention to marry the fair lady—” he was interrupted, and his tone changed. He started barking and tried to wrestle it away.
“Handsh off me!” he slurred.
“Leo, I already warned you,” Edmund said. He poked his head into the door, coughing through the smoky haze. “Apologies for the disturbance. Leo here has had a little too much to drink. It was my fault for making sure that his glass was never empty. I am just going to escort him outside.”
Rose then heard a grueling contest where both men grunted. There were more footsteps as people came to help Edmund, and eventually, Leopold Johnson was hauled away. The women glanced at each other and tittered with laughter at the exploits of men who drank too much.
“There is never a dull moment where Edmund is concerned,” Charlotte said.
It wasn’t long before Edmund returned. His collar was askew, and one sleeve rose, revealing his wrist and forearm. He came in, and as he moved, the sleeve fell down.
