“You are too kind, Lady Stapleton.”
“Not at all. I was just telling Beatrice how surprised we were by the announcement. Pleasantly surprised, of course.” Her gaze flicked between Hugo and Lily with the practiced subtlety of a woman cataloging weaknesses. “One never quite knows where the heart will lead, does one?”
“Indeed, one does not,” Hugo said, and placed his hand over Lily’s on his arm in a gesture that was equal parts affection and territory.
“Well. We must not keep you from your evening.” Lady Stapleton inclined her head. “Come, Beatrice.”
Mother and daughter moved away. Hugo watched them make a direct line toward the cluster of guests near the refreshment table, where Lord Wilfrey stood with a glass of wine. Lady Stapleton’s approach was seamless, and within moments, Miss Stapleton was positioned at Wilfrey’s side, her head tilted at precisely the angle that suggested both deference and interest.
Lady Lily had noticed. He could feel it in the way her fingers pressed into his forearm.
“Interesting,” Hugo murmured.
Lily said nothing. Her jaw tightened.
Before he could pursue the observation, a gentleman Hugo recognized as Lord Marcus Gould approached with the eager stride of a man who smelled gossip and could not resist chasing it.
“Lady Lily.” Gould bowed with a flourish. “I must say, the engagement was quite the surprise. Especially given the circumstances of the pamphlet. Tell me, was there any truth to the claims? Clandestine meetings and all that?”
Hugo opened his mouth to redirect, but Lily was faster.
“The pamphlet was a forgery, my lord. A malicious fabrication printed by someone too cowardly to attach their own name to it. If you are asking whether I was sneaking about in the dark with the Duke of Thornwaite, the answer is no. I was at home, reading, which is how I spend most of my evenings, because unlike the author of that wretched sheet, I have better things to do with my time than manufacture lies about people I have never met.”
Gould blinked. His mouth opened and closed twice. He managed a strangled “Quite so” and retreated with the haste of a man who had reached into a hedgerow and found a snake.
Hugo waited until Gould was out of earshot. Then he steered Lily toward a quieter alcove near the windows, where the candlelight was dimmer, and the nearest guests were absorbed in their own conversations.
“That was impressive,” he said.
Lily’s chin lifted. “Thank you.”
“It was not a compliment.” He kept his voice low. “You proved yourself clever, Lady Lily. You also made that man determined to avoid you for the rest of his natural life.”
The satisfaction drained from her expression. Something rawer took its place, a flicker of uncertainty that she masked almost immediately, but not before he caught it.
“He was being impertinent.”
“He was. And you eviscerated him for it.” Hugo held her gaze. “In a court of law, your response would have been magnificent. In a ballroom, it was a disaster. You humiliated a man in public, and men who have been humiliated do not forget. They do not forgive. And they talk.”
Lily’s mouth pressed into a thin line. He watched the conflict work behind her eyes, pride warring with the recognition that he was right.
“Then what should I have said?”
Hugo glanced around. The alcove was secluded enough. He turned back to her and crossed his arms.
“Lesson one. How to disagree with a man without making him feel as though he has been struck.”
“I did not strike him.”
“You did worse. You made him feel foolish, and a foolish man is a dangerous man.” He squared his shoulders. “I am Gould. I have just asked you a rude, invasive question about the pamphlet. Show me what you should have done.”
Lily stared at him. “You want me to practice on you?”
“I want you to learn.” He arranged his features into an expression of pompous curiosity. “Lady Lily, was there any truth to the pamphlet? Clandestine meetings and all that?”
“The pamphlet was a forgery, and I would prefer not to discuss it.”
“Better. But too blunt. You have shut the door in his face, and now he will spend the rest of the evening wondering what you are hiding. Try again. Give him something to chew on. Redirect. Make him feel as though he has gotten more than he deserves.”
