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“Here are Sarah and Charlotte,” Harriet said when they reached her mother’s sitting room.
“Oh!” Mama dropped her sewing and stood. “You’ve come. Harriet has missed you so.”
“And we, her,” replied Charlotte.
“Of course, now that she is engaged, she has other things to think about as well.”
Naturally Mama would mention this immediately. It was foremost in her thoughts. Harriet had foreseen this.
“Engaged?” cried Sarah. “What, when…?” She glanced at Charlotte to see if she had known. Charlotte shook her head. “How could you not write us about that?”
“It’s quite recent,” said Harriet.
“Well, who is he? My goodness, Harriet.”
“The Earl of Ferrington,” answered her mother, her face glowing with pride.
“Lady Wilton’s missing heir?” Sarah’s blue eyes went round. “You found him?”
“More than found apparently,” said Charlotte with raised brows. “Found, beguiled, and bagged, all in a few weeks.”
Harriet frowned at her. The wordbaggedwas an obvious provocation, but she wasn’t going to be baited.
“And you solved the mystery without us,” said Sarah.
“The Terefords did most of it.”
“Are they here?” asked Charlotte.
“Staying at Ferrington Hall. Lady Wilton sent them up.”
“I wouldn’t think the duke would submit to being sent,” said Sarah.
Harriet shrugged. “You know Lady Wilton.”
They’d all seen this lady’s dictatorial ways during the past season. Harriet didn’t intend to mention the letter about the Travelers that had brought the duke and duchess here. Not yet at any rate. She was used to telling her friends everything. But the story of the rogue earl was…complicated.
Charlotte gazed at her as if she could see her ambivalence. “It seems there’s been a great deal going on. How did the Terefords recover the missing earl? Where was he?”
“And how did you fall in love with him?” asked Sarah. “I want to hear everything.”
“Everything,” echoed Charlotte.
“The duke is very clever,” said Harriet’s mother.
“And Cecelia is even more so,” said Harriet.
“Indeed. And so they…” Charlotte raised her eyebrows and waited.
“Found him,” said Harriet. She glanced at her mother and then back at her friends.
They got the point and fell silent. There was a short silence, indicating that Sarah and particularly Charlotte would require more than this. Eventually.
“You must invite your earl to call immediately,” said Sarah then. “We have to make certain he’s worthy of you.” She smiled to show she was joking.
Harriet’s mother was not amused. In fact, she looked worried. “He’s very kind, a true gentleman,” she declared.
“You like him?” asked Charlotte.
