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“Nothing could be easier, my dear. They have only to find an interested matron—perhaps an aunt or a sister, or merely some friend of the family—and offer their escort to our party. I imagine we have quite doubled the number of people expected.”
Maidie was apprehensive when they abandoned their posts soon after, and joined the guests who had spread through all three saloons. As well, as Lady Hester remarked under her breath, she had instructed Lowick to open up all the rooms.
It was a new sensation to be the centre of attention. Maidie doubted it had anything to do with her appearance, although she had been pleased with the effect of the round gown of light russet hue, with its three-quarter sleeves and neckline plain enough to induce her to allow her ginger locks to curl upon her neck, unadorned. She was besieged, person after person coming up to her, without exception exuding goodwill, until they were ousted by the next.
A very little of this sufficed Maidie. She longed for the days of her first appearance, when she was treated to condescension, but was at least able to move freely through the press of persons. She hailed the arrival of Darby Hampford, whom she had previously met, with relief at first.
“Oh, yours is a face I know, thank heaven!”
It smiled unctuously. “With which you will become better acquainted, I trust. Dear Lady Mary, how I have longed since that night to hear more from you about the heavens. Never have I been so enthralled.”
Maidie eyed him, her cordiality waning. “Indeed?”
“Can you doubt it? You must, indeed you must, give me the pleasure of listening to you.” He leaned closer, saying in a tone far too intimate for Maidie’s comfort, “But not here! Let us meet somewhere—in private.”
“In private!”
“Yes, yes, I must have you to myself. One cannot converse with any degree of comfort at a party. You are new to London, I know, but there are places where one may safely ignore the proprieties.”
“Mr Hampford, are you out of your senses?”
“Utterly, Lady Mary!” He came closer, as if he would whisper in her ear, but she drew away. “Don’t retreat! I would I could say what is in my heart, but I cannot. Not where anyone might hear.”
Maidie was stunned. Was she supposed to take this seriously? Did he imagine her to be flattered? She could harbour no illusions. Lady Hester was obviously right. “You must take me for an idiot, Mr Hampford.”
He smiled in what she supposed he must imagine to be a winning manner. “Far from it. I think you a perfect angel.”
“Humdudgeon! I will not be talked to in this fashion. Please go away—or I shall be obliged to request Lord Delagarde to have you removed from the party.”
She turned her shoulder, uncaring of the titters which broke out around them, ill-concealed by those who had overheard by a hand over a mouth or a lifted fan. She could only trust Darby Hampford would retire, discomfited, and her reception of his outrageously insincere approach might serve to discourage others.
Her trust proved to have been misplaced, for she was subjected to several further attempts to engage her interest, and, although none was quite as blatant as that of Hampford, Maidie was in no doubt about what must have prompted them.
“This is intolerable!” she told Lady Hester, when the announcement refreshments had been laid out below stairs afforded a brief respite.
Her hostess was lingering as the throng of guests made its slow way out of the saloons. Later, Lady Hester would be obliged to go down and make an appearance, but she trusted Lowick to ensure the needs of each guest were catered for, despite the highly augmented nature of the gathering.
“Are you having a difficult time of it, poor child?”
“Ma’am, it is dreadful! I have never heard such a collection of falsehoods and duplicity as I have been obliged to listen to tonight. Great-uncle warned me society is full of deceit. I now learn how right he was. But what infuriates me the most is they imagine me to be ignorant of their intentions. As if I were the veriest nincompoop!”
Lady Hester had to laugh. “That is very bad, certainly. Don’t despair, my child. I think you will find these attentions will die down in a few days.” She bubbled over again. “Particularly if you mean to snub the pretensions of like-minded gentlemen in the way you handled Hampford.”
“Lady Hester, you should have heard him. I was quite nauseated. I see I must be grateful to Lord Delagarde for having kept the matter secret at first. I should otherwise have taken this sort of attitude to have been normal, and not been put so much upon my guard as I am now.”
“Are you indeed grateful to his lordship?”
A new voice, entering upon the discussion so suddenly, and with so tart an inflection, Maidie was startled. She turned quickly, and noted Lady Hester did likewise. Adela! She might have known.
“This is a private discussion,” she said at once. “You should not be listening.”
Lady Shurland produced a coy smile. “Far, far be it from me to pry into what does not concern me, dear Mary, but in this instance I feel in honour bound.”
About to speak, Maidie felt Lady Hester’s restraining hand on her arm, and subsided. She watched her hostess glance about the saloon in which they were standing, and herself noted it was almost empty. Satisfied, Lady Hester addressed the intruder. “What is it you mean, Lady Shurland?”
“I would not wish to be the instigator of any trouble, but I do think Mary ought to be informed of Lord Delagarde’s part in this.”
“In what precisely?”
