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Fan Lady staggered to her feet and clutched her friend’s arm. “Perhaps you’d better take her away, Mr. Kendrick,” she said in a quavering voice. “Before she does something . . .”
“Insane?” Donella again chimed in.
Logan choked back a laugh. “All right, Miss Haddon, I believe you’ve twitted these ladies enough for one night. They’re obviously a bit chicken-hearted. You’ll send them off into a fit of hysterics if you’re not careful.”
“I do believe that was my intention,” Donella replied.
The blonde, obviously the sharper of the two, finally twigged. “Do you mean you were making fun of us?” she angrily demanded.
Donella gave a slight shrug, as if barely caring enough to reply.
“I’d say you earned it too, from what I heard,” Logan said.
“You certainly didn’t bother to lower your voices.”
Fan Lady turned an unbecoming shade of puce. “You were eavesdropping on us?”
“I was standing several feet away and, yes, I could hear you.” Logan narrowed his gaze on the blonde. “By the way, who was your supposedly reliable source? Because that was the most ridiculous palaver I’ve ever heard.”
“It’s none of your business,” she snapped.
“It is, however, my business,” Donella said. “So let me give you a word of advice—don’t listen to gossip. You both sounded like silly dimwits, which is hardly an attractive quality in a respectable woman.”
“You’re one to talk, Miss Haddon,” the blond girl indignantly replied. “I think you are quite awful.”
“Awful,” her friend echoed in a quavering voice.
“Naturally, I’m devastated to hear that,” Donella said. The blond girl took her friend’s arm. “Come along, dear. I don’t know why we came to this dreadful party in the first place.”
“Don’t forget to say good-bye to the Gilbrides on your way out,” Logan said. “You know, your host and hostess? The ones you were gossiping about?”
The chits stormed past him, drawing a great deal of notice in their wake. In fact, even though they’d been relatively tucked away, he suspected their scene had drawn at least some attention.
Splendid. More gossip.
“Well, that was fun,” he said, turning back to Donella.
She sank onto the deserted bench with a sigh. “No, it wasn’t.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
What in heaven’s name is wrong with me?
Donella contemplated that question while staring at the tips of her dance slippers. If Logan hadn’t appeared and forced her to pull in her claws, how far would she have carried her ghastly joke? Deserved or not, her behavior had been uncharitable and foolhardy.
“Mind if I join you?” Logan asked as he sat down beside her.
She cut him a sideways glance. “Do I have a choice?”
He flashed his devastating smile, not looking a bit concerned that she’d again caused a scene. Although it would not be as dramatic as the chatter about the sweet shop, gossip about this particular episode would surely circulate.
Of course, Logan also excelled at making scenes, so he was hardly in a position to criticize.
“I suppose you could flounce off and leave me here,” he replied. “But that would probably draw even more notice, which I’m sure we’re both eager to avoid.”
The gleam of humor in his eyes sparked her temper.
“You certainly did your best to stoke the furnace, sir. Your comments were hardly helpful in defusing the situation.”
