AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Relief invaded Torrie’s face, her shoulders relaxing from the tight hold they had been in since they had rounded the back corner of Culland Hall. “That would be wonderful, thank you so much, your grace.”
Sienna looked over her shoulder, then back to Torrie and reached past Roe to grab her hand. “Come with me, then. We’ll scoot out the side entrance and make it upstairs without anyone noticing, assuming Logan and Robby can set their shoulders together and block us from view.” She flicked her finger to Roe.
In spite of himself, he jumped and moved to set himself shoulder to shoulder with Logan. Sienna had been ordering him about his whole life and he still would do anything she asked.
The wall of Roe and Logan awkwardly took two steps to the right, just enough to give Sienna and Torrie a clear exit to the side door of the ballroom. They escaped and the door closed behind Sienna’s gown, a delicate concoction of white tissue gauze layered over pink satin and trimmed with gold satin flutings. Sienna wore wealth well.
Logan turned to Roe.
“You have some explaining to do.”
Roe took a large inhale, expelling it slowly. Of course he did. “About Torrie?”
Logan nodded.
“It’s a long story.”
Logan cocked an eyebrow at him. “And she was quite close to you. Near to crawling on your back.”
Roe looked at the brightly lit sconce set into the tall mahogany wainscoting to Logan’s left. “Suffice it to say, beyond all reason and good sense, Torrie and I have become close.”
“How close, is what I wonder.”
Roe refused to look at him.
“Fine.” Logan clucked his tongue. “Not now in the middle of the ballroom. But you will tell me everything.”
Roe only offered him a shrug.
“In the meantime, I still have a half inch on you, brother, but all of my clothes should fit you fine. Go upstairs and change so Lady Apton doesn’t have more eyes on her than necessary when she returns to the party and is seen next to you.”
He looked to Logan. “Or I could intervene with Sienna and Torrie and we could hide upstairs.”
“Or you could stop whining aboutyourfundraising gala and get your arse moving.”
A nonsensical grumble left Roe’s lips and he turned from his brother, slipping out the side door and making his way up the rear stairs to Logan’s chamber.
Primping up had better be worth it.
~~~
“And then she caught his nose between the knuckles of her index and middle finger and yanked him up from his seat at the hazard table,” the Duchess of Dellon said, her hands animated about her face. “He stumbled up and she dragged him out of there. You can imagine the roar about him.”
“Serves him well.” The Countess of Alton snorted—delicately—a laugh. “It’s her inheritance he’s piddling away.”
“Yes, and the man never had a spine.” Lady Vandestile wrinkled her nose. “I’m glad Lady Fillson finally reached her limit. Her husband is dreadfully afraid of her father, so she should have done it long ago.”
Her eyes wide, a smile on her lips, Torrie watched the three glorious creatures in front of her. Blond hair, chestnut hair, black hair. All beautiful in completely opposite ways, the three proprietresses of the Revelry’s Tempest gaming hall.
She’d heard lore of the Revelry’s Tempest and these three women when she’d lived in London with her husband, but she had never attended one of the gaming nights there. They ran in completely different sets than her husband and he had been far too frugal with his money to waste even a shilling on something as silly as a game of chance.
Torrie had gone up the stairs with Roe’s sister-in-law, and descended those same steps with a friend. Sienna had embraced her as a confidante so effortlessly, it took Torrie minutes to realize she’d started to call the duchess by her given name.
After she had changed into one of Sienna’s exquisite gowns—a dusty blue satin that cut low across her chest with simple lace adornment—and had her hair done into a quick, but surprisingly artful upsweep by the maid under Sienna’s watchful eye, they had returned to the ballroom. Roe was not to be found and Sienna had hostess duties, so Torrie had been introduced to the three fascinating creatures standing before her.
Sienna couldn’t have deposited her with better company.
Gracious, witty, and welcoming, but with wry, canny eyes on the ballroom and all the happenings going on, they were three of the fiercest women she’d ever met. All wrapped under the guise of perfectly coiffed hair and silk that draped them flawlessly—flawless because each one was so comfortable with who they were.
