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Her cheeks warmed. “I’m having morning tea out on the terrace with one of them.”
My brows rose. “You’ll need a chaperone.”
“You’re not serious,” she said.
“Elvira.”
She shrugged delicately. “Will I really need one? I’m in a different country—”
“Primarily filled with British people who have very similar rules regarding etiquette—just like Buenos Aires society. Many of whom travel to Argentina on business and leisure, I might add.”
Elvira set her mouth at a mulish line. “You sound just like your mother.” I froze, and she immediately slapped her palm against her mouth. “Mymother. I meant to saymy mother. Oh, Inez, I’m so sorry. Lo siento!” She reached for my hand and squeezed. “Forgive me?”
“It’s all right,” I said, despite the sudden drop in my stomach. Her words were like a slap to the face. I knew she hadn’t meant it, but it still stung. “I’m ready for this night to be over.”
We swept inside, our dresses wrinkled, hair disheveled, a pair of wilted flowers. Elvira dropped onto the couch, yawning hugely. I cast her an amused glanced as I took out my pins, freeing my wild hair, and strove for a light tone. “Elvira, at the risk of sounding likeyourmother, promise me that you’ll wake me before your rendezvous. I’ll accompany you… no, don’t make that face. Itisthe proper, and safe, thing to do.”
“All right,all right.”
“Why is this so important to you?”
Elvira shifted in her seat, her eyes wide and pleading. “Inez, I’ve never been on my own before. I just want time to do something that’s not on a schedule or approved by my mother. One day, I’ll be married to a perfect stranger, very likely. Someone chosen for me. But tomorrow, I’ll be spending time with someone I picked. Can’t you understand?”
It was incredible how quickly we fell into similar patterns. Elvira would follow me anywhere, trust me to lead her on the grand adventure. And it was my responsibility to look out for her. To protect her from whatever scrape I’d landed us in. Like the time we got stuck in a tree when we were six years old, or the time I’d gotten us lost in the heart of downtown Buenos Aires. She trusted me to get us home in one piece.
But the minute we docked, our lives would be scheduled, and shepherded into a future my aunt approved of. These were the last moments of unencumbered freedom.
“I understand,” I said. “Have your morning with the fellow.” Then I swooped down and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “But I’m still going to be there. Don’t forget to wash the soot off your face before bed.”
Elvira rolled her eyes and then stood, helping me out of the tight confines of my evening dress. She pulled a little too tightly on the stays of my corset and I yelped. When I stood in my chemise, I returned the favor andthen we both went into our separate rooms. Without my parents’ things, the bedroom could have been anyone’s.
I wasn’t sure if that made me feel better or not.
I awoke to the sound of loud knocking. I rubbed my eyes, gingerly sitting up in bed as the noise grew louder. With an incoherent sound of protest, I pushed aside the mosquito netting and climbed out of the bed and drew on my white dressing gown, stumbling out into the main room of our suite. The sharp knocking continued and I yanked open the door.
I hadn’t expected to see Whit again.
He stood on the other side, his fist raised. He dropped his arm abruptly and sagged against the doorframe. “You’re here.”
I made a show of looking around. “Where else would I be?”
“I need to come in,” Whit said.
I stepped aside to let him through and he closed the door behind him. He looked uncharacteristically frazzled, dressed in his usual button-down and khaki trousers, his worn boots laced up to mid calf, and yet there was a frantic pull to his expression. Eyes wild, breath coming out in short gasps, as if he’d run the whole way to my room. And then it hit me. What if he changed his mind about us? I licked my lips. “What are you doing here?”
“Is Elvira here?”
At first, I didn’t understand the question. Then his words cut through the mental fog of fitful sleep. Dread pooled deep in my belly. “Sheoughtto be.”
Whit stood in the middle of the room, his hands deep in his pockets, a grim line to his mouth. “Go look, Inez.”
I was already heading to the adjacent room, and when I opened the door, the empty bed stared back at me cheekily. A groan of exasperation escaped me. I had told her to wake me, to not go down without me. I spun around, my hands flying onto my hips.
“Where did you see her?” I demanded. “No doubt enjoying a pastry out on the terrace with her morning date—”
“Who?” Whit interrupted.
“The man she danced with. I didn’t learn his name.” My lips parted; I hadn’t thought to ask. I had assumed I’d be with her for the rendezvous.
