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‘Did she? Hmmm. I had not thought she had such perception.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Only that your success is assured. From now on, I don’t doubt you will be receiving much more of the same sort of flattery. Not, you know, that she might have been completely insincere. The gown you are wearing tonight really does make you look utterly charming, in an innocent, unpolished way.’
Why could he not have stopped at utterly charming? But, no, he’d had to go on to qualify the praise by reminding her she was unpolished.
‘I do wish you would not keep doing that,’ she said.
He raised his eyebrow in silent question.
‘Dig about for something about me that does not meet with your disapproval, then toss it to me as though it is a compliment.’
He frowned. ‘Miss Gibson, I thought we had dealt with your inability to accept compliments. I have said nothing I do not mean. Indeed, every time but one, when we have met, I have thought how very charming your dress has looked. I said nothing, because I did not wish to draw attention to your glaring descent into bad taste, by remarking on the change. But I do approve of your style. For one thing, your elegance lends credence to the rumours flying about that I am enamoured of you.’
‘I cannot believe,’ she said crossly, ‘that people think you might really be developing a tendre for me, because of the way I dress.’
‘Don’t you? Surely you have not forgotten that they thought the very opposite, that day I took you for a drive in the park. You told me yourself that it would be quite impossible for me to take as a mistress any woman dressed as badly as you were that day.’
‘They cannot think you wish to take me as your mistress?’
‘Let us not worry about what anyone else thinks, Hen.’
‘I have to worry about it. Just on the way here tonight my aunt warned me to beware of you. And don’t call me Hen! I haven’t even granted you permission to use my given name, never mind shorten it to such a revoltingly unflattering word.’
He tapped her on the nose. ‘Then never again wear clothes that put me in mind of a chicken, my sweet. Really, with that nose, and all those gaudy colours, topped off with those red feathers, bobbing in the wind...’
‘Now you really are treating me as though I were your mistress.’ Or a doll, which he picked up and toyed with to distract him from the real business of his life. A doll that he would toss aside the moment he grew bored.
‘That is what you do, is it not? Dress them up to suit your whims? Well, for your information I only wore that ridiculous get-up to teach you a lesson.’
‘Ah,’ he said, leaning back with a lazy, knowing smile. ‘I suspected as much. At the time I was at a loss to comprehend why you were so cross with me that day. Perhaps you would care to enlighten me?’
‘You snubbed my aunt. You were insufferably haughty, refusing to speak to any of the guests in her drawing room. And you positively crushed poor Mr Bentley for daring to mention how much he liked your horses.’
‘And making yourself look ridiculous was supposed to punish me how?’
She glowered at him for a moment, before replying, ‘I thought you would hate being seen about in public with a woman dressed in such vulgar style. Though now I know you better, I see it was foolish of me to think you could be swayed by anything that another person can say or do. You are so arrogant that you would think it absurd to take notice of beings you consider so very inferior to you.’
His face hardened.
‘I do not know why you are in such an unreceptive mood tonight, Miss Gibson. My intention was merely to engage in a little light flirtation. Upon any other night I might have expected you to deal with my impertinence in criticising your dress sense, and teasing you with a slightly derogatory pet name, by putting me neatly in my place, as is your wont.’
Was she as bad as that? Yes, she rather thought she was. She couldn’t think what came over her when she was with Lord Deben. Back home in Much Wakering, she’d hardly ever lost her temper. She stood up to her brothers when they were being particularly idiotic, it was true, but she managed to do so without acting like a harridan. Everyone said what a sunny nature she had.
