Page 28

“I very much look forward to it,” the countess said, placing a hand on her stomach.

Mrs. Smith bustled into the room, her face flushed. Though whether from pleasure or tension, Jason couldn’t be sure. The moment she spied Lenora, she made directly for her.

“I wondered where you’d disappeared to,” she said. “Lady Diana and Miss Larkins said they’d last seen you leaving the drawing room with Captain Steele.”

The quintessence of ladylike serenity, Lenora smiled up at her mother. “Indeed, Mama. Lady Darlington-Pope wished to speak with me.”

So had Jason, but she’d omitted that particular.

“Of course, she did,” Mrs. Smith acknowledged with maternal pride. “Reporters for The Courier, The London Chronicle, and The Star have left their cards. They wish to interview you.” Her gaze gravitated to Grandmother. “Likely you as well, my lady.”

“I have no interest in speaking to those truth twisters,” Grandmother scoffed. “Reporters rarely report the facts. Omissions and calculated slants are more up their nefarious, self-serving alleys. Unless, of course, they can cause a bit of ruination by printing rumors and on dit.”

Grandmother was not a fan of newspapers or gossip sheets, as she called them.

“I’d prefer you didn’t either, Lenora.” Keyworth rubbed beneath his eye with a bent knuckle. “The attention mightn’t all be complimentary.”

“La, it’s far too late for that,” Lady Clutterbuck trilled, fluttering her hands.

So absorbed in Lenora, Jason had all but forgotten the woman sitting across from her and his grandmother.

“There was an article printed in The Morning Post today written by an eyewitness,” Lady Clutterbuck gloated.

Likely one of the cowards who’d refused to lend Lenora assistance.

Several people floated nearer, and many who didn’t regarded them with keen interest.

Lady Clutterbuck preened under the attention now fixed on her. Eyes bright and mouth prim, she perused her rapt audience. “The accompanying drawing is most…” She crumpled her doughy face as she searched for an appropriate term. “Unflattering.”

“How so?” Keyworth asked the two words in a tone as cold and sharp as fresh-cut marble. Evidently, he did not subscribe to The Morning Post. It wasn't terribly surprising with a dozen or more other newssheets available.

“Well…” Lady Clutterbuck said with the dramatic air of a seasoned actress, “Miss Audsley is shown in a state of dishabille.” She shifted her hungry gaze toward Jason, giving him a bold appraisal. “Captain Steele appears to be leering at her nearly exposed bosom.”