eyes away, mentally castigating himself for allowing even the hint of such a tempting possibility to invade his mind. As if he didn’t have more than enough on his plate with which to deal! He let out a sigh, realising that, even with the full weight of his grandmother’s determination behind the scheme, this whole affair appeared to be turning out to be an uphill battle—and in a good many more ways than one!
Thankfully, the line of visitors was, at last, reaching its end and, having correctly interpreted a signal from the countess, Richard moved to her side and was informed that, since the most important of their guests had already arrived, it was now time for them to start circulating.
‘And do make sure that you stick close to Helena,’ she exhorted him, under her breath. ‘The word needs to get around that you and she are on the verge of forming a romantic liaison. Especially now that everyone has had the opportunity to take a good look at her, for the last thing we want is to have some aspiring fortune-hunter attaching himself to the gel!’
‘As if one had not already done so!’ Richard murmured drily.
‘Fiddlesticks!’ returned his grandmother, rapping him sharply on the wrist with her fan. ‘Our case is entirely different and well you know it!’
This, as far as Richard was concerned, was a rather moot point but, since there was little to be gained by prolonging the argument, he kept his silence, and followed the ladies across the hallway into the first of the two reception rooms.
As she crossed the threshold of the chamber, Helena was unable to prevent the gasp of wonder that escaped her lips. She was sure that she had never, in her whole life, seen so much brightness in one room. Four huge crystal chandeliers hung fromthe ceiling, each holding more than thirty wax candles. Ornate oil lamps hung at regular intervals all around the walls and, everywhere she looked, there were flowers. Small tables groaned under the weight of great urns filled with hot-house roses, lilies and carnations and, if this were not more than enough, there were four marble pillars reaching to the ceiling, each of them wound with garlands of ivy and rosebuds. Looking to the far end of the room, whose interconnecting doors had been drawn back to allow access into a second reception room, she was stunned to see that this room appeared to be larger, and even more sumptuously decorated than the first and from which, it seemed likely, access to the lantern-lit rear terrace and gardens could be gained. Gathering all her courage, she reached out and, giving Lottie’s hand a little squeeze, she raised her chin and entered the room.
The waiting guests had gathered themselves into their usual groups of preference and, although they had quite happily passed the time exchanging the latest on dits with one another—whilst imbibing copious quantities of a rapidly dwindling supply of champagne—they were, all of them, equally curious to determine what manner of person this recently acquired ‘daughter of a godchild’—as her ladyship had described Helena—would turn out to be. Needless to say, it had occasioned the countess, with her infallible instinct as to the workings of the minds of her fellow peers, very little difficulty to ensure that rumours of her grandson’s romantic attachment to her newly discovered ‘relative’ had already been well and truly circulated amongst her most influential connections before she was ready to introduce the girl into society.
Finding herself confronted with such a splendid gathering of the rich and famous was, in the first instance, more than enough to cause Helena a good many flutters of uncertainty. But, never one to resist a challenge and, mindful of her mother’s careful teaching, she pasted on her most beguiling smile, determined not to show any sign of nervousness.
As the evening progressed, still more guests arrived, filling every corner of both reception rooms and, eventually,
Thankfully, the line of visitors was, at last, reaching its end and, having correctly interpreted a signal from the countess, Richard moved to her side and was informed that, since the most important of their guests had already arrived, it was now time for them to start circulating.
‘And do make sure that you stick close to Helena,’ she exhorted him, under her breath. ‘The word needs to get around that you and she are on the verge of forming a romantic liaison. Especially now that everyone has had the opportunity to take a good look at her, for the last thing we want is to have some aspiring fortune-hunter attaching himself to the gel!’
‘As if one had not already done so!’ Richard murmured drily.
‘Fiddlesticks!’ returned his grandmother, rapping him sharply on the wrist with her fan. ‘Our case is entirely different and well you know it!’
This, as far as Richard was concerned, was a rather moot point but, since there was little to be gained by prolonging the argument, he kept his silence, and followed the ladies across the hallway into the first of the two reception rooms.
As she crossed the threshold of the chamber, Helena was unable to prevent the gasp of wonder that escaped her lips. She was sure that she had never, in her whole life, seen so much brightness in one room. Four huge crystal chandeliers hung fromthe ceiling, each holding more than thirty wax candles. Ornate oil lamps hung at regular intervals all around the walls and, everywhere she looked, there were flowers. Small tables groaned under the weight of great urns filled with hot-house roses, lilies and carnations and, if this were not more than enough, there were four marble pillars reaching to the ceiling, each of them wound with garlands of ivy and rosebuds. Looking to the far end of the room, whose interconnecting doors had been drawn back to allow access into a second reception room, she was stunned to see that this room appeared to be larger, and even more sumptuously decorated than the first and from which, it seemed likely, access to the lantern-lit rear terrace and gardens could be gained. Gathering all her courage, she reached out and, giving Lottie’s hand a little squeeze, she raised her chin and entered the room.
The waiting guests had gathered themselves into their usual groups of preference and, although they had quite happily passed the time exchanging the latest on dits with one another—whilst imbibing copious quantities of a rapidly dwindling supply of champagne—they were, all of them, equally curious to determine what manner of person this recently acquired ‘daughter of a godchild’—as her ladyship had described Helena—would turn out to be. Needless to say, it had occasioned the countess, with her infallible instinct as to the workings of the minds of her fellow peers, very little difficulty to ensure that rumours of her grandson’s romantic attachment to her newly discovered ‘relative’ had already been well and truly circulated amongst her most influential connections before she was ready to introduce the girl into society.
Finding herself confronted with such a splendid gathering of the rich and famous was, in the first instance, more than enough to cause Helena a good many flutters of uncertainty. But, never one to resist a challenge and, mindful of her mother’s careful teaching, she pasted on her most beguiling smile, determined not to show any sign of nervousness.
As the evening progressed, still more guests arrived, filling every corner of both reception rooms and, eventually,
Similar Books
