permission to take Honey driving.
Lady Canon thought quickly. She did not want to encourage Captain Jocelyn. On the other hand, it would not do to make things too easy for Lord Channington, and so she smiled and gave her permission. Having got what he came for, Captain Jocelyn took his leave.
Lord Channington thoughtfully watched him go. He decided he must find some way of getting rid of this young captain before Honey’s affections became seriously engaged.
He turned to Honey and carefully began to extract a list of her social engagements for the next few days, although Honey had to appeal to her aunt several times, not quite knowing what Lady Canon had planned for her.
Lord Channington found she was to attend Almack’s the following night and begged for the first waltz, but Lady Canon pointed out that Honey had not yet been to Almack’s and therefore had not obtained permission from the patronesses to dance the waltz.
Honey smiled and promised him the first country dance instead. Soon her other admirers arrived. Lady Canon had put it about that she meant to leave Honey her fortune in her will, and so now Honey had everything necessary to secure her success. Lord Alistair’s remarks still rankled, and so Honey played to that unseen audience, that missing lord, as she flirted to a nicety, still managing nonetheless to eat as much as she could without Lady Canon’s noticing.
And yet, Honey had been so sure Lord Alistair would call if only to give her another set down. But every time her thoughts strayed toward him, Lord Channington was at her elbow with another warming compliment. She found herself growing increasingly attracted to him and regretted her promise to go driving with Captain Jocelyn.
Lord Channington, like the expert seducer he was, had quite persuaded himself he was head over heels in love with Honey.
After he took his leave, he set out to track down Captain Jocelyn, and by dint of finding out that young man’s lodgings, he set himself to watch his movements as carefully as a cat watches a mouse.
So it was, on the following day, two hours before Captain Jocelyn was to take Honey driving, that he found himself accosted by Lord Channington in a coffee house in St. James’s.
Captain Jocelyn was flattered at the earl’s attention and readily agreed to share a bottle of wine with him.
Since Lord Channington was obviously enamored of Honey, Captain Jocelyn felt it would be rude to point out that his own interest in Miss Honeyford was simply to further his own ends with respect to Miss Wetherall.
The captain was touched and amused to find Honey being hailed as the toast of London society, but politely drank to Honey’s eyes. Somehow the first bottle of wine was quickly followed by the second. And a third. The toasts went on… to the King, to the regiment, confusion to the French, and so on, until the poor captain’s head began to reel.
Then, all at once, through a groggy fog, Captain Jocelyn heard Lord Channington reminding him of his appointment with Honey. He leaped to his feet, muttering a hasty good-bye, and staggered around to the livery stables to collect the rented carriage he had bespoken the day before.
Lord Channington smiled ruefully down at the large puddle of wine at his feet. Most of the glasses of wine he had raised in a toast and then lowered under the table and spilled amid the sawdust and oyster shells.
It would be fun to go to the Park and see the drunken captain disgracing himself in Miss Honeyford’s eyes.
Captain Jocelyn was a full quarter of an hour late arriving in Charles Street. In his blurred and fogged mind, he had been expecting the hoydenish Honey of Kelidon, and had to blink several times before he recognized the vision who was awaiting him—a vision who was studying him with some amusement.
Honey was wearing a carriage dress, a rich cardinal cloak of white satin stamped with small blue flowers and ornamented around the edge with an Egyptian border. Under it,
Lady Canon thought quickly. She did not want to encourage Captain Jocelyn. On the other hand, it would not do to make things too easy for Lord Channington, and so she smiled and gave her permission. Having got what he came for, Captain Jocelyn took his leave.
Lord Channington thoughtfully watched him go. He decided he must find some way of getting rid of this young captain before Honey’s affections became seriously engaged.
He turned to Honey and carefully began to extract a list of her social engagements for the next few days, although Honey had to appeal to her aunt several times, not quite knowing what Lady Canon had planned for her.
Lord Channington found she was to attend Almack’s the following night and begged for the first waltz, but Lady Canon pointed out that Honey had not yet been to Almack’s and therefore had not obtained permission from the patronesses to dance the waltz.
Honey smiled and promised him the first country dance instead. Soon her other admirers arrived. Lady Canon had put it about that she meant to leave Honey her fortune in her will, and so now Honey had everything necessary to secure her success. Lord Alistair’s remarks still rankled, and so Honey played to that unseen audience, that missing lord, as she flirted to a nicety, still managing nonetheless to eat as much as she could without Lady Canon’s noticing.
And yet, Honey had been so sure Lord Alistair would call if only to give her another set down. But every time her thoughts strayed toward him, Lord Channington was at her elbow with another warming compliment. She found herself growing increasingly attracted to him and regretted her promise to go driving with Captain Jocelyn.
Lord Channington, like the expert seducer he was, had quite persuaded himself he was head over heels in love with Honey.
After he took his leave, he set out to track down Captain Jocelyn, and by dint of finding out that young man’s lodgings, he set himself to watch his movements as carefully as a cat watches a mouse.
So it was, on the following day, two hours before Captain Jocelyn was to take Honey driving, that he found himself accosted by Lord Channington in a coffee house in St. James’s.
Captain Jocelyn was flattered at the earl’s attention and readily agreed to share a bottle of wine with him.
Since Lord Channington was obviously enamored of Honey, Captain Jocelyn felt it would be rude to point out that his own interest in Miss Honeyford was simply to further his own ends with respect to Miss Wetherall.
The captain was touched and amused to find Honey being hailed as the toast of London society, but politely drank to Honey’s eyes. Somehow the first bottle of wine was quickly followed by the second. And a third. The toasts went on… to the King, to the regiment, confusion to the French, and so on, until the poor captain’s head began to reel.
Then, all at once, through a groggy fog, Captain Jocelyn heard Lord Channington reminding him of his appointment with Honey. He leaped to his feet, muttering a hasty good-bye, and staggered around to the livery stables to collect the rented carriage he had bespoken the day before.
Lord Channington smiled ruefully down at the large puddle of wine at his feet. Most of the glasses of wine he had raised in a toast and then lowered under the table and spilled amid the sawdust and oyster shells.
It would be fun to go to the Park and see the drunken captain disgracing himself in Miss Honeyford’s eyes.
Captain Jocelyn was a full quarter of an hour late arriving in Charles Street. In his blurred and fogged mind, he had been expecting the hoydenish Honey of Kelidon, and had to blink several times before he recognized the vision who was awaiting him—a vision who was studying him with some amusement.
Honey was wearing a carriage dress, a rich cardinal cloak of white satin stamped with small blue flowers and ornamented around the edge with an Egyptian border. Under it,