good looks and dashing grace of Lord Nicholas Faringdon.
Had Lady Drusilla but known it, the matter had progressed much further than even she had believed. Lord Nicholas had organised an evening of entertainment and pleasure at Vauxhall Gardens in the form of a masked supper for family and close friends. There would be music and dancing, of course, with an orchestra to play works by Handel in the concert hall during supper. A simple enough meal with champagne and punch and the specialities of the Gardens—cold chicken and wafer-thin slices of ham, all partaken in a private supper box, hired for the occasion. A most tasteful and unexceptional occasion.
Thea was both amused and entranced, never before having visited Vauxhall with its exotic attractions. She declared the enticing groves, the maze of secluded alleys and the secret arbours and grottoes to have great charm.
‘The darkness lends enchantment, I fear.’ Lord Nicholas smiled at her obvious enjoyment. And her delectable appearance. Her gown was covered by a shimmering domino of silver silk tissue, a matching silver mask covering her face, but with no pretence at disguise. Nor for Lord Nicholas, his evening rig cloaked in severe and elegant black.
‘You are too cynical, sir. And superior. I like it very well. It reminds me of one of Mrs Radcliffe’s Gothic novels. All the caves and waterfalls. I have never seen so many temples and pavilions and rotundas, all in one place, in my life. Even you must admit to the lamps in the trees being very pretty, my lord.’
‘I will admit nothing.’
‘I suppose that you prefer the rustic and natural delights ofyour manor at Aymestry.’ Thea angled a glance in arched enquiry, having heard something of the delights of Lord Nicholas’s home.
‘Perhaps I do.’
‘I would wish to see it.’ Her gaze within its silver frame remained steady on his.
‘And I would wish to show it to you.’ A little silence lengthened between them, until Nicholas took himself in hand. ‘But that aside, the lights here hide a multitude of sins.’
‘Perhaps. But I will not allow you to spoil the evening by drawing attention to it!’
He hesitated again, the length of a breath. ‘I would not wish to do so. That would never be my intent.’
‘I know it.’ And although she spread her fan with a flirtatious turn of her wrist, he could not mistake the solemn appraisal in her eyes, before she turned to answer a query from Lady Beatrice, formidable if incongruous in her deep purple domino.
After supper the younger members of the party dispersed to stroll down the lamp-lit walks, assuring Lady Beatrice and a reluctant Lady Drusilla that they would most certainly remain within sight and sound of Agnes Drew, their designated chaperon for the occasion. But it was clearly destined for Lord Nicholas to draw Miss Wooton-Devereux’s hand through his arm, just as it was astonishingly easy for them to lose their companions in the deeply shadowed pathways.
‘Which do you prefer, lady. Dark Walk or Druids Walk?’ he enquired as they came to a parting of the ways.
‘Definitely Druids. Do you think we might see some after all these hundreds of years? Lurking in the groves of Vauxhall with their oak leaves and mistletoe.’
‘I doubt it—but let us try.’ He guided her along the appropriate path.
‘But we may hear nightingales, I expect.’ She slanted a look.
‘I have arranged it specially for you, lady.’
He sensed her smile in the darkness. They strolled in silence for some little way.
‘It appears that we have lost our companions,’ Theodora commented.
‘So it would seem.’ Nicholas came to a halt and turned to face her. ‘Your mama would not approve.’
‘No. She would not.’ It did not seem to trouble Theodora unduly.
The night enclosed them in deep silence, the scents of earth and flowers, soft but intense. Every sense was heightened. Nicholas could catch the perfume that Theodora wore, was supremely aware of the light
Had Lady Drusilla but known it, the matter had progressed much further than even she had believed. Lord Nicholas had organised an evening of entertainment and pleasure at Vauxhall Gardens in the form of a masked supper for family and close friends. There would be music and dancing, of course, with an orchestra to play works by Handel in the concert hall during supper. A simple enough meal with champagne and punch and the specialities of the Gardens—cold chicken and wafer-thin slices of ham, all partaken in a private supper box, hired for the occasion. A most tasteful and unexceptional occasion.
Thea was both amused and entranced, never before having visited Vauxhall with its exotic attractions. She declared the enticing groves, the maze of secluded alleys and the secret arbours and grottoes to have great charm.
‘The darkness lends enchantment, I fear.’ Lord Nicholas smiled at her obvious enjoyment. And her delectable appearance. Her gown was covered by a shimmering domino of silver silk tissue, a matching silver mask covering her face, but with no pretence at disguise. Nor for Lord Nicholas, his evening rig cloaked in severe and elegant black.
‘You are too cynical, sir. And superior. I like it very well. It reminds me of one of Mrs Radcliffe’s Gothic novels. All the caves and waterfalls. I have never seen so many temples and pavilions and rotundas, all in one place, in my life. Even you must admit to the lamps in the trees being very pretty, my lord.’
‘I will admit nothing.’
‘I suppose that you prefer the rustic and natural delights ofyour manor at Aymestry.’ Thea angled a glance in arched enquiry, having heard something of the delights of Lord Nicholas’s home.
‘Perhaps I do.’
‘I would wish to see it.’ Her gaze within its silver frame remained steady on his.
‘And I would wish to show it to you.’ A little silence lengthened between them, until Nicholas took himself in hand. ‘But that aside, the lights here hide a multitude of sins.’
‘Perhaps. But I will not allow you to spoil the evening by drawing attention to it!’
He hesitated again, the length of a breath. ‘I would not wish to do so. That would never be my intent.’
‘I know it.’ And although she spread her fan with a flirtatious turn of her wrist, he could not mistake the solemn appraisal in her eyes, before she turned to answer a query from Lady Beatrice, formidable if incongruous in her deep purple domino.
After supper the younger members of the party dispersed to stroll down the lamp-lit walks, assuring Lady Beatrice and a reluctant Lady Drusilla that they would most certainly remain within sight and sound of Agnes Drew, their designated chaperon for the occasion. But it was clearly destined for Lord Nicholas to draw Miss Wooton-Devereux’s hand through his arm, just as it was astonishingly easy for them to lose their companions in the deeply shadowed pathways.
‘Which do you prefer, lady. Dark Walk or Druids Walk?’ he enquired as they came to a parting of the ways.
‘Definitely Druids. Do you think we might see some after all these hundreds of years? Lurking in the groves of Vauxhall with their oak leaves and mistletoe.’
‘I doubt it—but let us try.’ He guided her along the appropriate path.
‘But we may hear nightingales, I expect.’ She slanted a look.
‘I have arranged it specially for you, lady.’
He sensed her smile in the darkness. They strolled in silence for some little way.
‘It appears that we have lost our companions,’ Theodora commented.
‘So it would seem.’ Nicholas came to a halt and turned to face her. ‘Your mama would not approve.’
‘No. She would not.’ It did not seem to trouble Theodora unduly.
The night enclosed them in deep silence, the scents of earth and flowers, soft but intense. Every sense was heightened. Nicholas could catch the perfume that Theodora wore, was supremely aware of the light
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