The Secret Mistress by Mary Balogh Page B

in his dancing shoes as soon ashis eyes alit upon the sniveling coward from the Rose and Crown, Edward thought ruefully. And this really
was not
his business. Or Eunice’s. He did not want her within fifty feet of Windrow.
    But she had taken his arm and was drawing him purposefully along with her in the direction of the supper room.
    A FTER THE FIRST set Angeline danced with two young gentlemen and one older one—a marquess, no less—before it came time for the supper dance. She had enjoyed every moment, even the labored and florid compliments the marquess had seemed to feel obliged to press upon her while his breath came in increasingly audible gasps and his corsets creaked. She had enjoyed too the brief intervals between sets when she had been able to speak with other guests. She had spent a few animated minutes with Lady Martha Hamelin and Maria Smith-Benn, the outcome of which was that they were to visit Hookham’s Library together the next day.
    She had two new friends.
    She hoped—oh,
how
she hoped—that the Earl of Heyward would ask her for the supper dance. She knew it was unexceptionable for a gentleman to dance with a lady twice in one evening—Cousin Rosalie had told her so. It must be rare, though, at a girl’s come-out ball, when everyone wished to dance with her, especially if she was rich and well connected. And she knew that Lord Heyward did not approve of her. Good heavens, could she blame him? She had called him
stuffy
, albeit in an affectionate way. He may not have detected the affection, however, which was perhaps just as well. And he knew that her accident had been deliberate. He believed she had done it because she was embarrassed to be seen dancing with him.
    Anyway, she
hoped
. It would be the loveliest ending to the loveliest day of her life if she could dance—no, stroll on the terrace with him and then sit with him at supper. Perhaps she would have a chance to redeem herself somewhat in his eyes. She must think in advance of some sensible subject upon which she could conversewith him. Had she read any good books lately? At all? She
could
tell him that she was going to take out a subscription at the library tomorrow because she was feeling
starved
of good reading material and could he recommend anything that she might not already have read?
    And then a double disappointment set in, though actually one of them was more in the way of being an outrage than a disappointment. First she watched Lord Heyward return his last partner to her mama’s side and then begin his journey about the perimeter of the ballroom in her direction. He stopped along the way, though, to talk to a group of ladies, and when he moved away from them a minute or so later, he had one of them—the youngest—on his arm and proceeded to lead
her
out onto the terrace.
    Angeline did not know the lady, though she did remember greeting her in the receiving line. It was impossible to remember every name that had been announced, or even most. Or even
some
, for that matter. She had remembered Maria Smith-Benn’s name and Lady Martha Hamelin’s because she had met and liked both at the palace earlier. And she had remembered the names of the Earl of Heyward, of course, and the Countess of Heyward and the dowager. And Cousin Leonard, Lord Fenner, because he was Rosalie’s brother and Angeline must have met him at Rosalie’s wedding all those years ago. And there were a couple of Ferdinand’s friends who had been riding with him this morning and whose names she had recalled this evening without prompting. And that was about it. She must make more of an effort in the coming days. She must try to memorize one name each day. No, better make that ten names.
    Was it possible?
    And then came the other great disappointment hot on the heels of the first—or, rather, the
outrage
. It came sauntering along in company with Tresham and stopped before her, and there was Lord Windrow, smiling warmly as if he had never in his life set eyes