Nowhere Near Respectable (8 page)
Read Nowhere Near Respectable Online
Authors: Mary Jo Putney
Kiri shook her head. “No, Adam trusts Murphy’s judgment. He’s guaranteed Murphy employment for life for his aid in the past.”
“That’s all right, then. We can tell Adam and Mariah the next day. I doubt they’ll tell our parents.”
“The next question is where to get dominos. I don’t have one.” Kiri glanced ruefully at her divided skirt, which needed more than a good brushing to look proper. “Since I ran off from Kent without my baggage and I can’t get clothing from home until the measles pass, I can’t go in society unless I’m completely covered by a domino.”
“I can borrow my parents’ dominos. Since you’re tall, you can wear my father’s.” Sarah was beaming. “This will be such an adventure!”
Kiri made a face, thinking of Lady Agnes’s words. “I have discovered that adventures aren’t much fun when they’re happening.”
“Being kidnapped by ruffians would be too much of an adventure,” the other girl agreed. “Attending a masquerade at a racy but safe club is a proper size adventure. Apart from perhaps a gentleman stealing a kiss, what could go wrong?”
Kiri could think of a number of things that might go wrong, but surely Sarah was right in this case. She’d repay Mackenzie, banish his lingering image from her imagination, and have an amusing evening.
Racy, but safe.
Chapter 10
Kiri peeked into her wardrobe to enjoy the sight of her domino. All had gone according to plan, with Sarah coming to stay and bringing her parents’ dominos in her baggage. Tonight was the night of the masquerade, and they were both brimming with excitement. A nice, safe adventure, and for Kiri, a legitimate reason to see Mackenzie.
Needing to think of something else, Kiri settled at her desk to write letters. Her industry was interrupted by a tap at the door. She called permission to enter, and the butler, Holmes, appeared.
“There is a gentleman here to see you, Lady Kiri. He won’t give his name, but he appears most respectable.” There was a note of disapproval in the butler’s voice at the visitor’s refusal to identify himself. “He is in the small receiving room.”
Kiri’s heart leaped. Mackenzie! Had he spent the past two days thinking about her as she’d been thinking about him? More likely he just wanted his money back. Keeping her voice even, she said, “I believe I know his identity, so I shall see him.”
Before going down, she glanced regretfully in the mirror. Her hair was neat, but her limited wardrobe meant that she was wearing a plain green morning gown that she’d left at Ashton House before she went down to Kent.
Reminding herself that Mackenzie had seen her look worse, she descended the stairs. Trying not to look too eager, she swept into the receiving room—and found the Honorable Godfrey Hitchcock, who looked so blond and handsome that she remembered why she’d considered marrying him.
Kiri froze, torn between snarling Hindi curses and stalking out. She had one hand on the doorknob and was on the verge of escape when Godfrey exclaimed, “Please, Lady Kiri! Tell me what I did wrong!” He drew a step closer. “I thought we were reaching an understanding. Then you were gone, leaving me a note to hunt another fortune. Yes, my portion is not the equal of yours, but I’m no pauper, and we both knew that. What changed? If I offended you in some way, give me a chance to correct my error!”
She didn’t leave, but her voice was cold when she said, “You came all the way from Kent to say that?”
“You requested that your baggage be sent here, so I decided to deliver it myself. It’s being unloaded from my carriage now.” Godfrey’s blue eyes were worried. “But I also needed to talk to you. I want very much to understand what happened.”
He was either a magnificent liar, or genuinely unaware of his mother’s views, though it was hard to believe the latter. “I decided we would not suit, so staying longer would be awkward,” Kiri said. “It seemed simplest to leave.”
“So awkward that you commandeered a horse and rode off in late afternoon with a storm coming?” He shook his head, unconvinced. “We’d had such an enjoyable day. I was ready to offer for you, and you seemed willing to listen. But even if you decided to say no, I’m sure you could refuse me so gently that there would be no awkwardness. Instead, you ran off as if pursued by demons.”
She sighed, thinking he was more perceptive than she’d given him credit for. “Do you truly want to know? I doubt the knowledge will make you happy.”
“I am not happy now,” he said tightly. “If you explain, at least I will understand.”
“Very well. After our ride, I stopped by the morning room to tell your mother that I would accept her invitation to stay longer,” Kiri said. “I was considering your offer, but thought we needed to spend more time together.”
“Surely she didn’t withdraw her invitation for you to stay longer,” Godfrey said, puzzled. “She was most hopeful that you would accept me.”
“Because of my dowry,” Kiri said bitterly. “I was about to enter the morning room when I overheard your mother conversing with your aunt, Lady Shrimpton. They said . . .” She hesitated, feeling the painful words in her viscera.
“They said what?”
Kiri took a deep breath. “That I was a vulgar foreign slut barely redeemed by my dowry. Good enough for an expensive younger son. Such a mercy that your older brothers had sons so future Lord Norlands wouldn’t be tainted by my Hindu blood.”
Godfrey gasped, but Kiri continued inexorably, “That was bad enough, but what they said about my mother was . . . unforgivable. I knew I had to leave immediately, or I would start smashing china. Civility was not possible. Now do you understand?”
Godfrey looked ill. “I can’t believe my mother would say such things!”
“Can you really not believe it?” Kiri said in a hard voice.
He started to speak, then shook his head. “She is . . . very old-fashioned in many ways. Very proud of the family bloodlines. But I thought she liked you. You are a beautiful, vibrant girl who can charm the stones from the fields. Your lineage is better than mine, and naturally a good dowry is appreciated.” He swallowed hard. “Perhaps because I wanted her to welcome you into our family, I didn’t see anything else.”
“She would welcome my dowry. No doubt she would have been civil to me until the day she became angry, or drank too much sherry, and explained how much she despised me.” Kiri turned back to the door. “I regret telling you this, but you did ask.”
“Don’t leave yet,” he pleaded. “I swear that I do not share my mother’s prejudice. Will you try to believe that?”
She remembered the very enjoyable kisses they’d shared. Was he free of prejudice, or was it that he desired her enough to overlook her heritage? Some of both, perhaps. Even he probably didn’t know for sure. “I accept your word,” she said, wanting to end the unpleasant scene. “Now there is nothing left to be said. Good-bye, Godfrey.”
“So the sins of my mother are to be visited on me?” There was real pain in his eyes. “It is me you would marry, not my mother. We need have nothing to do with her.”
He was sincere, she thought, but when she looked at Godfrey, she saw a boy, not a man. In the last days, she’d realized that she wanted a man. “A marriage joins families almost as much as it joins a man and a woman. I will not marry into a family that doesn’t want me, nor do I wish for you to be estranged from your own mother.” She held out a hand. “Go in peace, Godfrey.”
He held her hand, squeezing it for a long moment before releasing her. “Thank you for your honesty and graciousness, Lady Kiri. I’m sorry you were hurt by my mother’s narrow-mindedness.”
She shrugged. “I’m grateful that the countess’s true feelings were revealed before it was too late.”
He sighed, but inclined his head in agreement before he left. It was only a matter of time until he found a nice blond English girl who would suit his family. Kiri returned to her room and found a maid unpacking the luggage Godfrey had delivered.
Kiri smiled wryly. At least she now had more clothes to wear.
Sarah gasped as she stared up at the glittering dome that arched over the club’s ballroom. “Damian’s is everything I’ve heard, and more!”
Kiri agreed. Even for someone who had experienced sumptuous Hindu temples, Mackenzie’s club was dazzling. The ballroom was a great circular chamber topped by the flamboyantly painted dome and lit by a vast, sparkling gas chandelier. Kiri had seen some of the new gas streetlights, but this was the first gaslit building she’d been in.
The masquerade was in full swing and the ballroom was crowded with laughing, chattering guests. Some treated the dominos as cloaks that swept back over their shoulders to show off rich garments and jewels. Others, like Kiri and Sarah, concealed themselves in the voluminous hooded dominos and half masks.
Sarah had tied back her hair so no bright curls could hint at her identity. Kiri wore a divided skirt and boots. The boots were barely visible below the hem of her black domino, but combined with her height, she could be thought male. The two of them looked like a couple, which was preferable to appearing like two females on the prowl.
After entering the ballroom, they took positions by one curving wall while they studied the scene. Arched doorways led to connecting chambers that were used for gaming or refreshments. Kiri tapped her foot to the music, played by musicians on a balcony above. The music, like everything in Damian’s, was top quality.
Men dressed in black evening wear, masked but without dominos, circulated through the rooms carrying trays of champagne glasses. All were strong-looking fellows. Kiri guessed their jobs included preventing unpleasantness as well as serving champagne.
Was one of them Mackenzie? She didn’t think so. None had quite the right build, or the right way of moving. Though perhaps she was fooling herself to think she would recognize Mackenzie in this crowd of masqueraders.
A gentleman approached them and made a sweeping bow in front of Sarah. In a young, playful voice, he asked, “Will you dance with me, fair lady?”
He sounded like a boy down from Oxford and as delighted by the occasion as Kiri and Sarah. Not a threat. Sarah glanced at Kiri, who gave a nod.
They had discussed this in advance. Sarah’s domino was dark blue rather than the more usual black, her mask glittered with sequins, and she carried a whistle to blow if she ran into trouble. The sound would bring Kiri running, and perhaps offer a chance to use her Kalarippayattu. Or else the knife she’d taken from the smuggler, which was now tucked into a sheath on her forearm.
She doubted weapons would be needed, though, given how well run this masquerade was. A few couples shared heated kisses, but she saw nothing else untoward.
They’d arranged to meet in the entrance foyer a quarter hour before midnight so they could leave before the unmasking. Murphy, the Ashton groom, had raised his brows when Kiri asked if he would bring them to Damian’s, but he said they’d be safe here. He would have the closed carriage at the door just before midnight.
And if they didn’t come out by midnight, Murphy said he’d come in and get them. He would, too. As a former soldier, he was a good protector for their night out.
With Sarah happily dancing with her mystery man, Kiri began to explore, looking for Mackenzie while admiring her extravagant surroundings. The scene wasn’t too different from a grand ball in a private home, but the masks and dominos made a difference. The atmosphere held breathless mystery because anyone might be here. Handsome strangers, or friends transformed into strangers. Great lords, wicked ladies—or respectable ladies like Sarah Clarke-Townsend, who yearned for a bit of naughtiness.
Three rooms led off the ballroom, two for gambling and the other equipped with a massive buffet and supper tables. When she entered the left-hand gaming room, a black-clad servant approached to offer her champagne. She accepted a flute with thanks, lowering her voice to make her gender ambiguous.
Sipping slowly, Kiri continued to stroll, absorbing the atmosphere with all her senses. In particular, she used her sense of smell. She had the fragrance equivalent of perfect pitch in music, which was a great asset to a perfumer. She could recognize and identify complex scents, and usually duplicate them in her laboratory.
On occasions like this, she’d learned to block out the usual scents, which might have been overpowering otherwise. But she enjoyed trying to identify the fragrances worn by the other guests. It was easy to pick out the common perfumes, like eau de Cologne and French violet and Hungary water.
More challenging was to discern the subtle shifts that occurred from wearing the perfumes. For example, on some people Hungary water shifted toward lavender or mint. On others, the citrus notes were more pronounced.
She wrinkled her nose when she passed a woman who smelled of rancid chypre. Some poor unfortunates really shouldn’t wear perfume at all because something about their bodies turned even the finest fragrances sour.
As she entered the dining room, another guest bumped into her, spilling a glass of champagne onto Kiri. “I’m so sorry!” The speaker’s voice was that of a well-bred but flustered girl. She wore a purple domino so dark it was almost black. Though her perfume was a custom blend of expensive ingredients, it was clumsily composed and too heavy for a young girl. Perhaps she’d borrowed her mother’s perfume.
“No matter,” Kiri said in her normal voice, thinking a female voice would be less alarming to her. “A little spilled champagne won’t show on a black domino.”
“You are gracious.” The girl’s eyes sparkled even behind her mask. “Isn’t this all wonderfully exciting? I like that I can talk to someone without being introduced!”
“It feels very free,” Kiri agreed. “This is my first visit to Damian’s.”
“Mine, too!” The girl seemed delighted to have found a fellow newcomer.
Kiri was glad Damian’s was safe, because the girl seemed so naive that she might fall into trouble in a less well-regulated environment. They chatted a few more minutes, then went their separate ways, Kiri to check on Sarah, with the girl in the purple domino out to acquire more champagne and sample the lobster patties.
Kiri looked for Sarah, and saw that her friend was laughing as she danced, clearly having a good time. Still no sign of Mackenzie. Kiri had hoped to hand over the heavy pouch of gold guineas slung under her domino. Even more than repaying her debt, she wanted to satisfy her curiosity.
But first she had to find the blasted man.
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