room.
The Earl looked at the letter again for a moment and then put it aside. Dorina stared at him. She was almost certain that the letter had come from Lady Musgrove.
Now he said,
"Splendid. That's settled. We'll have dinner together tonight, and go on with the discussion we were enjoying. There's so much more I want to tell you."
But the door opened and the butler entered again.
"Lady Musgrove is here to see you, my Lord."
The Earl looked up in surprise. Lady Musgrove appeared looking, Dorina noticed, even smarter and more elegant than she had looked when she called before.
"Gerald!" she exclaimed. "I thought we were having luncheon together."
At the same time she held out both her hands towards him.
He rose from the chair and took one of her hands in his saying as he did so,
"This is a surprise. I have only just returned home and I thought, if you hadn't heard from me, you would understand that it was impossible for me to have luncheon with you yesterday."
"But I wanted you to have luncheon with me," she said with an attempt at winsomeness, "as it was my birthday, and you promised a long time ago to spend the day with me."
Dorina knew by the expression on the Earl's face that he had forgotten.
Because she knew it was embarrassing, she slipped out of her chair and walked towards the door.
Even before she reached it, Lady Musgrove was saying,
"How could you have forgotten? I've been counting the days to when we would be together and when we would celebrate what is to me an important occasion."
"I'm sorry, I can only apologise," the Earl was saying as Dorina shut the door.
As she walked towards the office she could not help hoping that he was not deceived by such a woman.
'But suppose he is,' she thought. 'Perhaps he will take her out tonight, instead of me.'
The thought caused a little stab of disappointment in her breast. As Miss Radford she would have been immune from such careless treatment, but as a mere secretary she must learn to accept it.
But she was mostly concerned on his behalf, she told herself firmly. She would be sorry to see such an otherwise admirable man behave so shabbily.
Her disappointment at not sharing an evening with him was nothing to do with it.
Absolutely nothing.
But in a short time she heard the front door open and Lady Musgrove, still talking, depart through it.
After a moment she heard footsteps approaching and Henly looked in to say,
"His Lordship's asked me to tell you to be ready in an hour's time."
Her heart singing, Dorina hurried up to her bedroom.
Celia was there to help her and she gasped as they went through her wardrobe.
"Oh miss, they're so lovely. This pink one – "
"Yes," Dorina said. "I think I'll wear that."
It did not fit with her pose as a secretary, she realised, but then none of her clothes did. It came from Lentheric in Paris and was damask, heavily adorned. The low neck was trimmed with tulle and lace, and the festoons clung deliciously round the hem. It was magnificent.
The Earl was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs, splendidly dressed for the evening. He bowed when he saw her and led her out to the waiting carriage.
As Dorina stepped into it, she thought that nothing would infuriate Lady Musgrove more than if she knew the common secretary to whom she had been so rude, was being taken out by the Earl instead of herself.
It was however something she could not say.
Instead she persuaded the Earl to talk about the races and how he had felt when his horse won.
"The moment I saw that horse at Tattersall's," he said, "I knew it was a winner, although everyone told me it looked too thin and too small."
He laughed as he added,
"Now they'll realise that I'm a judge of horseflesh."
Dorina smiled.
"Every man wants to feel that," she said. "But I'm sure it's the same with a horse as with anything else – when you see a winner you recognise it with your heart rather than your eyes."
The Earl laughed.
Then he said,
"I think that
The Earl looked at the letter again for a moment and then put it aside. Dorina stared at him. She was almost certain that the letter had come from Lady Musgrove.
Now he said,
"Splendid. That's settled. We'll have dinner together tonight, and go on with the discussion we were enjoying. There's so much more I want to tell you."
But the door opened and the butler entered again.
"Lady Musgrove is here to see you, my Lord."
The Earl looked up in surprise. Lady Musgrove appeared looking, Dorina noticed, even smarter and more elegant than she had looked when she called before.
"Gerald!" she exclaimed. "I thought we were having luncheon together."
At the same time she held out both her hands towards him.
He rose from the chair and took one of her hands in his saying as he did so,
"This is a surprise. I have only just returned home and I thought, if you hadn't heard from me, you would understand that it was impossible for me to have luncheon with you yesterday."
"But I wanted you to have luncheon with me," she said with an attempt at winsomeness, "as it was my birthday, and you promised a long time ago to spend the day with me."
Dorina knew by the expression on the Earl's face that he had forgotten.
Because she knew it was embarrassing, she slipped out of her chair and walked towards the door.
Even before she reached it, Lady Musgrove was saying,
"How could you have forgotten? I've been counting the days to when we would be together and when we would celebrate what is to me an important occasion."
"I'm sorry, I can only apologise," the Earl was saying as Dorina shut the door.
As she walked towards the office she could not help hoping that he was not deceived by such a woman.
'But suppose he is,' she thought. 'Perhaps he will take her out tonight, instead of me.'
The thought caused a little stab of disappointment in her breast. As Miss Radford she would have been immune from such careless treatment, but as a mere secretary she must learn to accept it.
But she was mostly concerned on his behalf, she told herself firmly. She would be sorry to see such an otherwise admirable man behave so shabbily.
Her disappointment at not sharing an evening with him was nothing to do with it.
Absolutely nothing.
But in a short time she heard the front door open and Lady Musgrove, still talking, depart through it.
After a moment she heard footsteps approaching and Henly looked in to say,
"His Lordship's asked me to tell you to be ready in an hour's time."
Her heart singing, Dorina hurried up to her bedroom.
Celia was there to help her and she gasped as they went through her wardrobe.
"Oh miss, they're so lovely. This pink one – "
"Yes," Dorina said. "I think I'll wear that."
It did not fit with her pose as a secretary, she realised, but then none of her clothes did. It came from Lentheric in Paris and was damask, heavily adorned. The low neck was trimmed with tulle and lace, and the festoons clung deliciously round the hem. It was magnificent.
The Earl was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs, splendidly dressed for the evening. He bowed when he saw her and led her out to the waiting carriage.
As Dorina stepped into it, she thought that nothing would infuriate Lady Musgrove more than if she knew the common secretary to whom she had been so rude, was being taken out by the Earl instead of herself.
It was however something she could not say.
Instead she persuaded the Earl to talk about the races and how he had felt when his horse won.
"The moment I saw that horse at Tattersall's," he said, "I knew it was a winner, although everyone told me it looked too thin and too small."
He laughed as he added,
"Now they'll realise that I'm a judge of horseflesh."
Dorina smiled.
"Every man wants to feel that," she said. "But I'm sure it's the same with a horse as with anything else – when you see a winner you recognise it with your heart rather than your eyes."
The Earl laughed.
Then he said,
"I think that
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