One More Kiss by Mary Blayney Page B

seat their party of ten was elegantly laid. A large branch of some flowering tree—which Beatrice was sure that Cecilia could name—ran the length of the table as the centerpiece. Very unconventional but in keeping with the theme. Small figurines, the tiniest of boys and girls—madefrom some type of clay, Beatrice supposed—were placed in various poses along the branch.
    Every one of the countess’s guests, even Beatrice’s pragmatic father, expressed delight at the charmed setting, though Beatrice wondered if she was the only one who did not see how the food could arrive warm. They were a significant distance from the house and, perforce, the kitchen.
    “How long before one of the gentlemen fiddles with those innocent-looking figures and puts them in a not-so-innocent pose?” Beatrice whispered to her sister as they waited to be seated.
    Cecilia pressed her lips together for a moment. “Do be quiet, Beatrice.” Cecilia turned to their father. “Papa, wasn’t it clever of the countess to contrive this gem and also to give us all a topic of conversation?”
    “Yes, it was,” Beatrice answered for him. “I was just asking Cecilia”—Ceci stepped on her foot, and despite the flash of pain, Beatrice ignored the warning and kept on talking—“what she thought the table fairies were made of. Do you think spun sugar or clay?”
    “It hardly matters, does it?” Papa looked impressed. “The countess is an amazingly talented woman, a veritable magician, is she not? Excuse me, girls. I want to tell her how lovely this is.” He did not wait for an answer but made his way to the countess’s side.
    Cecilia and Beatrice looked at each other in some confusion. Papa so rarely was effusive in his praise. “Of course, he is so very grateful to the countess for her kindness to us,” Ceci offered.
    “That’s one explanation” was as close to agreement as Beatrice would allow.
    The table seating was not as random as the progressto the summerhouse had been. The countess had Lord Destry to her right, but instead of the Earl of Belmont on her left, as was proper etiquette, she had given that seat to Mr. Brent.
    Lord Belmont sat at the foot of the table with Miss Wilson on his left, taking the place of honor her mother would have been given if she had not been ill. That change led to Beatrice’s being seated next to Lord Jess. Beatrice was delighted with this seating arrangement before recalling that he had snubbed her not twenty minutes ago.
    Mrs. Kendrick was seated on the other side of Lord Jess. Across from her and next to Miss Wilson were Lord Crenshaw and then Cecilia, which put her twin between Lord Crenshaw and the marquis, Lord Destry.
    Beatrice watched her sister. The marquis was an unknown, but Lord Crenshaw was an acquaintance of a year’s standing. Beatrice was sure Cecilia was nervous but equally certain that her sister was well prepared for this modest challenge.
    Before she could turn to the Earl of Belmont, Lord Jess bent to her. “Miss Brent, do you see that one of the little people on the branch is wearing spectacles?”
    Beatrice looked in the direction he indicated and saw that he was not teasing. Next to the miniature in spectacles was another little person holding a dog and talking to a gentleman wearing a red kerchief.
    “Why, she has each one of us represented. I wonder where Ceci and Papa are?” She looked up and down the table as the other members of the party made the same delighted discovery.
    “After dinner, the fairies will be moved to the mantelin the Square Salon, where we will meet later so that you can admire them. Please feel free to take your fairy as a favor and a reminder of this party.” The countess’s face showed how much pleasure she took in this scheme.
    Lord Jess leaned over and touched the figure with the spectacles. “I imagine some of us might like to have someone else’s fairy as a token.”
    Beatrice shook her head and then said exactly what she was thinking.