Free Wicked Nights With a Proper Lady by Tiffany Clare

dowry both these young women had—though Ariel’s was not as grand as Charlotte’s.
    “Miss Camden,” Lady Carleton called over to her, her opal and lace fan wafting cool air against her slightly reddened cheeks. “Do join us. We need a level head to help settle our disagreement.”
    Genny stood from the reposed position she’d assumed for far too long and strode toward the hostess of the party. Lady Carleton’s dress was of fine ivory satin. Simple strands of diamonds wrapped around her neck and wrist, her silvery-blonde hair was pulled up into a twisted chignon and adorned with tall snowy-colored marabou feathers. Her face was aged but still beautiful. Her easy smile had always been a welcome sight, and for some reason Genny was reminded of her mother whenever she looked at Lady Carleton.
    “We need clarification on the events earlier today,” her cousin said, a wicked smile lingering on her lips.
    How much had her cousin said? Better yet, how much had she speculated aloud?
    “I heard,” Ariel piped in, “that Lord Barrington was so bold as to buy you a trinket at the jeweler’s.” The young lady’s fan twitched a little faster with the declaration, as though she couldn’t contain her excitement over a possible scandal.
    If Genny chanced seeing Leo again, she had every intention of thoroughly castigating him for his actions. How dare he act so forward in front of no less than five society misses and their mamas, not to mention Charlotte? And Genny wasn’t sure that Charlotte wouldn’t keep this from her grandmother, which in turn might find its way to Lord Ponsley’s ears. What a muddle she was in.
    Pasting a smile on her face, she made her way into the throng of tittering women all wanting to be the first to know the latest on dit.
    “Oh, no, no,” Genny started to say with a slight shake of her head, eyes wide as though shocked at being the center of gossip. “The trinket was certainly not for me. Can you believe that Lord Barrington thought to consult with me on what he should purchase?”
    Who should she say it was for? Even if the trinket was for his friend, it was still inappropriate for him to have been so forward. To have insisted she remove her hat and try them on herself. Not to mention the slight touches he’d stolen. With a great deal of agitation, she flicked her fan open to cool her cheeks. She refused to blush. Refused to think of his touch and the way it made her skin tingle in awareness.
    His liberties had been so glancing she almost thought them a figment of her imagination and wanted nothing more than to convince herself that she was mistaken.
    “It was for a female relation of his. He thought I might be able to aid him in picking out something simple.” She wasn’t sure why she had lied, but it had seemed important to do so.
    “He didn’t dare insult you so!” This voiced concern came from Ariel’s mother, Lady Hargrove.
    Whatever gossip these ladies thought to speculate on where Genny and Barrington were concerned … it stopped now.
    Genny would not allow herself to be distracted by a man ever again. Genny would much rather this group of ladies pity her than offer scorn for something she had no control over.
    “I can hardly believe it myself,” she said.
    “And did you pick out something plain for him?” Lady Carleton asked.
    “He looked so out of sorts over what he should choose that I couldn’t refuse his entreaty. Yes, I assisted him and then we left him with the proprietor to conclude his business. I don’t even know which bauble he purchased.”
    “For whom do you think he purchased the piece?” Charlotte said, rubbing the closed edge of her fan thoughtfully beneath her chin.
    “I couldn’t say. Though I do hope he made out well.”
    Lady Carleton looked at her oddly before declaring, “I feel inclined to tell you that my husband invited Barrington and Castleigh for dinner tonight. Perhaps I’ll seat him next to you since he seems to have found a friend