“You have to stop roaming around on your own. There are rakes lurking in the corridors, looking for a woman to seduce. If anyone saw you with one of them, your reputation would be soiled forever,” Aunt Theodora said.
Her aunt's words struck Louise, and she laughed awkwardly. She touched her hair uncomfortably and could not help but wonder if Callum had heard that and if he found it amusing.
“Now, let us go, child, before someone sees you alone in this corridor and assumes the worst,” Aunt Theodora said.
“The worst?” Louise asked as she walked away from the room, her aunt at her side. She was a little miffed that her time with Callum was cut short. Most importantly, she had been unable to get Callum's secret, the one that he was so bent on keeping away from her.
“That you are engaged in a tryst with a rake,” she said. “You know, during my day, it was incredibly rare for a young lady to be found in a compromising situation with a man,” Aunt Theodora said.
“Is that so?” Louise asked. Aunt Theodora had tons of stories from when she was a maiden, and Louise loved hearing them all.
“Indeed, child,” she replied, “ladies were more well-behaved then.”
“But there were some ladies who were not, weren't there?” Louise asked. She knew that that was all she needed for her aunt to delve into one of her many stories.
“Of course. One controversy that shook London to its core happened with a lady when I had just newly come into season,” she said. “The lady was my age and we had come into the Season together. One day, at an event thrown by the Duke, she was discovered in the gardens, kissing a rake.”
Louise gasped exaggeratedly. “That must have been quite the scandal,” Louise said, smiling just a little.If only Aunt Theodora knew what I have been doing behind that door.
“It was. In order to cover her shame, the rake was asked by her family to marry her,” Aunt Theodora said.
“I bet he married her without thinking twice,” Louise said.
Aunt Theodora laughed. “Not quite. He refused to marry her and then her family grew desperate as thetonbegan to ostracize them. No one would invite them to any gatherings or even speak to them in public.”
“That must have been terrible,” Louise said, feeling sorry for the poor lady and her family.
“Eventually, she was sent away to a family in some remote part of the country,” Aunt Theodora, “with that, the family was able to rebuild their reputation and the lady was never seen in London again.”
“That is quite said,” Louise said.
“Indeed, it is,” Aunt Theodora replied, “and I do not wish that to ever happen to you.”
“Would you and Mama send me away if that ever happened to me?” Louise asked.
Aunt Theodora's eyes softened. “Of course not, Louise,” she said, “you are her pride and joy.”
Louise smiled. “Thank you, Aunt Theodora.”
“But I trust you, Louise,” she said, “you would never do anything like that. You know better.”
Louise felt a little sad. She knew that if her aunt were ever to find out what she had been doing, she would be disappointed in her.
“How about the Duke?” Louise asked her aunt, eager to change the subject before she confessed to her misdeeds out of guilt.
“What about him?” Aunt Theodora asked, looking at Louise as though she did not understand what she was talking about.
“You know why I am asking, Aunt Theodora,” Louise said.
Aunt Theodora smiled, but she said nothing.
“I see how you look at him. I see how you laugh when you are around you. And when you are not looking, I see how he looks at you too. The entiretoncan see it,” Louise said.
Aunt Theodora blushed furiously. “The Duke is a perfect gentleman,” she said.
“I suppose that is one of the reasons you like him so,” Louise said.
Aunt Theodora shrugged. “You may be right. He treats me properly, like a lady. And he is old-fashioned too, which is a rare quality to see in men these days. It is easy to see that he regards women highly.”
