The ladies stopped dead. One held her lantern higher. “Good heavens, Lady George, is that you?”
George inclined her head. “Yes, I’m having a little rest. It was so hot inside. I felt a headache coming on but didn’t want to spoil the evening for my aunt. It’s so cool and refreshing in here.” She paused, then added, “Were you looking for someone?”
“Oh, no, no, no. Just a little game we ladies were playing,” Mrs. Threadgood said hastily. “And getting some fresh air, just like you. Er, you didn’t see a gentleman come in here, did you?”
“Yes, though I didn’t catch his face. He was tall, but was only here for a moment. He went out that door.” Peering intently at the floor around their feet, she gestured vaguely toward a side entrance.
One of the ladies tried the side door. “It’s locked,” she said with a suspicious glance at George.
George shrugged indifferently. “Mmm, is it? Must have latched it behind him.” She continued scrutinizing the floor around their skirts.
The ladies followed her gaze. “What are you looking at?”
“Oh, nothing. I just thought—oh, yes, there it is! Don’t move, you’ll frighten it.”
“Frighten what?” Mrs. Threadgood glanced nervously around.
“The rat. I’m trying to catch it—” Whatever else shemeant to say was drowned by shrieks and squeals of horror as the ladies shoved each other through the door in their panic to escape. “It’s for my dog,” she called after them. “He loves rats.”
The door slammed behind them.
“Such a peculiar gel,” one of the ladies exclaimed. “Chasing rats! At a ball!”
George couldn’t help it, she gurgled with laughter. It was joined by a deep chuckle from the duke. “You realize it will be all over the ton by morning that you hunt rats in your ball gown. The lady ratcatcher.”
She shrugged.
“Don’t you care what people think of you?”
“Not much. Not people like them, anyway.” Or people like him, for that matter. Only insofar as it affected her family.
There was a short silence, then he said, “Well, that’s my headache gone. Who’s yours?”
George had no intention of explaining. “Don’t you mean how’s yours?”
He snorted. “No one with a grain of sense would bring a headache into this humid atmosphere—not to mention the frightful stink coming from over there.” He gestured toward her bucket. “You’re hiding, lurking amid the ferns and palms—”
“I’m not hiding!” She actually was lurking, but she wouldn’t admit it.
“Ah, then I am interrupting a romantic rendezvous.”
“Nothing of the sort. I only came here—” She broke off as the conservatory door opened again.
“Lady Georgiana, Lady Georgiana Rutherford, are you in there?” It was Lord Towsett—finally. George shrank back into the shadows. Curse it, it was all going wrong. She did not want an audience for her encounter with Lord Towsett.
“Your noble swain arrives,” the duke murmured.
“He’s not my swain!” she hissed back. More of a swine, really.
“I’m told there’s a vicious rat in here,” Lord Towsettcalled. “Are you there, Lady Georgiana? Don’t worry, I will save you.”
George groaned.
The duke moved forward. “No women in here, Towsett. No rats, either.”
“That’s a matter of opinion,” George murmured in a voice only the duke could hear.
“Eh? What? Who’s that?” Lord Towsett called, peering into the gloom.
