Jack forced his lips to behave. “Indeed, ma’am, I would be happy to do whatever I may in that endeavour.”
Lucilla smiled. “I knew I could rely on you, Mr. Lester.” With an imperious gesture, she claimed his arm. “Now you must come and speak with Mr. Webb.”
As she led him into the crowd, Jack suppressed the thought that he had been conscripted.
On the other side of the room, Sophie chatted with a small group of not-so-young ladies. Some, like Miss Chessington, her aunt had invited specifically to keep her company, while others, like Miss Billingham, had younger sisters making their come-out this year. Gradually, they had attracted a smattering of the gentlemen present. Most of these were either carefully vetted Webb connections or unexceptionable young men who were the sons of Lucilla’s closest cronies. There was no danger lurking among them.
Stifling an inward sigh, Sophie applied herself to keeping the conversation rolling; not a difficult task, supported as she was by the ebullient Miss Chessington.
“I had heard,” that ever-bright damsel declared, “that there’s to be a duel fought on Paddington Green, between Lord Malmsey and Viscount Holthorpe!”
“Over what?” Miss Billingham asked, her long nose quivering.
Belle Chessington looked round at the gentlemen who had joined them. “Well, sirs? Can no one clear up this little mystery?”
“Dare say it’s the usual thing.” Mr. Allingcott waved a dismissive hand, his expression supercilious. “Not the sort of thing you ladies want to hear about.”
“If that’s what you think,” Miss Allingcott informed her elder brother, “then you know nothing about ladies, Harold. The reason for a duel is positively thrilling information.”
Discomfited, Mr. Allingcott frowned.
“Has anyone heard any further details of the balloon ascension from Green Park?” Sophie asked. In less than a minute, her companions were well launched, e
ffectively diverted. Satisfied, Sophie glanced up—and wished she could tie a bell about Jack Lester’s neck. A bell, a rattle, anything that would give her warning so that her heart would not lurch and turn over as it did every time her gaze fell into his.
He smiled, and for an instant she forgot where she was, that there were others standing only feet away, listening and observing intently. An odd ripple shook her, stemming from where his fingers had closed over hers. She must, she realized, have surrendered her hand, for now he was bowing over it, making every other gentleman look awkward.
“Good evening, Mr. Lester,” she heard herself say, as if from a distance. She sincerely hoped her smile was not as revealing as her thoughts.
“Miss Winterton.”
His smile and gentle nod warmed her—and made her suspect she had been far too transparent. Taking herself firmly in hand, Sophie turned and surprised an avid gleam in Miss Billingham’s eyes. “Have you made the acquaintance of Miss Billingham, sir?”
“Oh, yes!” Augusta Billingham gushed. “Indeed,” she said, her expression turning coy. “Mr. Lester and I are old acquaintances.” She held out her hand, her smile sickly sweet, her eyes half-veiled.
Jack hesitated, then took the proffered hand and curtly bowed over it. “Miss Billingham.”
“And Miss Chessington.”
Belle’s bright smile had nothing in common with Augusta Billingham’s. “Sir,” she acknowledged, bobbing a curtsy.
Jack smiled more naturally and allowed Sophie to introduce him to the rest of the company. By the time she had finished, he was feeling a trifle conspicuous. Nevertheless, he stuck it out, loath to leave Sophie’s side.
When the musicians struck up, he bent to whisper, “I do hope, Miss Winterton, that you’ll return. I would be quite overcome—utterly at a loss in such company as this—if it weren’t for the reassurance of your presence.”
Sophie lifted her head and looked him in the eye. “Gammon,” she whispered back. But her lips quirked upward; Jack let her go with a smile.
While she danced the cotillion and then a country reel, he endeavoured to chat to some of the younger gentlemen. They were slightly overawed. His reputation as a devotee of Jackson’s and one of Manton’s star pupils, let alone his memberships in the Four-in-Hand and Jockey Clubs were well-known; their conversation was consequently stilted. It made Jack feel every one of his thirty-six years—and made him even more determined to bring his dazzling career as a bachelor of the ton to a close as soon as might be.
The prospect was still too far distant for his liking. A quadrille had followed hard on the heels of the reel; Sophie had been claimed for it before she had left the floor. With a brief word, Jack excused himself and wandered over to the musicians. The violinist was the leader; a few quick words were all that was needed, and a guinea sealed their bargain.
When the music stopped, Jack was passing the point where Sophie came to rest. She turned towards the end of the room, where her small group was once again gathering, her youthful partner at her side; she was laughing, her expression open and carefree. Her eyes met his—and a subtle change came over her.
Sophie forced a laugh to her lips, denying the sudden tightening about her lungs, the sudden constriction in her throat. She shot Jack a quizzical glance. “Have you survived thus far, sir?”
With a single, fractionally raised brow, Jack dispensed with her companion. Flustered, the young man bowed and murmured something before taking himself off.
Turning from thanking him, Sophie frowned a warning at her nemesis. “That was most unfair, taking advantage of your seniority.”