Today's Reading
He glanced across the crowded room and gave a little lift of his chin, as if acknowledging another acquaintance on the opposite side of the dance floor. "Alas, I must take my leave. Ellie, Lady Dorothea, it's been a pleasure."
He caught Ellie's eye on the word pleasure, and she cursed the heat that rose to her cheeks again. She ground her teeth, but sent him a sweet smile. "Goodbye, sir."
His dimples flashed. "Oh no. Let us say, au revoir. I'm quite certain we'll meet again very soon."
CHAPTER TWO
Ellie shook her head as the scoundrel slipped into the crowd, stepping around the various groupings with ease.
She tried to follow his movements, but without her spectacles, everything over six feet away became a frustrating blur, and she lost sight of him.
Daisy tapped her on the arm. "All right, tell me everything. Starting with why your cheeks are so pink. What on earth were you two discussing?"
Ellie absently touched her bottom lip with her fingertips. She could still feel the ghost of his kiss.
"Oh, umm, very little, really. I was just trying to discover his name."
"I'm not sure we're any the wiser now," Daisy said with a snort. "The Comte de Carabas? Wasn't that the name invented by the cat in the fairy tale 'Puss in Boots,' for his master?"
"It was!" Ellie gasped. "Although I think it was the Marquis of Carabas, in the tale. And 'bonheur' means 'good time' or 'lucky' in French. Henry Goodtime?" She gave an outraged huff. "That charlatan! He gave us a fake name!"
Daisy gave a delighted laugh. "How marvelous. I do love a handsome rogue. But why? Is he playing a game, to try to intrigue us? Or is he actually here under false pretenses? Maybe he's about to commit a crime!"
Professionally, Ellie and Daisy were two-thirds of the force behind King & Company, London's most discreet private investigation agency. Along with their friend Tess, Duchess of Wansford, they dealt with "sensitive problems" for clients, under the guise of assisting their fictional employer, Charles King.
"If he's a jewel thief, he'll have plenty of opportunities here tonight." Ellie tilted her head toward the glittering array of wealth clustered beneath the chandeliers: necklaces and tiaras on the women, pocket watches and tiepins on the men.
"He could be a card sharp," Daisy opined. "Maybe he's here to fleece the gentlemen at vingt-et-un or dice."
"I suppose we'll find out soon enough. If there's an outcry from the cardroom, or someone comes to King and Company tomorrow to report the loss of their favorite bracelet, at least we'll have a potential suspect."
Daisy gave a bawdy chuckle. "I volunteer to give him a thorough pat down to look for hidden loot."
"Very selfless," Ellie said drily. "It's a shame Tess isn't here. She might have recognized him."
"Speaking of potential new cases," Daisy said, "I was approached by a man named Bullock earlier. He said he'd heard that I knew Charles King, and asked for an introduction."
"Did you tell him to come to Lincoln's Inn Fields?"
"I did, but he insisted that he would only speak with Mr. King himself."
Ellie rolled her eyes. Some of the male clients requesting "Mr. King's" services had been extremely dismissive toward his "assistants," Ellie, Daisy, and Tess. A few had even refused to confide their business with an underling, especially if they were female.
"Then we'll have to tell him that Mr. King is too busy to accept any new clients," Ellie said firmly.
"Indeed. Life's too short to deal with gentlemen' who think we're inferior, overly excitable, and too feebleminded to grasp the complexities of a criminal investigation."
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