Page 44 of Seducing a Frigid Lady
“I think I shall go and find Sophie,” Priscilla said, slipping her arm free of her aunt’s. “Perhaps she will have some clue as to what is going on.”
Lady Bishop gave no protest, gesturing her to hurry about it. Clearly, she was just as intrigued as Priscilla was about to find out the truth.
Making her way swiftly across the room in the direction of Mrs. Lyttleton, Sophie’s mother, Priscilla kept a sharp eye out for her friend. The main hall of the gallery was huge and there were many places for her friend to be hiding—though if Priscilla knew Sophie as well as she thought, her friend would likely be front and centre, doing everything she could to socialise just as her mother would expect her to do.
Priscilla had just spotted her standing beside a freshly carved marble statue that Priscilla had not seen in the gallery before, when someone stepped before her, quickly cutting off her view of her friend.
Priscilla’s face dropped into a scowl immediately and she glowered at the woman who had blocked her way. “Miss Kendall.”
“Well, well, if it isn’t the talk of the town,” Miss Kendall chuckled, looking immensely pleased with whatever she thought she knew that Priscilla did not.
“I am unsure what you mean, Miss Kendall, though I would appreciate your getting out of my way,” Priscilla said through gritted teeth, determined to keep her tone cool and calm. Whatever was going on, she didn’t like the thought of drawing any more attention towards herself until she knew for certain what it was.
She started to skirt around Miss Kendall, but the words that the woman said next stopped her in her tracks. “And here I was believing that someone defending your honour might have meant that you’d melted a little.”
“Excuse me?”
Priscilla whipped back around to face Miss Kendall, glaring at her with open hatred. The woman was more than a little infuriating, always knowing just what to say to get under Priscilla’s skin. Yet for once, Priscilla had absolutely no idea what she was hinting at, and that only made her even more frustrated.
Whatever she knew, Miss Kendall clearly thought it delicious. Priscilla could tell so from the sweet smirk on her face and the glint in her eyes.
“Oh, haven’t you heard?” Miss Kendall chuckled, her eyes sparking even further with amusement. “Poor Mr. Kenyon has taken quite the beating from your friend the viscount.”
Priscilla pursed her lips. The urge to snarl at Miss Kendall that she had no idea what she was talking about made her feel as though she was losing control, and she hated that. Miss Kendall made her feel that way so often that she would have liked to swipe the smirk right off the woman’s face.
“I am unsure as to what you mean, but I can assure you I know nothing of any altercation between Mr. Kenyon and any viscount that I am acquainted with. Even so, I know not what it has to do with me.”
Miss Kendall leaned forward, and Priscilla had to force herself to hold her ground. The nearer she drew, the more Priscilla’s skin crawled. She would not give Miss Kendall the satisfaction of seeing just how unsettled she made her.
“Perhaps you ought to go and ask Lord Sinclair why he felt the need to protect your honour,” she whispered into Priscilla’s ear, and in the next second she inclined her head sideways.
Instinctively, Priscilla followed her gaze, half-expecting to find Lord Sinclair standing across the room. Instead, her eyes found Mr. Kenyon. Though it took her a moment to recognise him. One of his eyes looked painfully swollen, and the skin around it was black and blue.
Horror caused Priscilla to gasp openly, and she drew her hand to her mouth to cover it. “What happened?”
Miss Kendall laughed darkly then, sounding entirely unconvinced that Priscilla had no clue what had happened to the gentleman.
“Do not play coy with me, Miss Lloyd,” Miss Kendall hissed back at her.
“We both know that you and Lord Sinclair have grown awfully close of late. Do not tell me he has not told you all that happened between him and Mr. Kenyon when the man mentioned you at a gentleman’s night at Lord Frost’s house. Another friend of yours, if I am not mistaken?”
Priscilla turned a scrutinising glare upon Miss Kendall once more. “I am unsure as to what you are implying, Miss Kendall, but I have no idea what has happened and I can assure you it had absolutely nothing to do with me.”
With that, she straightened herself, lifting her head high before she bowed her head in farewell to the woman. “Good day to you.”
Before Miss Kendall could say anything else, Priscilla turned and started to hurry away, more than a little relieved when she found Sophie had turned to wait for her.
She grabbed hold of her friend’s arm the moment that she reached her and started to drag her away to the edge of the room. Half-hiding behind a nearby statue, Priscilla hissed into Sophie’s ear, “What do you know of what happened at Lord Frost’s gentleman’s night?”
The colour immediately drained from Sophie’s face and she glanced down at the fan and reticule that were tied around her wrist. Picking up the fan, she started to bat it at her face as though she was suddenly too hot. “You’ve heard them.”
“Heard what? I barely know anything!” Priscilla hissed in exclamation under her breath, struggling to keep her volume low. “Sophie, please tell me. What has happened?”
Sophie looked back at her with obvious sympathy in her eyes, and it was clear from her friend’s expression that she was not going to like her explanation. A part of her wanted to turn and run from the gallery, to leave without so much as hearing another word on the subject, because in truth she was terrified of what might have occurred.
But Sophie did not give her the chance to do so. She reached out and gripped hold of Priscilla’s hand, squeezing her fingers gently as though she hoped to ease some of the sting of what she was about to say.
“According to rumour, Mr. Kenyon may have said something a little untoward about you to Lord Sinclair,” Sophie explained very carefully, her cheeks growing red as though she was feeling uneasy and perhaps even a little nervous about how Priscilla would react to the news.
