Page 86 of Thief of the Ton
Peregrine would have recognized Lady Betty Grey anywhere.
As for the man standing beside her, he looked like a relic from a bygone era. His jacket, fashioned from blue silk and edged with gold brocade, exuded the faded elegance of the previous century. It hung on his frame as he hunched over a silver-topped cane. Wisps of white hair were visible beneath a powdered wig, framing a face that was creased with weariness and pain.
The man needed no introduction. The years may not have been kind to his body, but the sharp intelligence in his eyes was exactly the same as it had been the last time Peregrine set eyes on him at Fosterley Park.
“Good heavens—Richard!” Lady Yates cried. “What are you doing here at this hour? We weren’t expecting you until tomorrow.” She wrinkled her nose. “And…I see you’ve broughtthat woman.”
Lady Betty inclined her head graciously, maintaining her smile. Doubtless she’d weathered worse insults.
Miss de Grande was not so circumspect. She leaped to her feet and ran toward the newcomers.
“Papa—Lady Betty!” She kissed her father on the cheek, then embraced Lady Betty.
“Lavinia, darling!” Lady Betty replied. “I see London agrees with you.”
“Child!” Lady Yates snapped. “Must you show such a lack of decorum toward that woman?”
“Edna—show a little more respect, please,” Lord de Grande croaked. “Were it not for Lady Betty, I’d not even—”
He broke off as his gaze fell upon Peregrine.
“Who the devil isthat?”
“Papa, let me introduce Lord Marlow,” Miss de Grande said. “Aunt and I have invited him to—”
“Marlow, you say? Marlow…” De Grande cocked his head to one side, frowning as if in concentration.
Then recognition rippled across his expression and the confusion morphed into hatred.
“Marlow!” he cried. “Howdareyou show your face here, you…youblackguard!”
“Papa?”
De Grande rounded on his daughter. “Is this how you repay me, child—withbetrayal?”
Lady Yates approached the old man. “Richard, calm yourself.” She glared at Lady Betty. “Is this what your company has done to him—addled his wits? You’re not welcome in my home. You—”
“Don’t be a fool, Edna!” de Grande cried. “Lady Betty is a loyal friend—unlike the vermin you’ve invited into our midst.”
“Papa, Lord Marlow’s a friend also,” Miss de Grande said. “Don’t you recall my childhood friend from when we lived at—”
“Is this why you came to London, Lavinia—tobetray me?”
“Papa, I-I don’t understand.”
“I take it you know who this man is?”
“Of course, Papa,” she said. “He’s Lord Marlow.”
“And do you know who hisfatheris?”
She glanced toward Peregrine, doubt in her eyes. “I know he’s the heir to an earldom—so his father must be Earl Marlow, though I’ve not met him.”
“Ignorant fool!” de Grande spat. “And you!” He jabbed a finger at Lady Yates. “Did you notthink?”
“Lord de Grande,” Peregrine said, “if I might explain—”
“Spare me your lies, Marlow,” de Grande said. “After what your father did, do you think I’d believe a single word you say?”
