Page 21 of The Scoundrel and the Lady

“And I you,” Iris said.

The girl gripped Iris’s hand in both of her own and held on tightly. “I’m so very excited.”

“Yes, I can see that.” Iris pulled her hand free. She then curtsied. “My name is Iris Bennington. Very pleased to meet you.”

When the girl hadn’t provided her name, Lord Ashby spoke from the sofa where he’d taken a seat. “Introduce yourself, Lucy. Properly, as we discussed.”

Iris did her best to ignore how the rich timbre of his voice warmed her.

His sister bobbed her head enthusiastically then frowned as she bent herself into an awkward curtsey. “Lucinda Steele. Lovely to make your acquaintance.”

Iris nodded, but made no move from her spot in the center of the room. As Lucinda stood and stared at her, Iris cleared her throat. “You should invite me to sit,” Iris said quietly.

Lucinda winced. “Right! So sorry. Please sit.” She at least at the foresight to wait until Iris had done so before following suit.

“Now then, what is it that you hope to get out of our instructions?” Iris asked her.

“I want to go to balls and dance all night and walk in the gardens and meet a handsome man and fall in love and—”

“Lucy, one thing at a time,” Lord Ashby said. “For now, you wish to be polished enough to be introduced to Society and attend social functions.”

She nodded carefully.

The girl was pretty, with dark hair and piercing light eyes, much like her brother. But unlike him, she was all smiles except when she was concentrating. Iris hadn’t anticipated quite this much work to prepare the girl for Society. She was far too expressive for the likes of the matrons. They’d destroy her in one evening.

“Perhaps we should aim for something quieter than a ball,” Iris said. “The theater or the opera. It might be easier to transition into Society if she could observe them from the safety of a box. You do have a box, do you not?”

Lord Ashby turned his cerulean eyes toward her. “I believe I do. It is not a bad idea.”

She wasn’t certain if she should say “thank you” or if that wasn’t much of a compliment.

“The theater?” Lucinda said, disappointment thick in her question. “I had hoped to meet new people. You cannot speak at the theater, can you?”

“Well, not during the show, but during intermission and at the beginning and end in the lobby,” Iris said. “I am not discounting balls or soirees. Just not to start.”

Lucinda nodded. She folded her hands in her lap and looked down at the floor, and it was as if Iris has extinguished the light inside the girl. She could hardly bear to disappoint her so, but she also knew that introducing the girl now would most certainly lead to her ruin, or at the least create quite the scandal.

Iris met Lord Ashby’s gaze and hoped he understood her look.

“Lucy, dear, would you go and see about some tea for us?” he asked.

The girl stood and left the room without a backward glance.

“What?” he asked once they were alone.

“She is…” Iris grappled for the right word.

“Unrefined?”

“I was going to say enthusiastic. ’Tis not a bad thing, but…”

“Lady Iris, it will do us no good for you to be anything but completely forthcoming with me,” he said.

“Very well. They will destroy her.”

“All of them?”

“The matrons, in particular, but other girls as well. Society is cruel.”

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