Page 4 of A Secret Desire

Lady Pendleson stepped between Henrietta and Ada. “An old lady knows when to make her exit. I think I will visit with your grandmother after all.”

“Oh dear, did we upset her very much, do you think?” Ada asked, watching Lady Pendleson haul Archibald in Henrietta’s grandmother’s direction.

Henrietta grinned. “I’m sure I should care, but I’m just too happy to see you! Tell me, how did you escape your duties?”

“And by ‘duties’ you mean the children.”

“Precisely.”

Ada’s smile twinkled. “I love them, truly I do, but …”

“It’s nice to take a holiday.”

Ada nodded. “Precisely. My siblings and cousins are exhausting bits of baggage. But there’s no one to watch the younger ones right now as Nora is in London. So, I’ll not be staying. I’ll be about here and there, during the days, then return home at night.” Her mouth stilled then twisted into a grimace. “Hen, do you know yet?”

“Know what?” Fear knotted Henrietta’s stomach. Was Ada unwell? The children?

“You obviously do not know. Come. You must sit down.” Ada maneuvered Henrietta closer to a chair.

“Ada, stop being mysterious. You’re worrying me. Out with it already.”

“But first, sit.”

Henrietta sank onto a low bench at the side of the room. “Now, what is it I should know?”

“Lord Rigsby is in attendance.”

Had the world stopped spinning? Time seemed to slow, to stop. All sound receded as if she’d stuffed her ears with cotton.

“Hen? Are you all right?”

Henrietta blinked and steadied her breath when she realized the pounding noise she heard came from her own heart, crashing against her ribs. “He’s here?”

“Yes. In the parlor, in fact, with the other guests.”

“He’s here?”

Ada frowned. “Oh dear, you’re broken. I merely wished to warn you, but perhaps I should not have.”

“He’s here right now?”

“Hen, I think you should breathe.”

Wasn’t she breathing? “And he’s going to stay here the entire fortnight?”

Ada sat beside her, soothing her trembling hands. When had they started shaking so? “This is usually the intention with house parties,” Ada said.

“But why?”

“I don’t know. Perhaps we can ignore him?”

Ignore him? How in heaven’s name would she do that when he still haunted her dreams despite having broken her heart?

But she couldn’t leave. She had a purpose—to promote her dress shop—and she would not run from it. She would not run from him, no matter how much her feet begged to do so. “It’s all right, Ada. Thank you for telling me. We will ignore him.”

Ada patted Henrietta’s shoulder. “Good. I’m glad you’ve survived the intelligence. Now to the particularly awful news.”

“Worse than—”