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G eorgina stared around her at all of the guests at the soiree.

She had hoped she would be able to spend more time in the company of Lord Foxmoore.

Thus far that had not happened, much to her disappointment.

She held back a sigh. If she could not be with him, at least she could still sneak glances in his direction.

He was currently speaking with his two friends, the Marquess of Easton and the Duke of Amberwood.

They were all a fine sight to behold, but her gaze gravitated toward the earl.

He alone held her interest, and he alone was the gentleman she wished to have more time with.

Then, almost abruptly, the three gentlemen split up.

The Earl of Foxmoore and the Duke of Amberwood went in the opposite direction as Lord Easton strolled toward them.

She would much rather have had the earl heading over to them, but perhaps she could use this to her advantage somehow.

Georgina wasn’t certain how. Coquettishness and scheming of any sort were not her forte.

“Ladies,” Lord Easton greeted them. “I trust you’re all enjoying yourselves.”

“It’s rather humdrum,” Melisande quipped.

She narrowed her gaze at the marquess as if inspecting him.

What the blazes did she hope to see in the man?

“But I suppose that is the reason we’re allowed to attend.

Not a scandal in sight.” She sighed as if the lack of excitement seemed excruciating for her.

Georgina wanted to roll her eyes at Melisande’s dramatics but managed to refrain.

She did not want to draw any unwanted attention to herself.

“Melisande,” one of the chaperones chastised her. “We’re to avoid such things as scandals. There is nothing wrong with a respectable soiree.”

Melisande laughed, almost as if the idea was ludicrous. Georgina gaped at her. Did she actually wish to create a scandal? What did she hope to achieve? “You’ve never experienced a scandal then, have you, Miss Abernathy?”

Miss Abernathy glared at Melisande. “You will be on your best behavior. What I have or have not been privy to doesn’t apply to what is expected of you, you silly girl.”

Lord Easton cleared his throat. The poor man probably didn’t know what to make of Melisande. None of them did really. “If the soiree isn’t to your liking, I do have a suggestion.”

“You hope to create a scandal?” Lady Jaclyn asked in a cheeky tone.

“No,” he said slowly. “I would never suggest anything like that.” He smiled.

“My servants set up lawn billiards. Four of us have decided to play, but we have room for four more, as I have eight mallets available, if you would like to join us.” He sounded almost pleased with himself.

Was he scheming? Not to create a scandal as Jaclyn had suggested, but something else.

Georgina narrowed her gaze and studied him.

“We could even play in pairs. One gentleman to one lady, if that is all right with your chaperones.” He met Miss Abernathy’s gaze.

Yes… The gentleman did have some sort of plan.

Georgina just didn’t quite know what it was yet.

“That’s a lovely idea,” Miss Abernathy said and glanced at Melisande. “Some of our students do better with an actual activity to participate in. Thank you for suggesting it.” She motioned at Melisande and then at Georgina. “Do you wish to play?”

Before Melisande and Georgina could respond, the duke and the earl returned to his side with another gentleman.

Melisande’s eyes widened as she stared at the new arrival.

He had thick dark auburn hair and green eyes the color of moss.

Georgina supposed he was attractive. Did Melisande suddenly develop an interest in him?

“I’m willing,” Melisande said in a nonchalant tone. Like she was trying to ensure her interest in the new gentleman wasn’t there, but she had not fooled anyone. She turned toward her and asked, “Are you, Georgina?”

Lord Easton turned his attention toward Georgina and asked, “I trust your ankle is healing, Miss Georgina?” She glanced away, and a slight blush tinged her cheeks. Georgina hated when all the attention was on her. Why did Melisande have to single her out that way?

“It is, my lord,” she said softly, “and I do wish to play.” Her ankle had not been hurt for too long. It had healed nicely. She sneaked a glance at the earl. He had been so kind to her that day.

“Wonderful,” he said. Lord Easton, thankfully, turned his attention to the other students. Georgina let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. “What about you, Lady Jaclyn? You seemed interested.”

“I am,” Jaclyn said. “And so is Lady Charlotte. I trust you will explain the rules to us?”

“Of course,” he said. “If you will follow me, I can show you where the game is set up, and you can choose your mallet.”

They all walked over to the field where the rings had been strategically inserted into the ground.

Eight mallets were in a holder on one side of the playing area.

“Here are the mallets,” Lord Easton began to explain.

“We have black, red, yellow, blue, green, orange, purple, and white.” He held up the blue mallet.

“I am going to take this one, and the matching ball.” He plucked a blue ball from the basket.

“Everyone, come forward and choose your mallet and retrieve your ball. After we all have made our selections, I will explain the rules.”

“I’ll take the black,” the one gentleman she didn’t know said. “It matches my heart. So it seems fitting.”

“If you believe it suits you, then it’s yours,” Lord Easton told him.

“Now that everyone has made their selection,” the marquess began. “We will go over the rules of play, then pair off.” He grinned. “First rule, follow your ball. Where it lands, you go.”

They all nodded. “That makes sense,” Jaclyn replied. “But what if it goes off course?”

“Then you go off course,” Lord Easton said.

“But we’re to play in pairs,” Jaclyn reminded him.

Georgina was doing her best to follow along and understand all these rules, but what she really wanted was to move closer to Lord Foxmoore. She hoped that he would be the gentleman she would be paired with. Though from Jaclyn’s statement, that might not be so simple.

“Well,” the marquess began. “As long as you are able to. The pairs are just to start us off. You may end up near someone else depending on where your ball lands,” he explained.

“Second rule,” the marquess began. “Your objective is to get your ball through all the rings on the course, going from left to right until you get to the final ring at the far end of the course.”

They all glanced toward the rings. They were spread apart almost forming a rectangle with the final ring at the end. Georgina narrowed her gaze. It did not seem too difficult, but then again, she had never been good at physical activities like this. She did not anticipate doing well at all.

“Third rule,” the marquess said. “If you want to be…” He paused.

“How shall I put this?” Lord Easton tapped his chin and grinned.

“Competitive. Yes, that’s a good word. You may hit an opponent’s ball with yours if you near it and knock it off course.

If that should happen, that person will have to go back to the beginning and restart the game. ”

Melisande laughed. “Now this will be more than humdrum. I like it.” That did not sound good. Not at all… Melisande wasn’t all bad, but she had a naughty streak that often landed her in trouble. Georgina liked her, but sometimes she didn’t like what the other girl did.

“Now for points. Because it isn’t just about reaching the end first.” He grinned.

“You get bonus points for knocking a player back to the beginning. A particularly difficult shot will gain you an extra two points. But each successful shot through a ring will give you one point. The person with the most points at the end wins.” Lord Easton turned toward the two chaperones.

“Do you two mind keeping score? That way we can ensure no player cheats.”

Miss Abernathy grinned. “It would be my pleasure, my lord.” Miss Spencer nodded in agreement to what Miss Abernathy had said.

“Now,” the marquess began. “For the beginning, we will pair off by colors.” He pulled out a piece of parchment from the inner pocket of his waistcoat.

He had written paired colors together, fully intending to swap with someone if needed to make sure Charlotte was with him.

Luckily, he didn’t need to go that far. “Black and white go first, and are together.”

Melisande and the gentleman she’d been watching glanced at each other. She seemed pleased with that outcome. Perhaps Georgina would have similar luck. “Green and red go second, purple and orange third, and finally, blue and yellow.”

She glanced down at the color she’d chosen, then at Lord Foxmoore.

Wonderful. She had been as lucky. She wished she had known what colors would be paired together first and chosen accordingly, but it had all worked out as she’d hoped.

Georgina grinned as she walked over toward Foxmoore.

He grinned at her, seemingly as pleased as she was. “Hello,” she said in a demure tone.

“Hello,” he said in a low tone. No one was paying them any mind, but she didn’t wish for anyone to realize she had an interest in him. Perhaps he felt the same?

Georgina glanced away from Lord Foxmoore and paid attention to the marquess. She didn’t wish to miss anything and be left at a disadvantage in this game.

Lord Easton motioned to Melisande and her partner. “You each decide between you who will go first. As I said, the goal is to get your ball through each ring.”

“Who is that gentleman that is playing with Melisande?” she asked Lord Foxmoore. “I haven’t been introduced to him.”

“That is Viscount Kendal,” the earl told her. “He can be quite competitive.”

“From what I gather,” she began, “so is Melisande.”