Unmasked by Virginia Henley

Author:Virginia Henley
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9780451216274
Publisher: Signet
Published: 1999-12-31T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15

W earing her prettiest green silk gown adorned with silver

ribbon, Velvet sat across from Christian as the coach carried

them to the Palmers' house in King Street. She had waited al

day for a reply to the message she'd sent Montgomery, and

was both disappointed and annoyed that her wait had been in

vain. Hell and furies, the dominant devil is punishing me and

making me wait for an answer. No doubt it is his way of

bringing me to heel! She was unaware that he had written to the dowager countess instead, informing her that he would be

attending the Palmers' entertainment. He'd asked Christian to

accompany Velvet, but not divulge that he would be there.

"If you were a married lady, darling, you would be free to

go wherever you fancied, without the inconvenience of

dragging me along as chaperone."

"I'm sorry, Christian. I enjoy your company and forget that

sometimes you may not wish to be dragged out in the

evening." She remembered the king's admonition. "I

understand the Royal Court prefers that its ladies be married

rather than unwed."

"Maidens were the fashion at Elizabeth's Court, but that

was a century ago and times have changed." Christian

glanced out the window. "King Charles wil marry soon, and

his Queen's Court wil be made up of married ladies from the

nobility, such as the Countess of Suffolk."

Velvet sighed. She had always loved Charles, and when

she was a child, she had believed that he would marry her.

Stil , the thought of being one of his queen's ladies was most

desirable. "Now that you have explained, I understand why the

Royal Court prefers that its ladies be married." I would be the Countess of Eglinton now, if only there hadn't been that

dreadful misunderstanding between Montgomery and me. A

frisson of desire made her quiver and she quickly dismissed

him from her thoughts before the aching longing overwhelmed

her.

"There's Whitehal . King Street is close by. I believe the

Palmers' mansion is quite impressive."

As they stepped from their carriage, they joined other

guests who were attending tonight's entertainment. Liveried

footmen opened the front doors, and they were greeted in the

reception hal by their host and hostess, Roger and Barbara

Palmer.

Three great chambers were open for their guests'

entertainment. The large drawing room with its bril iantly lit

chandeliers served as a bal room where musicians provided

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.