Read Online Rake's Progress by MC Beaton - Free Book Online Page B

back when you pretended to strike her.’
    When the carriage reached Berkeley Square, Esther squared her shoulders, and, avoiding Lord Guy’s eye, said stiffly, ‘I am much indebted to you, sir.’
    â€˜Delighted to be of service, ma’am,’ he said.
    Esther wanted rid of him, but at the same time she craved reassurance from some member of society, be it only a soiled and degraded one.
    â€˜May I offer you some refreshment, my lord?’ she said.
    â€˜Thank you. You are very kind.’
    Once indoors, Esther put him in the dim and dark saloon and took the excited children upstairs. Before she turned them over to the nursery maid, she begged them not to tell any of the servants, ‘for it was a most wild and unconventional thing to do,’ she ended uncomfortably.
    â€˜We won’t tell a soul, will we, Amy?’ said Peter. ‘You’ve never given us a big secret to keep before, Esther.’
    Once she had called the nursery maid, Esther rang for her own maid and, with her help, changed her gown and put her hair into a knot, shoved one of her caps firmly on top, and went down the stairs again to face Lord Guy.
    It was an evening for breaking the conventions. Esther knew, as she was unmarried and unchaperoned, she should have left the door open. But she was frightened of one of the servants hearing what she had to say, and so, once she had ascertained that wine and cakes had been brought in, she closed the door.
    Lord Guy poured her a glass of wine and handed it to her. Esther was about to point out that she had never in her life had anything stronger than lemonade, but she was still shaken, and so she took the glass and asked Lord Guy to sit down.
    â€˜I gather you do not use this room much, ma’am,’ said Lord Guy, sitting down on an uncomfortable high-backed and carved Jacobean monstrosity.
    â€˜On the contrary,’ said Esther, automatically sipping her wine, ‘it is in constant use.’
    Lord Guy looked about. The room was dominated by a sort of pulpit with a large Bible on it. The curtains at the windows were as heavy and red and stiff as if they had been steeped in blood. The mantelpiece was of black marble, as was the clock on it. There was a painting above the fireplace of a cross-looking man in severe clothes who was pointing solemnly at his ear, rather as if to show a doctor where it hurt, or to indicate the whole world was mad.
    â€˜Your father?’ asked Lord Guy politely.
    â€˜No, my lord,’ said Esther with a return to her usual manner. ‘That is one of our great evangelical reformers, Mr Isaac Sidcup.’
    He noticed she had drunk almost all of her wine, and refilled her glass.
    He sat down again and crossed a pair of wellmoulded legs. People went on about present-day women’s fashions being indecent , thought Esther. But the men wear their Inexpressibles so skin-tight, they leave little to the imagination.
    She frowned suspiciously at her wineglass. Was this why the preachers warned against the pernicious effects of wine? Was it the wine that was causing her to think about men’s legs?
    Esther looked up and saw Lord Guy was studying her with a mixture of tenderness and amusement. He is very handsome , she thought breathlessly.
    With an obvious effort, she pulled herself together.
    â€˜My lord,’ she said, ‘I trust you will not speak of the happenings tonight or that I entertained you without a chaperone.’
    â€˜You have my solemn word.’
    â€˜On the other hand, I do not see how it can be kept quiet. The whole of London will be talking about it tomorrow.’
    â€˜They will gossip furiously about what appeared to be an exciting theatrical performance. They will not believe the actress they saw is a respectable lady, living in Berkeley Square. Avoid socialengagements for a week. After that, everyone will have forgotten about it.’
    â€˜I have no social engagements,’ said Esther. ‘Your