Death Wears a Mask Read Free Page B

offensive.”
    â€œMilo knows rather a lot of interesting people,” I replied vaguely. “I was not at all offended. Truly.”
    â€œIt’s good of you to say so, dear.” She was frowning, looking not at me but at her nephew, who was talking animatedly to his uncle. “And yet … I worry sometimes that his tongue will get him into trouble.” Still looking preoccupied, she moved away to see to the coffee.
    People naturally fell into little groups for conversation, and I took a seat on a burgundy-upholstered divan near the fire with my cup and saucer in hand. I would do my societal duty and mingle in a moment, but I needed a bit of fortification first. The incident at dinner had thrown me a bit more than I liked to admit. I had been certain my marriage was improving these past two months, but perhaps I had been mistaken. I had been wrong before.
    I hazarded a glance in Milo’s direction. He was engaged in conversation with Mrs. Barrington, who was no doubt repeating her apologies. He laughed at something she said, touching her arm in a reassuring manner, and she smiled, clearly relieved. There was no sign of discomfiture in his demeanor, and I found his imperturbability to be highly irritating.
    â€œAre you by nature a solitary soul, Mrs. Ames?” I looked up, surprised to see Lord Dunmore standing before me, drink in hand. I hadn’t noticed him approaching.
    I could hardly deny it, as he had caught me in an isolated reverie. “I do find myself enjoying solitude upon occasion, my lord.”
    â€œPerhaps that explains why I’ve never had the pleasure of your company before this. I’m surprised we haven’t had more mutual engagements. But perhaps you are often abroad with your husband.” He indicated the divan. “May I?”
    â€œOf course.”
    He took a seat beside me. It was not a very large piece of furniture, and I felt his nearness at once. There was nothing at all improper in his manner, but there was a certain sort of pull about him, a confidence that I suspected stemmed from his rumored popularity with women.
    â€œI was delighted to meet you this evening, Mrs. Ames. Had I known that you and your husband were friends of the Barringtons, I should have urged them to invite you long before now.”
    â€œOh, are you an old friend of the Barringtons?”
    â€œYes. My father and Mr. Barrington were at school together. They’d meet up for drinks or to go the races, and my father would sometimes bring me along. Mrs. Barrington sends along the odd invitation when she’s in need of another gentleman.”
    â€œI should hardly call you merely ‘another gentleman,’ Lord Dunmore. I imagine your attendance at dinner is something of a social coup.”
    He smiled. “You flatter me, Mrs. Ames. I am not intriguing as all that. Besides, I rather like Mr. and Mrs. Barrington. Dinner with old friends is often so much less tiresome than dinner with a group of strangers. Although, I will say that the Barrington dinner parties usually include many of the same people, so I was delighted to see fresh faces this evening … your fresh face, in particular. I suspected the wife of Milo Ames was likely to be a beauty, but you surpassed even my high expectations.”
    It seemed the viscount’s reputation for excessive charm had not been exaggerated.
    â€œNow it is you who are flattering me, Lord Dunmore,” I said.
    â€œNot at all.” His eyes flickered over my face, and he smiled. “One cannot flatter with the truth, after all.”
    â€œMrs. Barrington was kind to invite us this evening,” I went on, trying to divert the conversation back along a more suitable course. “She and my mother are quite old friends. I am not much familiar with any of the others, however. Are you very well acquainted with them?”
    â€œI know them all in one way or another.” His gaze traveled around the room as