The Gilded Web by Mary Balogh Page A

two glasses of something from the tray of a passing waiter and handed one to his sister.
    â€œShe ought not to have come,” Mr. Sheldon said, lowering his quizzing glass. “Poor lady. We live in a cruel society.”
    Madeline looked across the room to where Lady Sharp stood with the Marquess of Blaise. Why had she not come to greet the new arrivals? She was looking furiously angry and was glaring in the direction of the Purnells. She said something to the marquess, who raised his eyebrows, pursed his lips, and let his eyes roam insolently over Miss Purnell from head to toe. In the crowded room, a certain space had formed around the pair, who were sipping from their glasses and talking to each other. Miss Purnell’s hand was steady, Madeline noticed.
    â€œForgive me, ma’am,” Sir Derek said in her ear, “but I really believe your mama would wish you to join her in the card room.”
    â€œI am sure Grandmama will be shocked to know that I have been subjected to this embarrassment,” Miss Baines said.
    Madeline turned to look at her. “Why do you not remove yourself then,” she said, “and go to the safety and respectability of your grandmother’s side? Why just talk about it? Sir Derek, I am sure, will be only too happy to accompany you there.”
    Her voice was shaking, she heard with some surprise. She took hold of the side of her gown and held it against her so that she would not brush against Miss Baines as she passed her and walked deliberately away from her group, across the room, and across the empty space. She smiled.
    â€œIt is sometimes a disadvantage to arrive late, is it not?” she said gaily. “One finds that everyone’s group is formed and everyone chattering so busily that often they do not notice one’s arrival.”
    Mr. Purnell inclined his head but said nothing. His eyes looked quite decidedly dangerous, Madeline thought when she was unwise enough to look into them. She felt breathless again, as she had a few minutes before when looking into Sir Derek’s eyes, but for a quite different reason. She turned her attention to the sister.
    â€œIs it very improper of me to approach you when we have not been formally presented?” she asked with a bright smile. “But Dominic has told me about his atrocious misbehavior of two nights ago, and I feel partly responsible since you were mistaken for me. I am Madeline Raine, you know. Lord Eden is my brother. My twin, in fact. I think there is a special bond between twins. I do not fight nearly so much with Edmund—Lord Amberley, that is—as I do with Dominic. But we are not quite so close, either. Though I love Edmund dearly, of course.”
    She paused for breath and turned the full force of her not inconsiderable charm on brother and sister. She was horribly aware of the space that still circled them and of the stares and muted voices of the other occupants of the room. She opened her fan and fluttered it energetically.
    â€œHow do you do, Lady Madeline?” Miss Purnell said. Her voice was rather low-pitched and quite musical. She seemed perfectly calm and unaware of the zone of discomfort that encircled her. “I am pleased to make your acquaintance. I wish you would not feel badly about what happened two evenings ago. It was all nonsense and best forgotten about.” She did not smile at all.
    Madeline’s smile was becoming painful. She fluttered her fan and looked up at the silent brother. And she felt again what a dreadful mistake she was making. He did not at all appreciate her coming to talk to them. Hostility burned from his eyes. His mouth was set into a straight line. She felt a twinge of fright until she remembered where she was—in the middle of Lady Sharp’s drawing room, surrounded by a significant number of members of the
ton
.
    â€œAre you enjoying the Season?” she asked. “I do not remember to have seen you here during the past