Page 31 of Kiss Me Lady One More Time
“Yes, I brought everything I thought we might need.”
“Let’s look—”
“I’ll look,” Tensford interrupted and nodded toward the door. “You have plans, I believe?”
Sterne turned—and froze.
Miss Munroe stood just outside, fiddling with the placement of something in her reticule. She wore another lavishly decorated outer garment, a carriage dress of rich violet over a simple white gown. So much delicate embroidery and so many tiny buttons—it should have overwhelmed her, especially along with the full sleeves wound about with a ribbon of just a slightly darker shade of purple.
It didn’t overcome her. She looked up, smiling under a confection of a bonnet—and he could scarcely catch his breath.
Whiddon suffered no such malady. Grinning, he moved toward her and bent into an extravagant bow. “You must be the famous Miss Munroe.”
Her brow raised. “Famous? Good heavens.” She cast an eye to Sterne and he just shrugged.
“Well, extremely admired and spoken well of, then, by all of the best people I know.”
“How gratifying.”
Smiling, Whiddon glanced back, but when he met Sterne’s gaze the smile dropped away.
“Miss Munroe,” he said quickly. “You said you were looking forward to meeting Whiddon. There. Now, you have.”
“Try not to be disappointed,” Tensford joked.
“Not in the slightest,” she said to Whiddon with a grin. “I’ve heard a great deal about you, too, my lord.”
“Don’t believe anything these two say,” he objected. “We must spend some time together, so I might tell you the truth about myself.”
“Shall I disregard all of the good qualities they’ve mentioned?” she teased.
“No. You must magnify them, for they will surely have underplayed all of my superiorities.”
“They certainly underplayed your confidence,” she said with a laugh, before she looked to Tensford. “Hope has drifted off, but I doubt she’ll sleep long.”
“Thank you. Come along, Whiddon,” the earl beckoned. “You can help me search my papers for a mention of Rowland, until she awakes.”
Sterne flinched when the earl waved a finger between him and Miss Munroe.
“The pair of you—have a nice drive,” Tensford ordered. “Be careful. We’ll all look forward to hearing what you can find out.”
Nodding, he went to take the girl’s arm. He had to fight the instinct to thrust between her and Whiddon.
“We’ll return with a full report,” she said. Turning to Whiddon, she curtsied. “I’m pleased to have met you at last, sir.”
“And I, you,” Whiddon returned, all charm.
Sterne wanted to smack him.
But Whiddon turned to him. “You’ll remember your plans, Sterne, won’t you? We all do.”
“I’ve no need of a reminder,” he answered curtly.
“Perhaps you did not before,” Whiddon mused. “But I think one would not go amiss, now. What do you think, Tensford? Say it with me.”
“What is it, I’m to say?” the earl asked.
“Tensford’s plan. We’ve heard it often enough.”
