his sudden desire to make a match before the end of the year.”
“Yes, I heard much the same thing,” Millicent said, but didn’t mention that she’d heard the story earlier in the afternoon from Lady Lynette.
“Tonight the guests at all the parties seemed to be interested only in talking about the latest news concerning the Mad Ton Thief and the ghost. I wonder if the thief knows how popular he is?”
“With everyone talking about it at the parties, the clubs, and on the streets, I’m sure he does. He probably hopes the madness continues so that he can continue to get away with stealing. It appears that this idea that he is a ghost is titillating to them all. I think they want it to be so. Though, why anyone would want to talk about Lord Pinkwater’s ghost, I have no idea.”
“Oh, I do believe it is newsworthy.”
“But it has little to do with gossip,” the viscountess said in her don’t-argue-with-me voice. “Lady Windham said that she felt deprived when she held a party and nothing was stolen from her home. She said she was thinking of holding another party next week, hoping the thief will show up and take something.”
“Do you really think she will do that?”
“Oh, she probably will. The thing is that she has so many lovely things in her home something probably was stolen and she just doesn’t know it.”
“You think so?”
“Of course, I really have no idea. I’m only saying that the house is filled with paintings, china, pottery, and all quite valuable. Now tell me, what other delicious tidbits did you hear tonight?”
It only took a few more minutes to arrive at her aunt’s town house. As usual, Phillips quietly opened the door and she stepped inside. She heard Hamlet bark once as usual, alerting her aunt that she was home.
Phillips left to prepare Millicent a cup of tea, and she took the time to remove her gloves and pelisse before going upstairs. It was then that she heard a light knock on the door. She glanced down the hallway, expecting the butler to come answer the door. When he didn’t immediately appear she realized the knock was really too soft for him to have heard it.
Thinking the viscountess must have thought of something else she wished to say, Millicent hurried back to the door and quietly opened it.
Her arm was grabbed and she was whisked outside into the darkness.
Fourteen
“He that wants money, means, and content, is without three good friends.” If that is true, it is to Lord Dugdale’s benefit that he still has Lord Dunraven and Lord Chatwin as good friends. From what this humble soul hears, money is one of the friends who left him.
—Lord Truefitt, Society’s Daily Column
“Shhh. Don’t scream. It’s me.” Chandler gently pulled Millicent out of the house. He left the heavy door slightly ajar so that it wouldn’t throw the latch inside.
It was good he spoke and let her know who he was because it was so dark she couldn’t see a thing. She allowed him to usher her to the far corner of the town house, which was hidden from view of the street by a tall shrub. It had rained most of the evening and the moon was completely covered by clouds, making the night pitch-black and heavy with gray mist.
Millicent leaned against the side of the wet house, her heart pounding with excitement and trepidation. Already the wet grass had soaked through her satin slippers, chilling her with dampness.
“Angels above, Lord Dunraven, what are you doing here, and at this time of night—I mean morning?”
“Shhh. Not so loud.” He moved in closer to her, and she could almost make out the features of his face, feel the warmth of his body. “I wanted to see you.”
She wished she could see his eyes, but it was just too dark and misty. “Then why, sir, in heaven’s name, did you not attend one of the parties tonight? You knew which I would be attending this evening.”
“I had other things I needed to do, but I realized I didn’t want the night to end without seeing you.”
“Phillips has only gone for tea. He’ll be right back. I must go inside.”
“I’ll only keep you a moment. I’ve been waiting more than an hour for your return. I was beginning to think I had missed you and that you had already come home. Is anyone else in the house awake other than the butler?”