Chapter TwoLily Cairns stepped out of the old-fashioned carriage in which she had been driving in Hyde Park and, carrying her muff, which was of sable, walked slowly up the steps and into the hall of the house in Belgrave Square.
The butler, grey haired and slightly bent with age, said in the loud voice of someone who is deaf,
“The Duke of Darleston has called to see you, my Lady!”
Lily stood still for a moment.
Then, with a composure that she was far from feeling, she asked,
“Is His Grace in the drawing room?”
“Yes, my Lady.”
Lily hesitated, then with a swiftness that was echoed by the beat of her heart, she ran upstairs to her bedroom, pulling off her long fur-trimmed coat before she reached the door.
She flung both her coat and her muff down on the bed and moved quickly to the d
