Suddenly the door behind her opened and she turned sharply as the butler announced,
“His Grace the Duke of Tynemouth, my Lady!”
“What a lovely surprise!” Aline managed to exclaim as she moved towards the Duke holding out her hand.
“We will not wait for my other guests, Dalton,” she said to the butler. “They may be late, so bring the tea now please.”
“Very good, my Lady.”
As the door closed, the Duke raised Aline’s hand to his lips to ask with a twinkle in his eyes,
“Who else is expected?”
“Oh, quite a number of friends,” she replied airily.
“You are a liar, but a very beautiful one,” he retorted, “and, of course, I am waiting to hear why it was so necessary for me to come to see you this afternoon.”
“Come and sit down.”
Aline seated herself on a brocade sofa with flowers arranged
