The TimesAs he appeared to be somewhat out of sorts, he was left alone.
When Esme appeared, the Marchioness said with a false smile,
“How fresh you look. It must be the effect of riding so energetically and so early.”
“It was very enjoyable,” Lady Esme managed to say in an affected voice, hoping that her hatred for the Marchioness did not show in her blue eyes.
Then she crossed over the room to talk to two other women who had found it far more agreeable to lie in bed than to face the sunshine.
The butler stopped beside the Marquis and held out the note on the silver salver.
The Marquis took it, wondering why he should receive a letter when he had given strict instructions to his servants in Park Lane that, as he was to be away only for the weekend, he did not wish anything forwarded.
