Joan nodded an affirmation to them all. “It makes no difference that some of them have married now, as those husbands clearly are doing so in order to attempt a reining-in of their actions. Poor, deluded men, too weak to restrain them from continuing to write such damaging, scurrilous sheets. It has all come to naught.” Joan looked directly at Elinor again, her expression now cold. “You will never, ever manage a good, decent, acceptable match while you maintain such poor connections, Elinor. While you seem determined to remain unmarried, it would be unwise to express your opinions to any young ladies equally unattached.”

“I beg your pardon?” Ellen blurted, horrified at their cousin’s words.

Elinor covered her sister’s hand, squeezing tightly.

“You will be poisoned by her words, Ellen,” Joan insisted, maintaining a superior tone. “Do not look to her for an example, I beg you.”

Ellen stirred beneath Elinor’s hold, but Elinor only held her more firmly. “Hush,” she whispered to her. “It will serve no purpose.”

“You will forgive me, Mrs. Ramsay, for offering a contradictory opinion,” a stern, male voice broke into the silence, “but I fear I must.”

Elinor looked over at him at once, struck by the perfection in his faint curls, almost the color of toffee, and his strong, proud figure standing before the gathering. He looked the part of a perfect gentleman, his clothing pristine. He held a glass of Madeira in one hand, the other tucked into the pocket of his waistcoat. If it weren’t for the stern set of his jaw, he would have appeared perfectly cordial.

His tone said otherwise.

“Please, Mr. Sterling,” Joan replied in surprise, gesturing for him to go on.

He nodded politely, despite still looking disgruntled. “Have you ever met the Spinsters, madam? Personally?”

Joan’s eyes widened, then she swallowed and shook her head. “No, sir. And I’ve no wish to, frankly.”

“That is much to your detriment, if I may be equally frank,” Hugh replied, his tone clipped but in no way rude. “I have been acquainted with almost every one of them for several years at this point. I cannot pretend to have always agreed with them, or even thought well of them, but I can tell you that if I had paid more attention, had more sense than folly, and seen them for the intelligent, considerate creatures they are, my sister might have been spared a near-disastrous experience that will haunt me for the rest of my days.”

The room was utterly silent at this stunning announcement, and Elinor, for one, was transfixed on Hugh, nearly breathless for a multitude of reasons she didn’t dare comprehend.