She ignored him. “Some of the footmen were kind enough to move the pianoforte to the large drawing room, so we’ve arranged everything there!”

Basset shook his head, though he smiled. “There are seven of us, not twenty.”

“You have no taste for occasion.”

“Correct. I do not.”

His drollness made her snicker, and she sighed as they reached the drawing room, entering to the lovely concentration of candles and greenery, all elegance in seasonal array.

She had not anticipated Basset’s addition to the dining room décor, but there was something unbearably sweet about the simple act. The Christmas roses were so simple and delicate. It was the slightest touch, yet it added so very much.

He was not the unfeeling, aloof, disinterested man she’d originally taken him for, and she was beginning to see that all too clearly.

“Well, what do you think?” she asked, dropping her arm from Basset’s and turning to face the others.

They were all smiles, and Julia sighed as she clung to her husband’s arm. “I think it is the most perfect room at Christmas one could ask for,” her friend said. Then she winked at Adelaide. “And I think it is time for the Bassets to play their Christmas duet.”

Basset groaned his usual reluctance, though there was a hint of a smile there, and Gage pulled out a handkerchief, mimicking tucking it into his ears as he situated himself in a chair. Everyone else sat, and Adelaide turned for the instrument, her heart suddenly feeling quite unsteady.

She had been on display before for various accomplishments, as all young ladies of fortune or influence were in London, but never for something she was so inexperienced at. They had been practicing for ages and had mastered the song several times without error together, but it had not stopped her from practicing her own part several times before she had changed for the evening.

What if she failed at it now?

“After you,” Basset said with a playful gesture toward the bench.

She managed a weak smile no one else would see and sat, her suddenly trembling hands resting in her lap while he situated himself beside her.

“It will be fine,” he whispered, thankfully not leaning to do so, as the others would notice. “We’ve done it before.”

“But can we do it now?” Adelaide hissed back. She showed him her hand, the shaking visible.

He took her hand in his, squeezing gently. “It does not matter,” he assured her. “They are not company, and this is not for them.”

The implication of his statement was not lost on her, and she longed to look into his dark eyes to see if what was there matched what she felt, but she resisted.

She needed to be settled for this, not ruffled. And Basset’s eyes had a habit of ruffling her.