Leaving the Pump Room, they ran into a group of acquaintances, five in number, who, unlike them, were actually there for the entertainment. And two of the young men were well-known jokesters, which was probably why David suggested they join the group, hoping they could get a smile out of Christopher, where he and Walter had failed.

He couldn’t have known he’d be making matters worse, but that was exactly what happened. And all because one of the young men, Adam Sheffield by name, was in a bad mood himself, but unlike Christopher, he had no qualms about complaining quite loudly about it to his friends. The reason was almost immediately revealed.

“How’m I supposed to meet her if I can’t get near her? That old bird is too particular by half, I tell you, in who she invites to her events.”

“No need to narrow it down to just her parties, old boy. If you didn’t know, she’s particular about who she lets into her house at any time. Party or no party, you can’t just call on Lady Siddons. You have to be an acquaintance, or be with an acquaintance.”

“As if she ain’t acquainted with just about everyone, old as she is.”

“We should have just crashed that silly party,” another of them said. “I hear it was in costume. Who would have known the difference, with a few more Pans and Cupids running about the place?”

“Think I didn’t try?” Adam told his friend. “Why d’you think I was late joining you? But they were taking bloody head counts and names at the door.”

“I heard her father was a famous matador,” another of the group said now, which got the rest of them contributing to the discussion.

“A what?”

“You know, those Spaniards who actually—”

“Not even close,” was said with a hearty laugh. “He’s the king of Bulgaria.”

“Never heard of it.”

“As if that matters—”

“You’re both wrong. He’s not a king, but a prince, and one from some country where just about everyone’s surname has an ‘off’ in it. Means ‘son of,’ or daughter in the case of the Stephanoff chit.”

“Doesn’t matter who her father is,” someone else pointed out. “Long as her mother’s from good English stock, which I’ve heard on good authority she is, being that her mother was Sir William Thompson’s sister.”

“So the chit is Thompson’s niece?”

“Yes.”

“Well, then, that explains why Lady Siddons has taken his niece under her wing. Sir William has been a neighbor of hers for several centuries.”

“They’re not that old, you dolt. ’Sides, how would you know? You don’t run in those circles.”