Her mother’s gaze narrowed until her lids were tiny, angry slits, and she folded her arms across her middle. “It wouldn’t kill you to appear even the tiniest bit happy at this development. Against all odds, you have a duke honoring you with his attentions. I expect you to smile and be agreeable tonight.”

“I will, Mama.”

“Now, I must write to the Van Allens and cancel for this afternoon.”

They weren’t attending the afternoon tea? “Wait, why?”

“Because you have a dinner to prepare for. We want you looking your best. Perhaps a nap first, then you may bathe and Mary can arrange your hair.”

The day stretched out in front of Alice like a military field march, during which she’d endure her mother’s heavy surveillance until she could escape to the hotel dining room. “Yes, Mama.”

“Also, you should eat something small so there is no need to eat during dinner tonight. There is nothing more off-putting to a man than watching a woman shovel food in her mouth.”

Alice knew this advice to be complete rubbish. She thought back to Kit’s lesson in the kitchen in Newport.

Anything that calls attention to a woman’s mouth has the potential to drive men wild.

And he had shown her exactly why in the club, which was that men loved to have their members sucked. She had loved it, as well, driving him wild with soft kisses and warm breaths, listening to his growls and grunts as she moved. Knowing she would never have another opportunity to see him like that made her want to weep. Again.

Her heart aching, she went into her bedchamber. Returning to her bed sounded like a fine idea at the moment. Then she spotted a small piece of vellum on her pillow. The card from Kit’s flowers. Her pulse leapt. Mary must have saved it for her.

Lying down on the bed, Alice gazed at the paper, the neat writing. It was her last flower arrangement from Kit, so she hated to part with the card, even if it made her seem like a silly lovesick fool.

She lifted it to her nose and inhaled. The scent of gardenias still clung to the paper and she closed her eyes, missing him with a ferociousness that scared her. Would this terrible pain ever go away?

Kit slammed through the door of the supper club, the early-evening quiet only serving to amplify his loneliness. That had been a complete waste of an entire dashed afternoon.

Using Preston’s connections, Kit had secured an invitation to the Van Allens’ garden tea today because Alice had been on the guest list. Except her mother canceled at the last minute, which left Kit hobnobbing with Knickerbocker snobs for the better part of three hours. Granted, he was very good at hobnobbing, but he hated that High Society crowd, with their judgmental stares and whispered gossip.