Calista did not meet his eyes.
“I felt that it was the only thing I could do. I was so ashamed of Mama’s behaviour.”
“Did you have any idea of her plans?” the Earl asked.
“I felt that, as you were leaving the next day, time was running out,” Calista replied. “So she was certain to try a trick of some sort to push us into each other’s arms.”
“So you pretended to have a cold?”
“That is right. I waited until Mama had gone down to dinner before I let her know I had retired to bed. I thought there would be nothing she could do about us, if I stayed upstairs. But she outwitted me!”
“How did she manage it?” the Earl enquired.
“When the ladies left the gentlemen in the dining room,” Calista answered, “Mama came up to my bedroom with a glass of medicine in her hand.”
“‘I do not believe you
