Something strange then happened to Druscilla’s heart. It was almost as if it turned over in her breast.
He raised his glass to her and something glistened on his little finger.
Druscilla drew in a deep breath.
So he had worn the Duchess’s ring!
Today of all days he acknowledged his love for his mistress!
She felt the room go dark, the brilliance dimmed, the magic gone!
She turned to the Prince Regent, her lips deliberately flirtatious.
“What woman would not be honoured and flattered but perhaps also rather – shocked, Sire, at such a suggestion?”
“And you?” he asked. “Are you shocked or flattered?”
“That, Sire, I must leave to your astute imagination.”
“You are entrancing!”
The Prince Regent’s voice was hoarse.
Druscilla dropped her eyes in mock embarrassment, but her brain was
