Adam sneered at the constant parade of fashionable men who came in and out of the house and clustered around Allegra at every gathering. Allegra pointedly ignored Adam's wishes regarding her conduct and looked coldly upon his frequent visits to Half Moon Street. Their conversation, to Emily's dismay, was limited to commonplaces over dinner and the occasional quarrel in the drawing room afterwards. And the door connecting their two bedrooms remained firmly closed each night. One fine evening Allegra emerged from her boudoir perfumed, with a toweringly elegant coiffure in which a tiny garden complete with a miniature statue, perched among her powdered curls. She was dressed in a stunning gown of deep blue silk over a gold-embroidered underdress. She carried a fan designed expressly for the ensemble, and pearls were stitched across her delicate satin slippers. Allegra was attending the opera with her husband and the Dowager, and she had reason to think the evening might be less than enjoyable, as Adam had expressed extreme annoyance with her that afternoon over the matter of her lap dogs sleeping in his study.
