Irately, Tess regarded her companions. “If you persist in this idiocy, I shall be quite out of patience with the pair of you.” Clio and Delphine exchanged a glance, for once in perfect accord. The bedchamber allotted to Lady Tess by the Most Noble the Duke of Bellamy was exceptionally grand, containing not only a great double bed with a very high, straight back decorated in a somewhat sinister manner with rows of spindles, Gothic finials, vertical channeling, and carvings of birds, vines, flowers, and cornucopias; but also a commodious bureau, a tall marble-topped chiffonier, and a lofty double-door wardrobe with a cornice that nearly reached the ceiling, all carved to match. The room was far grander than Clio’s own quarters; but Clio, due to the distressing tenor of the conversation, neither noticed nor cared. “I wish you would consider!” she insisted plaintively. “If you persist in this association with Sir Morgan, you will find your name being bandied about in the most odious way.”
