Still, it was not her acceptance of the Reverend Mr. Whippet’s marriage proposal that caused women to stare and men to ogle her on those rare occasions when she ventured into public view. Rather, it was the offer of marriage she had declined that caused a sensation and made Lucy the most talked-about woman in town. The fact that the spurned Prince Nicholas haunted the Duchess of Nottingham’s doorstep on South Audley Street did little to quiet the gossip. Nor did the fact that Lady Lucinda refused to see him. The rest of the ton might speculate it was her family history of mental infirmity that caused the mysterious miss to spurn the handsome prince, but Lucy herself knew the truth. She was tempted to depend upon Nick, and so she was wise to refuse him admittance when he lifted the knocker at precise, two-hour intervals to inquire if she were at home. In the days since she’d informed Nick of her acceptance of Mr. Whippet’s proposal, the only difficulty with her decision had been that she couldn’t seem to concentrate on anything or anyone but the ever-present Crown Prince of Santadorra, drat the man.
