He was scrutinizing her, she realized, for the lingering effects of the opium. Anger put color in her cheeks. She surged to her feet in one smooth movement, and stood with the practiced grace Mrs. Ferrers had taught her.It was a challenge, and André read it as such. He cocked his head in answer, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. For a fleeting second Kate detected in his eyes something entirely unexpected: approval.Then Peggy Shippen was bounding past him like a puppy and the moment passed. Kate sat down with relief. The room had begun to swim when she stood so quickly.Peggy did not sit. She circled the hearth rug in a dizzying pattern. “John is designing costumes for the new theater. My father says I may not model for him, but he says you’re already engaged to Colonel Caide so nothing you can do can bring you lower.”André draped himself over one of Mrs. Valby’s silk damask chairs. “Charm, in the Shippen family, does not skip generations,” he drawled.Oblivious to the slight, Peggy basked in the attention, but André’s eyes were fixed on Kate.
