it the colour you object to,’ Lina asked innocently, ‘or the cut?’
She felt all eyes on her, but was only really interested in Alex’s reaction.
‘Both,’ he said quickly. ‘A demure debutante is only ever really seen in white or pastel shades. And she tries to leave a little more to the imagination with the cut of her dress.’
‘So this doesn’t allow the gentlemen to imagine what might be underneath quite so well as a shapeless dress?’ Lina was enjoying herself now. The nerves she’d felt as she’d entered the room were lifting.
‘You know that is not what I mean,’ Alex said, his voice tight.
‘I think, my dear brother, that if more debutantes dressed like Lina has, then you would be a lot more interested in making their acquaintance.’
‘You judge me to be that shallow?’
‘All men are,’ Georgina said lightly. ‘What do you think, darling?’ she asked, turning to her husband.
‘I think you look beautiful in that dress, Miss Lock, but I’m sure you would look lovely in a shapeless sack, too,’ Mr Pentworthy said softly, putting an end to the argument between brother and sister in such a practised way that Lina wondered how many of these disputes he settled with a well-considered sentence.
‘Quite,’ Alex murmured. ‘Shall we go through to dinner?’
* * *
Alex placed his spoon in the bowl and sat back, watching Lina as she ate. It had been a most enjoyable evening, much to Alex’s surprise. When Georgina had suggested the dinner party he had been tempted to reject the idea, but seeing as Pentworthy was returning that evening anyway, putting a more formal name to them dining together hadn’t taken too much more organisation. Although no part of the wager required Lina to attend any dinner parties, he had to admit it was a good test of what she had picked up so far, in a safe and controlled environment.
‘The key to reading a fortune is observing people,’ Lina explained.
‘I thought you interpreted the lines on people’s hands or something?’ Mr Pentworthy said with a frown.
‘I’m letting you into treasured family secrets here—’ Lina dropped her voice as she spoke ‘—but no one, ever, has been able to tell anything about another person by the wrinkles on their hands.’
‘How fascinating. So what do you do?’
‘Would you like a demonstration?’
‘I’m not sure...’ Alex began.
‘Oh, yes, please,’ Georgina countered. ‘How fun.’
‘This isn’t really an appropriate topic for the dinner table,’ Alex grumbled, feeling like a decidedly old killjoy in the process.
‘You’ve already told Alex’s fortune, why don’t you do my husband’s?’
‘She knows everything about him already,’ Alex said. ‘You two chatter incessantly. Lina probably knows more about your husband’s life than I do.’
‘Well, maybe you should pay more attention, then,’ Lina murmured.
He watched as she turned to Pentworthy, adjusting her position in her chair and flashing the man a sweet smile. She’d never smiled at him like that before.
‘Would you like to know your future, sir?’ she asked, her voice dropping so it sounded almost seductive to Alex’s ears.
‘Please, go ahead,’ Pentworthy replied.
‘First your name—your full name.’
‘Richard Pentworthy.’
Lina took his hand in her own and caressed it for a second before turning it over and studying the lines across his palm.
‘You’re a powerful man, Mr Pentworthy,’ Lina said. ‘And a happy one. I can see you work hard for what you have, but life has not always been easy. You are married and you take your vows seriously, I would say that your wife and children are even more important to you than your work.’
‘You’re just telling him what he wants to hear,’ Alex muttered. Lina flashed him an irritated look, before turning back to Pentworthy.
‘You are a wealthy man, very wealthy, but you were not born into wealth in the same way your wife was. You’ve worked to get where you are today.’
‘I never told her that,’ Georgina whispered at Alex.
‘As for the future...’ She traced her fingers across Pentworthy’s palm in a way that made Alex want to stand up and pull her hand away. ‘I see more children, many more, in fact. You will have a large and happy family. I see success overseas. A business venture, perhaps?’ Alex saw how she watched for Pentworthy’s reaction before continuing. ‘Yes, business—the deal you are working on at the moment—soon all those long hours will pay off. And I see recognition, perhaps in the form of a title, for all the services you have provided to the Crown.’
‘That’s incredible,’ Pentworthy said. ‘How on earth did you do all that?’
‘You don’t actually believe any of it?’ Alex asked.
‘What’s not to believe?’ Lina countered. ‘I gave an accurate description of his life and what’s important to him in the present, and extrapolated his dreams for the future.’
‘You have to teach me,’ Georgina gushed.
‘Go through it all again, but slowly, explaining step by step,’ Pentworthy instructed.
Alex sat back and folded his arms, but listened all the same. Although he was sceptical about this sort of thing he had to admit Lina must have wonderful powers of observation to describe his brother-in-law quite so accurately on their first meeting.
‘I started out with a statement about your status and happiness. I know you are powerful by the people you associate with and also by the royal seal on the documents you left in the hallway. I can tell that you are a happy man by the laughter lines around your eyes. Our wrinkles never lie.’
‘Such simple observations, but so effective. Go on,’ Pentworthy urged.
‘I can tell you work hard, as you have brought a pile of papers home with you to work on after we have finished dinner, and I know you are happily married by the way you look at your wife as if she is the only woman in the world.’
‘How did you know my husband wasn’t born wealthy?’ Georgina asked.
‘He wears very fine clothes, but there are signs of wear on the elbows and down the seams. If I’m not much mistaken, a tear in your jacket has been mended recently,’ Lina said.
Pentworthy raised his fingers to the almost-unnoticeable piece of damaged material.
‘You are obviously wealthy, Mr Pentworthy—you arrived in your own private carriage and your wife has the finest of clothes and jewellery—but
