“Supposedly.” He ran a hand back through his hair, still surprised to find the front so short. “I guess somewhere along the way, someone filched this and slipped it inside.”
“Rhona or Gregor, I’m guessing. I wonder if Hamish knows?” She dug around some more and drew out another necklace. “Od’s fish, will you look at the size of these pearls?”
The largest round pearls Trick had ever seen, with one enormous teardrop-shaped pearl dangling from the center. “Fit for royalty, all right.”
She dropped it back into the casket. “Oh, Trick, look at this.” Her voice turned wistful. “Amber.”
“When did you grow to like amber?” he teased.
She blushed and pulled the jewel out, only to find it was a clasp attached to a gleaming string of smaller, pure white pearls. “Oh, it’s lovely,” she sighed, dropping the strand over her head.
It was so long, he reached to double it, settling the second half around her neck. “Don’t you own any pearls?”
“My father sold all the family jewels to help finance the Civil War.” Her fingertips danced on the lustrous strand. “Of course, Jason has bought me things over the years. And Colin and Ford. They all know I love jewelry. But pearls are terribly expensive.”
And immensely popular. All the court ladies wore pearls, and most of the men, come to that. “You look beautiful in pearls, leannan.”
She blushed and took them off. “For the price this trinket could bring, I expect we could feed the orphans for a year.”
“A decade, probably.” He smiled.
She dropped them back into the box. “Help me put this all away, will you? I still need Jane to do my hair, and if we don’t get to Whitehall soon, we’ll miss the presentations.”
SIXTY-THREE
“THE DUKE and Duchess of Amberley!”
Trick shot the puffed-up court usher a sour look. “I abhor this sort of thing,” he muttered to Kendra as they made their way down the aisle to where King Charles and Queen Catharine sat on the dais, dressed in crimson velvet with a swagged canopy overhead to match. “I really hate this.”
“Oh, hush,” Kendra chided. “A little pomp and circumstance never hurt anybody. And there will be dancing afterwards—”
“I cannot wait.”
His tone was dry enough that under different circumstances she might be tempted to swat him with her fan. As it was, she flashed Queen Catharine a brilliant smile and dropped into a deep curtsy, pressing a kiss to the back of the woman’s slim proffered hand. “Your Majesty.”
“Lady Kendra,” Catharine said in gracious Portuguese-accented syllables, “or have I heard it’s the Duchess of Amberley now?”
“You’ve heard correctly,” she said, then leaned closer to her husband. “As long as he behaves himself,” she added for his ears only.
Coughing to cover a snort of laughter, he rose and traded sides with her. King Charles smiled as she kissed his hand. “It’s glad I was to hear that two of my favorite families are united.”
She only just managed to conceal her surprise. “I’m happy to have pleased Your Majesty.”
He nodded, then looked back to Trick. “We’ll talk later, yes?”
“Aye. And I’ve something to give you.”
“Do you, now?” The king was not above delighting in gifts. “Did you bring it along?”
“It’s rather…large. And it’s at my home, but I can have it delivered—”
“Amberley House, or your house here in London?”
“Here in London, but—”
“I have matters to discuss with you in any case.” Charles raised a meaningful brow. “I shall sneak out of my bedchamber this evening and come to Caldwell House.”
“Sneak?” Kendra burst out, then clapped a hand over her mouth.
Charles let loose a booming laugh. “My Master of the Backstairs is quite accustomed to making these arrangements, I assure you.”
His eyes twinkled, and Kendra blushed. She knew he meant that he usually sneaked out for assignations with his mistresses, but she felt sorry for his long-suffering queen, who was studiously looking elsewhere.
She would never put up with that from her husband, not now that things were right between them in the bedroom. He’d promised her fidelity, and she expected him to give up his mistress. Just let him try to visit London alone again.
With another bow and curtsy, Kendra and Trick moved away so the next courtiers could be presented.
“Well, I expect we can leave now,” Trick said as soon as they were out of earshot.
“I’m not leaving until after we’ve danced.” Kendra flipped open her painted fan.
“Don’t tell me you’re going to titter behind that thing.”
“Me? Titter?” She rapidly fanned her face. On this late summer night, the Presence Chamber was hot and close, lit by hundreds of candles in wall sconces and liveried yeomen holding flaming torches. “What did Charles mean, two of his favorite families?”
Trick tucked his tongue in his cheek. “Were you not aware the Chases are favored?”
For the second time this evening, she was tempted to swat him. “You know very well what I mean. I’ve never seen you at court—”
“I do my best to avoid it.”
“And I don’t remember you from the years in exile, either. So how is it you’ve come to know Charles so well?”
Trick leaned close to answer at a discreet volume. “My father—the duke—was a major supplier of kingly luxury items,” he murmured. “All through the Commonwealth years, we had, uh…dealings.”
Kendra stopped fanning. “You’re jesting, aren’t you? Charles was as poor as we were during those years.”
“I’m not jesting. The duke was happy enough to supply him free of charge.”
“Out of loyalty?”
He snorted aloud this time. “Out of greed. Charles promised him the dukedom restored upon his own restoration.” He frowned across the chamber, then turned back to her, pulling at his cravat. “If you’re not going to fan yourself, you may as well fan me.”
“My wrist is tired. I’ve decided to sweat instead.”
Chuckling, he leaned forward and gave her a kiss. “Ladies don’t sweat. Ladies
