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he realized he’d best think better of what he was saying.
    “With me ?” Roan asked pointedly, daring Alberth to go further.
    “Please, Your Grace,” Miss Rogers said, taking a step forward.
    Roan held up a protective arm, wanting to shield her from Alberth’s ridiculous accusations. However, before any of them could go further, a group of young women pushed their way through the growing audience around them.
    “Miss Rogers,” one of the girls said. “Here is Lady Theresa.”
    A very attractive dark-haired girl came forward. “Father, I’m right here,” she said in a low, embarrassed voice. “I’ve never left. And Gerald wasn’t here either.”
    “Where have you been?” a worried Lady Alberth demanded. “I’ve been looking everywhere.”
    Lady Theresa glanced around at the number of people surrounding them, then whispered in her mother’s ear. Lady Alberth’s eyes opened in surprised delight. She whispered to Alberth, whose anger evaporated.
    “Haven’s son?” he repeated. The Earl of Haven’s son was said to be the catch of the Season.
    “She was in the supper room with Haven’s son,” Alberth told the room at large.
    There were appropriate murmurs of appreciation at the coup, and Lady Theresa blushed appropriately. “After Miss Rogers talked to me the other evening, I started to think that perhaps she was right. Perhaps I should be open to the addresses of other gentlemen.” Her gaze softened when she looked at a young blond-haired fellow, Haven’s son, who had joined the crowd around them.
    “Well,” Roan said, “it appears someone is owed an apology.”
    “Your Grace,” Miss Rogers protested.
    Roan shook his head. “No, the man made accusations that were unjustified, and he should apologize.” He turned to Alberth. “Won’t you, my lord?” He edged his words with a hint of steel.
    “She should have known where my daughter was,” Alberth answered.
    “ You didn’t even know where your daughter was,” Roan countered, and received several nods of agreement from their audience.
    Alberth was not one to enjoy apologizing. He hedged and shifted his weight, then said, “Very well. I regret the misunderstanding.”
    It was not a graceful apology, but Miss Rogers bobbed a curtsy, and replied, “Please, I beg you not to think of this again.”
    His lordship shrugged, then walked over to meet Haven’s son. Lady Alberth followed him, and the crowd focused their attentions upon other matters.
    Roan was pleased. In fact, he felt a bit heroic for standing up for Miss Rogers. He turned to her, expecting gratitude and, instead, he found her surrounded by Lady Bollinger and others.
    Miss Rogers did not appear pleased, and he was puzzled.
    The women walked off.
    He approached. “Weren’t they happy Lady Theresa was found?” It seemed a safe question.
    It wasn’t.
    Miss Rogers turned to him with angry tears in her eyes. “No, they weren’t happy. In fact, I’ve been given the sack by all of them. I’m ruined. Everything I worked for is gone.”
    “Miss Rogers, I don’t know what to say—”
    “Don’t say anything. Not one word. You’ve said enough. You’ve done enough.” She turned and started walking away.
    Roan went after her. Out in the foyer, he demanded, “What have I done wrong?”
    She paused long enough to explain, “Have you ever seen one of those tightrope walkers? That’s what I do, Your Grace. I walk a tightrope between respectable society and not-so-respectable society. A gentlewoman at this level of society doesn’t work. My sisters warned me. I knew the risks I ran. I thought I could keep my balance, but this evening…” She shook her head. “You shouldn’t have paid attention to me. I’m not worth it. Losing my livelihood isn’t worth it.”
    “Susan,” he said, using her Christian name because it was more direct, more intimate, “I wasn’t trying to harm you—”
    “But that is what happened,” she replied, cutting him off. “Excuse me. I’ve