Blowing out a breath as the realization struck that Gideon probably wasn’t going to change his mind, Adelaide turned to Camilla and summoned up a smile. “Would you be a dear, Miss Pierpont, and hold Harvey while I get myself suitably attired?”
“I’ve never held a cat before in my life.”
“Then this will be a lovely first for you,” Adelaide said, stepping close to Camilla and handing Harvey over to her without a by-your-leave, ignoring that Camilla’s eyes had widened to the size of small saucers. “There. Isn’t he darling? And listen, he’s beginning to purr.”
“Sounds more like growls to me,” Camilla argued. “I think he’s considering going on another rampage.”
“He won’t do that if you snuggle him directly up against you.”
Eyeing Harvey somewhat warily, Camilla drew the kitten close, her lips curving when he began purring in earnest. “I suppose he is somewhat sweet,” she admitted. “But I’m not keeping him, and you shouldn’t either, considering you already have twenty cats.”
“But I’ve already named him, and it’s downright impossible to turn my back on a cat I’ve given a name,” Adelaide said, making her way to where her gown was now lying in a pile of leaves.
“I imagine you name all your strays straightaway so you have a ready excuse for taking them in.”
After giving the gown a shake, Adelaide sent Camilla a wink. “You’ve found me out, Miss Pierpont, but it’s not that I make a concerted effort to collect cats. Strays simply find me. I can hardly neglect their sorry plight.” She gave her gown another shake. “I’ve been holding out hope that someone in society willdecide cats are in fashion again, and when that happens, I’m confident I’ll be able to decrease the number of cats I own.”
“I don’t know of anyone, except yourself, who prefers cats over dogs,” Camilla said.
“That’s simply because cats are misunderstood creatures. Compared to dogs—not that I have anything against those, except the ones that want to eat my darlings—cats are far easier to take care of. They don’t need to be walked, and they don’t need much in the way of attention, although they don’t prefer being as solitary as most people believe them to be. They also don’t make a lot of noise—not like those yippy dogs society members travel about town with.” She stilled for the briefest of seconds before she winced. “You don’t happen to own one of those yippy dogs, do you?”
Camilla laughed. “No need to fear you’ve just offended me. I own a poodle—Gladys is her name—but she’s a disgrace to her breed. She doesn’t know how to prance, refuses to let me put bows in her hair, and certainly doesn’t do any yipping because she’d consider that using far too much exertion. People think she’s ancient, but she’s only five. She’s merely lazy and prefers spending her time lounging in sunny spots or snoozing beside the fireplace.”
“Perhaps she’d become livelier if you were to introduce an energetic kitten into your household.”
“Nice try, but no.”
“May I dare hope that your use of the wordnooccasionally means you’re taking a matter under consideration?”
“No.”
Adelaide decided to try another angle. “Just look at it this way. You’d be helping stray cats everywhere if you’d take Harvey in. People look to you for guidance in matters of fashion. If you were seen moseying around the city with an adorable kitten in tow, I know everyone would soon be clamoring to follow suit.”
“An impressive argument, Miss Duveen, but I think not.”
“That definitely doesn’t sound like a final answer, so we’ll revisit the idea in a few days, after you’ve had an opportunity to truly ponder the benefits of adding an adorable kitten to your life.” Adelaide tossed the gown over her head and yanked it into place, emerging a second later to discover Camilla’s brow had furrowed. “Is something the matter?”
“You’re wearing a gown that’s at least three sizes too large for you.”
Adelaide glanced down, smoothed a hand over wrinkled fabric, and nodded. “It’s definitely large, but I sometimes like my clothing roomy, because I enjoy being able to move with ease when I’m wandering around the grounds.”
“You chose that on purpose?”
“Of course. It was either this gown or one that’s even larger, but the larger one, unfortunately, was beginning to unravel, and unraveling paired with me is never a great combination.”
“Do you have such overly large garments at your disposal because you lost a great deal of weight at some point?”
Adelaide brushed a leaf from her sleeve. “I’ve always been slender, but before you ask, most of my wardrobe is ill fitting.” She smiled. “My mother got a bee in her bonnet this past summer that I’d draw Mr. Walter Townsend’s attention if I looked more voluptuous, given that his late wife possessed a most enviable figure.” She sighed. “It was a failure of epic proportions, although not a failure for my dear friend Gwendolyn Brinley, who now goes by the name of Mrs. Walter Townsend. Nevertheless, since Mr. Hayworth, Mother’s dress designer, put a lot of effort into creating a large wardrobe for me, I try to make use of the pieces, especially since they’re remarkably comfortable if I don’t wear them over the bustles and all the stuffed undergarments I’m supposed to include to enhance my form.”
“You wore stuffed undergarments during the summer?”
“It was an unfortunate state of affairs since I was swelteringthroughout my time in Newport and lost weight, something that certainly didn’t allow me to obtain that curvaceousness my mother wanted me to acquire.” Adelaide smiled. “Thankfully, Mother has abandoned that harebrained idea, especially after what happened last night with that monstrosity of a bustle Mr. Hayworth invented for me.”
“It sounds to me as if you need a new dressmaker, since I don’t know any credible ones who’d create ill-fitting garments for their clients.”
“In Mr. Hayworth’s defense,” Adelaide countered, “it’s not entirely his fault my garments rarely fit me. I don’t have the patience for fittings or shopping in general. That’s why I give my measurements to my mother, and she takes it from there.”
“You’re going to have to abandon your aversion to fittings if I’m going to succeed with the proposal I’m here to present to you,” Camilla surprised her by saying.