Lucinda was nursing her own drink, musing on the disaster they had on the table, when he asked her. She looked up and smirked at him, sort of wry. "No," she said, "Her mother would never let her out again, and that's not good for the family, either." A girl trapped in a tower raised red flags.

"Besides," she said, in a more genuine tone, "Elsie would never forgive me."

That might not even be possible now. And Lucinda wanted her to, eventually. Even though her feelings were hurt and she was still stubbornly convinced that she was right - they had gotten very lucky, and talking smugly about love was no way to handle being caught. But... Elsie still might never forgive her.

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