Gretchen’s lip twitched as she fought a little smile. He was being charming again and paying a very rapt attention to her: she enjoyed it enormously when he did both of those things and almost enough to forget herself. Though she wouldn’t today, she knew, not here where there were eyes everywhere – eyes that included her cousin, sisters and potentially a matron around any corner.

How could she possibly excuse herself if any of them saw her behaving as she had in the ship cabin? Letting a man kiss her, and kissing him back as though she were a wanton hussy without any respect for her family name. (Not that she had any, not anymore, not since she had learned how insignificant she really was to them.)

“I thought it best to keep out of the way,” she said sheepishly. After she had apparated right in front of him she had begun to wonder whether anyone had guessed why her aim hadn’t been true…or rather had been true. Because being in front of him, as she was now, was exactly where she wanted to be. “I didn’t know you were an apparition tester.”

Although in fairness she didn’t know much about him at all, other than he was handsome and kissed young ladies - possibly plural, possibly not - in private.

---

Bee is tremendous, isn't she?