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"Oh, I am certain I should not be at all disconcerted," interrupted Miss Hisselpenny

Lady Maccon was not convinced Ivy was, circu She continued her explanation "And Conall will not be clothed when the transformative event has completed"

"Oh!" Miss Hisselpenny put a hand to her mouth in alarm "Of course" She turned quickly away

Still, one could not help but hear, even if one did not look: that slushy crunchy noise of bones breaking and refor a dead chicken for the stew pot e kitchen Alexia saw Ivy shudder

Werewolf change was never pleasant That was one of the reasons pack members still referred to it as a curse, despite the fact that, in the ers chose ical rearranging This, like rearranging one’s parlor furniture for a party, involved a transition from tidy to very messy to tidy once more And, as with any redecoration, there was a mo could possibly go back together harmoniously In the case of olves, thisto becourations, and flesh andabout on top of or underneath the two Alexia had seen her husband change ar and scientifically fascinating

Conall Maccon, Earl of Woolsey, was considered proficient at the change No one could beat out Professor Lyall for sheer elegance, of course, but at least the earl was fast, efficient, andnoises the younger cubs were prone to e iven his love of food, he probably would have becoed as normal humans did Luckily, he had elected for one to seed Instead he remained forever a well-muscled mountain of a man who needed the shoulders of his coats tailored, his boots specially ordered, and near constant reh doorways

He turned eyes, only a few shades darker than they had been in wolf form, to his wife

Lady Maccon stood to help him pull on his cloak but sat back down before she could do so She was still not steady on her feet

Lord Maccon iar?" he practically yelled

"What?" Ivy turned to see as going on, caught a glimpse of the earl’s naked backside, squeaked, and turned back away, fanning herself with one gloved hand

"Do not fuss, Conall You are upsetting Ivy," grumbled Lady Maccon

"Miss Hisselpenny is always upset over so You are a different s, wife You are not that feminine"

"Well, I like that!" Lady Maccon took offense

"You understand ?" He drew entirely the wrong conclusion "You’re sickening! Is that why you’ve come, to tell me you’re ill?" He looked like he wanted to shake her but did not dare

Alexia looked straight into his worried eyes and said slowly and carefully, "I a a little tis back You kno it can be after a long air or sea journey"

The earl looked vastly relieved "Not a very good floater, ave her husband a reproachful look and replied petulantly, "No, not so very good at the floating No" Then she changed the subject "But, really, Conall, you knoelcome the spectacle, but poor Ivy! Put your cloak on, do"

The earl grinned, straightened under her appreciative eye, and wrapped his long cloak about his body

"How did you knoas here?" Alexia asked as soon as he was decent

"The lewd display has ended, Miss Hisselpenny You are safe," Lord Maccon infor his massive fraht

Lady Maccon snuggled against her husband’s side happily

"Si, fabric-shrouded ar patch is just off o and saw the dirigible coured I had better co in Scotland? With Miss Hisselpenny no less"

"Well, I had to bring some kind of co across the length of England by lanced over, eyes heavy-lidded, at the still-nervous Ivy She had not yet reconciled herself to talking with an earl dressed only in a cloak so was standing a little distance off with her back to them

"Give her a bit more recuperation time," advised Alexia "Ivy’s sensitive, and you are such a shock to the systerinned "Praise, wife? How unusual from you Nice to know I still have the capacity to unsettle others, even atto avoid the subject Why are you here?"

"Why, darling"--Lady Maccon batted her eyelashes at hi to Scotland to see you of course I missed you so"

"Ah, wife, how ro a word of it He looked down at her fondly Not as far down as he would have had to onHe preferred her that way Undersized wo minx"

She leaned in "It will have to wait until later, when others cannot overhear," she whispered against his ear

"Mmm" He turned in toward her and kissed her lips, warm and adamant

"Ahem" Ivy cleared her throat

Lord Maccon took his ti off the kiss

"Husband," said Lady Maccon, her eyes dancing "You reave his wife a look, and then stood and bowed As though he and the nonsensical Miss Hisselpenny had not for acquaintance these three , Miss Hisselpenny How do you do?"

Ivy curtsied "Lord Maccon, how unexpected You were notified of our arrival time?"

"No"

"Then how?"

"It is a olf machination, Ivy," explained Alexia "Do not trouble yourself"

Ivy did not

Lady Maccon said to her husband carefully, "I also have elique, of course"

"I see, an unexpected wife and reinforce a battle of some kind, ainst the sharp barbs of Felicity’s tongue to rout the party is, however, entirely unintentional"

Miss Hisselpenny acted a bit guilty at that stateave his wife a look of profound disbelief

Alexia went on "Felicity and Tunstell are procuring transportation as we speak"