“Father received word that Lord Greybourne’s ship was scheduled to dock this morning,” Lady Sarah said, pulling Meredith from her reverie. “He sent ‘round an invitation for Lord Greybourne and his father to dine with us this evening.” A becoming blush suffused Lady Sarah’s satiny-smooth cheeks. “I am most anxious to meet the man who will be my husband.”

Meredith smiled at her. “And I am certain he cannot wait to meet you.” Of course, with the wedding only two days away, that did not afford Meredith much time to reacquaint Lord Greybourne with any rules of Society he may have forgotten during his travels, but she was comforted by the fact that he had spent his first twenty years among the ton. True, he was a bit of a diamond in the rough, but at least he wasn’t a lump of coal in a cave. She hoped.

But even if he were, she’d make him into a presentable groom. After the ceremony, well, then he would be Lady Sarah’s problem, er, project.

A loud commotion sounded from outside. “What do you suppose that is?” Lady Sarah asked, craning her neck to peek beyond the forest-green curtain separating the dressing area from the front of Madame Renee’s shop.

“I’ll see,” Meredith said. Walking into the front of the shop, she peered out the front picture window. A row of stopped carriages lined the street, and a crowd of pedestrians milled about, blocking her view. Rising onto her toes, she noted a lopsided bread cart at the front of the traffic snarl-clearly the source of the problem. She was about to turn away when she noticed a giant of a man standing near the overturned cart raise his ham-sized fist, which clutched a whip. Good lord, he meant to strike that man holding that puppy! Meredith’s hand flew to her lips, but before she could even emit a gasp, another man, whose back was turned toward her, executed a lightning-fast maneuver with his walking stick and fist, whereupon the giant went down like a tenpin. The savior then tossed what appeared to be a coin up to the man still standing upon the lopsided cart, then calmly tucked his silver-tipped walking stick under his arm and strode away, disappearing into the crowd.