In honor of Hunter's homecoming, Mrs. Rouillé had prepared his favorite meal: spit-roasted partridge garnished with lemon, accompanied by creamed eggplant, boiled artichokes, and a steamed macaroni pudding covered with butter and shaved cheese.

Before Cam could pursue the matter, however, the soup course was brought out. Footmen and underbutlers worked in harmony to present huge steaming tureens of salmon soup with lime and dill, nettle soup with cheese and caraway floats, watercress soup garnished with slivers of pheasant, and mushroom soup laced with sour cream and brandy.

His attempt at polite discussion having been rebuffed, Cam sat back as the soup was removed and the second course was brought out. Sweetbreads in béchamel sauce, partridges nestled in herb beds, pigeon pies, roast snipe, and vegetable soufflé laced the air with a cacophony of rich scents.

His gaze didn’t stray from my face. “You’re a smart woman, Ella.” “Are you intimidated by a woman with a big vocabulary?” “Hell, yes. Any woman with an IQ higher than room temperature, and I’m gone. Unless she’s paying for dinner.” “I could play dumb and you could pay for dinner,” I offered. “Too late. You already used a five-syllable word.”-Jack & Ella