“Turn around and let me have a look atcha,” Molly insisted.Meg felt rather odd but complied. “Mrs. Brown,” she said as she turned back to face the woman who was studying her as if she were about to paint her portrait, “I need to speak to you before we get started. It’s a matter with quite a bit of urgency.”“I’m sure one of them dresses Lucy gave me oughtta do nicely,” Molly muttered as if she hadn’t heard Meg’s comment. “Maybe the black one… or the red…”“Lucy?” Meg repeated. “As in Lady Duff Gordon?”“Oh, yes,” Molly replied. “How handy is it to have a famous dress designer on board when you have a fashion emergency?”Meg swallowed hard. If Lucy knew she were borrowing her dress, she’d definitely want to see her in it. And then she’d certainly let everyone know who she was, which could be q

They were late. Not as late as Meg had anticipated considering they hadn’t even begun dressing until almost five o’clock, but slightly late nonetheless. Dressed in a velvet and silk Chantilly lace gown in black, with a small train, square neckline, and netted sleeves, featuring red floral embroidered tulle at the waistline and splendid bead work, her hair in a low chignon with matching beads interlaced, a diamond necklace she had borrowed from Molly featuring a flor de lis and matching diamond earrings, and red, satin, beaded slippers, Meg was finally beginning to feel like herself again.She had briefed Molly on precisely who she felt she needed to avoid, as best she could tell, and they had come up with a plan for what to do should her cover be blown. Arriving a bit late actually helped in some ways, as most of the diners were already seated before she entered, giving less of an opportunity for them to linger at the bottom of the grand staircase. In fac

As soon as he entered his room, Charlie took off his jacket and tie, tossing them on the back of the sofa before collapsing into his usual chair, his head in his hands. Despite having spent most of the last week feeling like a fool, nothing could possibly top this level of idiocy.Molly was perched on the arm of the sofa nearby, giving him a moment to collect himself, no doubt. When he didn’t speak, she finally said, “Listen, Charlie, there’s a lot more to this story than you realize.”“I hope so,” he finally muttered. “Otherwise, I am simply the biggest imbecile ever to walk the face of the earth.”“Oh, come on now,” she scolded, “that’s not true. Charlie, when you hear her side of the story, I think you’ll realize this has a lot less to do with you than you think it does.”“Less to do with me?” he asked, sitting up straight. “Molly, we were engaged for

“What do you mean you think I should go talk to her? Are you mad? You of all people should know everything I’ve been through. The last thing I need to do is go talk to her!”“Well, no, not right now,” Jonathan admitted. He had only been in Charlie’s stateroom for a few minutes, but he had easily ascertained that his friend was hammered, a rarity. “Right now, what you need to do is put that bottle of Jameson down and go sleep this one off.”“You don’t understand, Jonathan. She. Lied. To. Me. Again!” He was standing on the outside deck, bottle in one hand, glass in the other, his shirt mostly unbuttoned, shoes off, still in his suit pants, and Jonathan was doing his best to ensure he kept his voice low enough that the other First Class passengers nearby in their staterooms couldn’t hear him.“Why don’t you come inside, and we’ll talk about it in there?” he asked for abo

Meg had just dozed off when a knocking on the cabin door jarred her awake. The family had come back briefly after breakfast, delivering the promised food stuffs, and then set out again. This time, Ruth was determined to see an “ocapus,” and even though her parents warned her that Uncle Charlie probably wouldn’t be around to help her find one, she was hopeful he would show up.She wasn’t the only one.But Meg was fairly certain when she reached the door, it wouldn’t be him on the other side. Pulling it open to find Jonathan standing in the hall, therefore, was not disappointing.“I think you should come with me,” he said, not even bothering with a greeting.Meg ran a hand through her disheveled hair. “Does he want to see me?” she asked, confused.“Not necessarily,” Jonathan admitted. “But I think you should still come with me.”“To Charlie’s stateroom?&r