He was taking the mess of this in his stride, but Callista felt no less humiliated when he mentioned her cheek. Merlin; she accepted the napkin and began to dab hastily at her mouth, though she seemed to have missed the spot, or gotten the wrong side, because nothing had been daubed onto the napkin. (She had removed her mask to eat; and that seemed like a wise decision in retrospect, if she were this indelicate.) “Does it?” she asked, with a beseeching gaze at the other man, hoping he would discreetly guide her to the offending area. “I don’t –”
It was hard to be certain, his masquerade mask covering part of his face, precisely whom she was speaking to, but Callista was sure they had met before, because she had been in society enough that few people were new. Somehow it made everything worse, that she was too worked up to recognise him by his eyes or his stature: was he as relaxed as he sounded, or just preparing himself to laugh?
It was hard to be certain, his masquerade mask covering part of his face, precisely whom she was speaking to, but Callista was sure they had met before, because she had been in society enough that few people were new. Somehow it made everything worse, that she was too worked up to recognise him by his eyes or his stature: was he as relaxed as he sounded, or just preparing himself to laugh?
