Lord Cosgrove, the hero of Unmasking Miss Appleby is a man. The heroine, Charlotte, is a woman who’s pretending to be a man (Mr. Albin).

Charlotte is an educated woman. She can read French, Latin and Greek, but she doesn’t know how to tie a neckcloth, ride astride, or throw a punch. These are all skills she is about to learn . . .

NECKCLOTHS

One of the very first things Lord Cosgrove (Marcus) notices about Mr. Albin is his neckcloth.

Albin’s neckcloth was atrociously tied. It added to his appearance of youthfulness.

Marcus isn’t a dandy, but he does like to dress well. His secretary’s neckcloths are a great trial to him.

“I am perfectly capable of dressing myself.” His gaze fell on Albin’s neckcloth, lopsided and somewhat wrinkled. “Unlike some of us.”

Albin raised a hand and fumbled with his neckcloth.

“Don’t. You’re making it worse.”

So much of a trial, in fact, that Marcus finally takes matters into his own hands.

Cosgrove’s expression grew pained. “Albin, I must insist—I really must insist—that you learn to tie a respectable neckcloth.”

Charlotte touched the knot of muslin at her throat. “What’s wrong with it, sir?”

“An organ-grinder’s monkey could tie a neater neckcloth.” Cosgrove pushed away from the windowsill. “Upstairs with you. It’s time you had a lesson.”

Personally, I think I'd be as bad at tying neckcloths as Charlotte is. They look fearfully intricate!




[Public domain image courtesy of Wikipedia.]