“And I presume they are just as impatient as you were?” she asked.
“Well, May does not particularly care. She never cares about such things. She is still far too preoccupied with her books. Rose, on the other hand, is nearly dying at the thought of being the last in line; she has to wait for May to come out first.”
Georgiana giggled along with Jane as she pictured the two younger sisters acting just as she described. “Poor Rose. Do you think she might steal in at some point during the evening?”
Jane shook her head. “I hope not. Mother and Father left specific instructions for Fanny—that is our governess—to keep an eye on her, so she has no opportunity to do so, but she may try, regardless.”
Unfortunately, another guest wished to have a turn speaking to Lady Jane, and Georgiana stepped back, taking a moment to look around the room.
To her surprise, Walter was just entering the room. She was equally surprised to note his mother was not with him, nor was Miss Rutherford by his side. Before he could glance in her direction, she turned away, just as Ambrose moved to stand closer by her side.
She noticed he had seen Walter, as well. “I see you are looking out for me,” she said with a smile.
He smiled back as he replied, “Of course, I am. Isn’t that my whole purpose for being here?” he teased. “Don’t let his presence here disturb you. I have no intention of letting him bother you.”
She smiled at him in gratitude, though she doubted Walter would be deterred by his presence if he were determined to talk to her. “I don’t plan to worry at all,” she replied.
Dinner was announced at that moment, so all the guests began to move into the dining hall. This time, she was not placed at the table anywhere near the baron, for which she was grateful. However, she was able to see him from where she sat.
As the meal progressed, she felt certain he kept glancing at her. To verify it, she shifted slightly in her seat, so she could watch him without being seen to look in his direction and, as she suspected, she saw him stealing secretive glances at her.
Georgiana wasn’t entirely certain how she felt about it, even though she knew he was only looking at her to gauge when he might get an opportunity to apologize. She decided not to ponder her feelings and decided to shift back in her seat.
Ambrose, sitting beside her, had noticed her actions, but without being able to determine exactly their purpose. But now he asked, “Is something the matter?”
“No … well, Lord Bartlett keeps looking my way on occasion,” she admitted.
He instantly glared in that direction, though the culprit failed to see it. “Here,” Ambrose said as he shifted himself forward in his own seat and encouraged her to move closer to him in her chair and a little further back. “That should take care of that annoyance.”
“Thank you, Ambrose,” she replied with a smile, as she saw she was now out of sight of Walter. “It really wasn’t necessary but thank you, nevertheless.”
“It is no trouble at all. You shouldn’t have to be subjected to his stares,” he said, as dessert was served. “You might have said something sooner…”
“I wasn’t certain if he was glancing at me or if it was just my imagination.”
“Ah, so that was what you were doing.”
“Yes,” she replied as she took a spoonful of her dessert. “Mmm, this flummery is particularly good!” she remarked, then noted her remark made Ambrose smile. “What?”
“Nothing. I am simply glad you are able to enjoy the meal this time,” he replied almost hesitantly.
“Well, I was more nervous then than I am now,” she told him. Turning her attention to her dessert, she was soon finished with it, as were most of the other guests.
Soon, the dinner was over, and everyone began to make their way to the ballroom, where the rest of the evening was to be spent. Georgiana was enjoying looking at all the lovely dresses when Ambrose stood in front of her with a bow and said, “May I have the honor of sharing your first set?”
“I would love to dance with you,” she replied, as she took his hand and let herself be led out onto the floor. It was not a dance she was very familiar with, and Ambrose even less so, much to her amusement.
While they were dancing, her attention was distracted for a moment when her eyes caught sight of Walter standing next to the refreshment table. Even though it was only for a moment, their eyes seemed to lock.
Her mind went back to the first time he had approached her and asked her to dance. The expression on his face now seemed so similar to the one he had worn back then…
Her foot missed a step, and Ambrose had to help her get back into the rhythm of the dance. “What is wrong?” he asked, looking concerned.
“Nothing. I was just distracted for a moment,” she quickly replied. She kept her eyes on the floor to concentrate on her footing, but inwardly, she was still remembering that first dance with Walter.
The connection between them had been instantaneous, and that one dance had left her feeling flushed and out of breath, even though it had been a slow one. She hoped recalling it wasn’t making her cheeks flush but, fortunately, just then, her dance with Ambrose came to an end.
“Well, perhaps we should both practice our dancing a little more,” Ambrose said as he led her to the side.
She noticed how he deliberately led them away from where Walter was standing, though she had no complaint about it. She needed to clear her head a little, and, since they were heading towards some very comfortable-looking seats, she thought sitting for a while would be nice.
“I think practice sounds like a good idea. Or we could simply stick to the dances we are more familiar with,” she teased.
Ambrose looked mildly scolded, knowing he had asked her to dance before they could tell what the dance was going to be. “I don’t know … it was a challenge to try an unfamiliar one, wasn’t it? And don’t you like challenges?”
“Hmm, I will have to think about that,” she retorted, sitting down and spotting her uncle heading towards them.
Her gaze drew Ambrose’s eyes in that direction, as well, and Jonas was clearly heading towards them deliberately, but his gaze seemed to be more on Ambrose than on Georgiana.
“Ambrose! There is someone I want to introduce you to,” Jonas said as he neared them.
Ambrose hesitated as he glanced at her. “And who is this important person?” he asked, clearly not wanting to leave her side.
“He is a prominent London horse breeder. I know you have that mare you are wanting to breed, have you not? Well, he is just the man to go to for a good sire for the foal.”
“Perhaps we could—”