What he really meant to say was, why would she leave him alone with her unwed daughter?
“Prudence left a haddock in Mama’s vanity drawer, and Mama found it just before breakfast,” Isolde explained. “There is no telling when it was placed in the drawer, but Mama decided that Prudence played the trick out of spite.”
Edmund understood less and less with every word. “So, her solution was to take the girl to purchase a new dress?”
“In essence.” Isolde nodded, punching a few cushions back into plumpness. “She suspects that Prudence feels neglected because of all the attention that has been placed upon me of late, so she thought buying dresses and adornments might resolve the issue. Personally, I believe that Prudie just wanted to put a haddock in Mama’s vanity drawer because it is amusing.”
Edmund did not know how to feel about the Dowager’s absence, his responsibility shunted from distant guardian to true chaperone. The trouble was, he was not eligible tobeIsolde’s chaperone.
“And your mother thought this was a good idea?” he said in disbelief.
Isolde came to rest on the side of the settee. “She would not have departed if she did not. I suppose she sometimes forgets that you are not, in fact, part of the family.”
Taking himself to the garden doors to feel the refreshing breeze on his warm face, he paced back and forth for a short while, struggling to decide what to do. Julianna might not have seen any issue with the situation, but if there were any visitors, they certainly would.
“We shall just have to explain that Vincent has given me this responsibility,” he said after a few moments, grimacing. “In the meantime, you should dance.”
“Excuse me?”
Edmund sniffed, straightening his posture. “Last night, I noticed you missed a few steps. You cannot afford to be thought of as a poor dancer. While we are waiting to see if you have any callers, you should dance, so I can ensure you do not make the same mistakes again.”
She pushed away from the settee and came to stand a few paces away from him, resting her hands on her hips as she cast a dubious look at him. He could not blame her; it was an odd request.
“Speaking of last night,youought to address your manners. You were very badly behaved at the dinner table,” she remarked, searching his face in a manner that made him want to turn his gaze away.
He forced himself to hold her curious gaze instead. “You are right; I was. I have apologized already.”
“Maybe so, but if I am to dance with no music and no partner, then you can stand there and think about what possessed you to act foolish last night,” she said with a smirk. “That way, we can both feel foolish at the same time.”
Edmund was walking before he could stop himself, closing the gap between them, until he was close enough to see the faint freckles that had appeared upon her cheeks. Rather charming, in his opinion.
Gazing down at her, noting the gleam of surprise in her eyes, he said softly, “I can do nothing about the music, Isolde, but who said you would have no partner?”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Isolde’s breath abandoned her lungs as Edmund reached for her hand and weaved it through his arm, leading her to an open span of floor by the windows on the other side of the room. As if they were at a real ball, and he had etched his name upon her dance card.
“Are you to be my tutor?” she asked, recovering her voice.
He mustered a faint smile. “There is no one else.”
“With respect, Your Grace, I do not think this is necessary.”
Panic struck her out of nowhere, all of the lessons, all of the etiquette, all of the society rules that had been forced down her throat for years suddenly kicking in. And the first rule was very clear: being alone with a gentleman who was not family or a husband was entirely prohibited.
“I did not miss any steps,” she continued in earnest. “The dance was not as strict as the usual kind. Call it an improvisation more than a mistake. Truly, you do not need to do this. I should speak with the cook and see how the cakes are faring.”
But Edmund kept leading her to the other side of the room, where he stopped and turned to face her, taking both of her hands in his. She glanced down, her heart leaping into her throat, for she had not yet put on her gloves. His warm skin touched hers, his palms rougher than she had expected.
She met his gaze once more. “Vincent scolded me terribly for being alone in the palace gardens with a gentleman, andthathappened by accident. What do you think he would say if he could see this?”
“I think he would say that his best friend was instructing his sister in how to dance without error,” Edmund replied, undeterred.
His voice hardened as he added, “But why were you in the palace gardens alone with a gentleman? Your brother did not mention that.”
Isolde cursed herself for mentioning it, though it did surprise her that Vincent had not informed Edmund of that night’s events. Perhaps, he had thought Edmund would not be sympathetic, or worse, that he might feel the need to scold her a second time.
“It was an accident, as I said,” she muttered. “Mama was my chaperone, but she managed to get herself distracted by an old friend, and I did not realize she was not behind me until it was already too late. It could not have been more than a matter of minutes, though, until Ididrealize.”
