She sat and chatted with Lady Philippa a little longer, discussing the weather, the dinner and the manor in general and how they liked it. Lady Philippa smiled.
“You are very gracious company,” she said warmly. “It has been so pleasant talking to you.”
“Thank you,” Rosalyn said appreciatively. “It has been pleasant speaking to you as well.”
“One does not often find good company at such places,” Lady Philippa replied.
“Mayhap not.”
“Ladies! May I join you?” a voice said from behind where she sat. Rosalyn glanced over and her lips lifted in a grin to see Lady Harriet, the duke’s sister, coming over to join them. She inclined her head, but Georgina and Isabel had already stood up and were greeting her, waving her over to the chair at the head of the table. Rosalyn smiled to herself.
“This is very pleasant,” Lady Harriet said, smiling warmly at Rosalyn and her sisters. Her big smile included Lady Philippa in the group effortlessly. Rosalyn nodded. She could not help liking Lady Harriet, who she guessed to be closer to Georgina’s age than her own.
Her sisters started chatting excitedly with Lady Harriet, who joined in comfortably. Rosalyn glanced sideways at Lady Philippa, wondering whether to continue trying to talk, but Lady Philippa seemed content to listen.
“...and the musicians! They were excellent, were they not?” Isabel asked.
“Mama decided to engage them for this ball. We usually have another group, but I must confess, this one was far superior,” Lady Harriet agreed.
“The quadrille was excellent!" Georgina said excitedly.
Rosalyn listened as her sisters chatted and laughed with the duke’s sister so easily and freely. She could not help smiling to herself. It was a delight to see them so happy, and a joy to feel included in the group.
She glanced over at Lady Philippa. Even she had tried to make Rosalyn feel included, and it turned out that she had included herself in their big, happy group. Rosalyn shifted comfortably in her seat, feeling relaxed for the first time all evening. She had felt so isolated, yet perhaps, in time, she could adapt. Perhaps, with patience, settling into life here would be within her reach.
Chapter 7
Callum gazed out over the billiards room.
“If you were a touch more polite, then perhaps it would not be necessary to pretend,” he murmured, recalling her words quietly. They ran through his mind repeatedly. He still did not know whether to laugh or to scowl. She had struck him as spirited when he first met her, but now he could not deny it.
Be careful,his mind warned him. He absolutely did not wish to get close to her, though her hazel eyes drifted through his thoughts, making it impossible to think of anything else.
“Dash it! Are the shares in the rope trade really suffering?” A loud voice beside Callum sounded woeful, distracting him from his musing.
Callum sighed, feeling impatient with the chatter around the low mahogany table. He had never much liked the men’s gatherings in the billiards room—the men drank excessively and tempers sometimes flared; to say nothing of the tendency of the men to bet on the games of billiards. He could not feel comfortable in a room where betting took place.
“Feeling restive, old chap?” A voice near him asked. Callum shrugged.
“It was a large meal,” he replied to Lord Bronham, Lady Millicent’s father. The fellow had at some point joined him at the table. “Just a trifle nauseous,” he added, hurrying to cover whatever discomfort the earl might have noticed.
Lord Bronham—an older man with white hair and a white moustache—laughed. “It was a fine meal,” he said with a grin. “Capital!”
Callum nodded and murmured something that he hoped conveyed appreciation, then leaned back and went back to brooding.
“May I?” another voice asked. Callum looked up, surprised to see James there. He tried not to scowl. He did not like the fellow, no matter how hard he tried. He did not want the man to join them at the table, but he could think of no reason why he should not. He was saved from reply.
“Capital!” Lord Bronham replied, smiling and waving James to a chair. He smiled at Callum. “Grand to have all of us at one table, eh? Like-minded, we are. Like-minded.”
Callum frowned, but James cleared his throat.
“I was speaking to the earl about the horse races, just a minute ago,” James explained. “I am sure you would be able to help pick a winner, given your knowledge of horse breeding.”
“I do not follow the races,” Callum said tightly. It was the last topic he wished to discuss—though his father had been an avid follower. He pushed back his chair, trying to think of an excuse to escape.
“Just meant to comment on your insight as a breeder,” James demurred, clearly guessing that he had misspoken. That fact annoyed Callum still more.
“Long odds on Rowanwood,” the earl commented, nodding slowly. “Long odds.”
