“May I?”
“There isn’t room,” she began, but at Webster’s gesture, the staff quickly stepped back and even moved the kitchen table to the side. Lord Sayres arched a brow at her, his expression mischievous.
“Any other objections?” he asked.
Many, all crowding against her tongue. It was silly. Everyone was watching. The paper cut flower was a soggy mass drooping in the vase. But when she looked in his eyes, her anxieties faded. She nodded her head, and he immediately clasped her hand in his and set the other at her waist. She knew the dance. She’d been approved for the waltz since her first Season. But it was nothing compared to what they did now.
With so little room in the kitchen, he held her inappropriately tight. She tried to relax but she’d never been good at dancing. This close, she was likely to trip them both and knock someone unconscious on the stove.
“Trust me,” he said as he smiled at her. “I’m strong enough to keep you safe.” And then he winked at her.
Ridiculous that a simple wink could relax her, but it did. When it came from him, it certainly did. So she nodded and he began to move her left and right in an exhilarating kind of swoop.
He was right. His arms held her safely as they danced. In fact, she could feel the solid power in his muscles, so steady that she believed that if she did lose her footing, he would be able to hold her in place as if she weighed nothing.
Very well then, she thought, as she exhaled some of her fears. She could relax in his arms, let him take some of her weight in his supporting arm as she arched her back. And once she did that, he straightened even taller as they moved. Their knees didn’t knock together once, and her feet landed on solid ground with every step.
Mr. Callatos speeded up the tempo. A waltz was often a sedate affair, but not with the tinker leading. Lord Sayres matched the beat, spinning her in tighter circles until she had no choice but to grip him tight and hope her feet went where they should. They did. And for a few breathless moments, she felt like she was flying.
It was so wonderful that she laughed in breathless delight.
Then the dance slowed. Her feet found a stable purchase, though her heart beat in rapid pulses at her throat. The staff was clapping, Mr. Callatos being the most enthusiastic, all while Lord Sayres held her gaze.
“I didn’t trip us,” she whispered.
“Of course not,” he said, as if it had been her doing. It was all him, and she reluctantly stepped back when he released her waist. But he didn’t let go of her right hand even as he stepped back to look at the flower vase. “Did it spill?”
She looked down at her dress. She was wearing one that would show water spots clearly, but it appeared that the vase had done its work without disaster. Or the wet paper had sufficiently clogged the top of the thing that it was one and the same. A real flower would do something similar since the stem would choke off many spills.
“I’m dry as well,” he said as felt across his lapel. Then he flashed Callatos a grin. “Can you make more of these? With corks?”
“I can have a dozen by the end of the month!”
“No, no,” Lord Sayres said as he looked at the vase. “We shall need them in two weeks. As many as you can fashion.”
Mr. Callatos frowned, but he didn’t argue. “I shall get straight to work.”
It took Gwen a moment to bring her thoughts back to order. The dance had been so lovely that she’d completely lost track of what she had to say to the man. But a discussion of schedule brought it all back to her.
“A month will be plenty of time, Mr. Callatos,” she said. And when Lord Sayres turned to frown at her, she felt her cheeks flush. “I’m afraid I have done a terrible miscalculation. I’m an idiot for it. I cannot tell you how terrible I feel about it.” She took a breath. “My lord, our plans will not work for this Season. We must delay until next year.”
His eyes widened, and his expression fell. Not into dismay as she expected, but into doubt. It was the look of a man who thought he knew best, and it never failed to raise her hackles.
“We have been moving so fast,” she continued. “You surprised me last night and I was caught up in the enthusiasm, but it will not work this Season. I’m sorry.”
He nodded. “I can see that you are serious, and we must discuss this then.”
“Yes—”
“Will you take a walk with me then?”
“What?”
“Didn’t you tell me that you often go to a park in the mornings?”
“Yes, to sketch.”
“Then let us go there.”