Page 41 of Dancing with an Enigmatic Duke
He shrugged lightly, which caused him to wobble a little in the dance, but Emmeline did not mind. He seemed a very down to earth sort of man. When the dance finally ended he led her off of the floor.
“Can I offer you a refreshment?” Lord Hawley offered.
Emmeline nodded. “That would be lovely. Thank you.”
“It is customary for a gentleman to offer a young lady refreshment after exercising her so in a dance. Do not let Lord Torrington forget such things. He seems to always be in a hurry going somewhere.” Lord Hawley’s words were not meanspirited. Emmeline wondered if the man could even manage meanspirited, but decided she would rather not know.
As they walked to the refreshment table, she ventured, “You said you were acquainted with Lord Torrington?”
“Yes. I have had some minor business dealings with him. He seems a passing fair man from my experience, just very busy.” Lord Hawley retrieved a cup of the sweet drink they were serving and brought handed it to Emmeline.
“Again, thank you,” Emmeline said, taking a sip. She knew she was not supposed to hold up gentlemen who were probably in a hurry to get to their next dance partner, but Emmeline could not help but ask, “What is it that you do?”
Lord Hawley smiled and said proudly, “I dabble in a lot of things, but I met Lord Torrington through my shipping supply undertaking. We specifically make roping out of a variety of materials. We are also known for our canisters, which the tobacco traders favour.”
“Really?” She had never even thought about the implements that it took to get goods across the oceans safely. “Do the canisters keep the tobacco dry much better than other storage methods?”
“I say, yes. They provide a large amount of storage that is strong and can not only keep things airtight but also survive being tossed about the hold of ships. The cylindrical shape is very strong.” Lord Hawley smiled and said with pleasure, “It is so rare to find a young lady interested in business matters.”
Emmeline internally scolded herself. Francesca was forever telling her to keep topics light and fun, show interest in but not knowledge of a man’s work. At least Lord Hawley did not seem to mind. Emmeline hid a small smile behind the fan that she kept at her wrist with a piece of ribbon.
Lord Hawley sighed with regret. “Alas, I have promised another dance to a young lady. I would love to dance with you again, but I fear that people might talk. I hope that I see you at the next ball, Lady Callum.”
“I look forward to seeing you again as well, Lord Hawley.” Emmeline gave him a curtsey before he turned and left to find his next dance partner.
The rest of the ball was a blur as she suddenly had more partners than she could dance with. Emmeline found she rather liked balls, but not always her partner. Several of the men were actively against Lord Torrington and probably only danced with her out of spite. Emmeline shook her head and wondered how anyone got so bitter.
By the time the dance ended, she was in fine spirits. Lord Torrington fell into step beside her as the ball ended and they left to wait for their carriages. “You looked like you were having quite the time, Lady Callum.”
“It was a splendid ball,” Emmeline replied with a smile. “How were your endeavours?”
Lord Torrington said thoughtfully, “I secured a new resupplying stop.”
“That is a good thing, is it not?” Emmeline watched him in amusement as he moved his head from side to side as if he were not quite sure if he agreed with her. “It cannot be a horrible thing.”
“Of course not, but then I do owe a very voracious lord a favour, and I do not like owing people.”
Emmeline could not help but giggle. She hid it as quickly as she could behind her fan. Still, several people turned their eyes towards her, and Emmeline felt very much like hiding behind the tall lord beside her. Emmeline whispered, “At least you got some business done.”
Harcourt forestalled any further conversation with his arrival. “There you are!”
“Surely we were not that hard to find,” Lord Torrington retorted.
Her brother slapped his friend on the shoulder. “To tell the truth, I was trying to finish a conversation with Lord Hawley.”
“Oh, I met Lord Hawley tonight. He seems a nice fellow,” Emmeline chimed in.
Lord Torrington nodded. “He is as far as I remember from the touch of business I did with him. He tends to stay out of the papers at least.”
“And that is something we all should aspire to,” Harcourt said as if giving him a toast for his feat. “Will you come lunch with me tomorrow, Nash? I wish to discuss further the split of ships and such.”
Lord Torrington agreed with a sigh. “It shall have to be in the morning, I have an appointment across London in the afternoon.”
“Oh, that reminds me. I received an invitation for Emmeline and her escort to attend a small dinner party from Lady Grayson.” Harcourt looked around as Francesca arrived behind them.
Lord Torrington looked vaguely displeased by that. “When is this dinner party?”
“Do not look so vexed. Surely spending an evening with my sister cannot be so bad.” Harcourt was clearly joking, but Emmeline still folded her arms and eyed her brother with irritation.
