She scoffed. “From what I recall of Lady Jane, she could no doubt sit still for twice as long without fidgeting. I doubt she is even nervous at all.”
“And what about you? Are you worried about the possibility of seeing Lord Bartlett there?”
After thinking about it for a moment, she shook her head, freezing when she heard a gasp from Lucy, who was still working on her hair. “Sorry! I forgot for a moment … never mind. In answer to your question, no, I am not really worried about it. I can’t say I am looking forward to it, but it is something I know I must expect.”
She saw Lucy nod as they both lapsed into silence. A few minutes later, Lucy stepped back with an approving nod and said, “There, I am done, and just in time, too, since I am sure it is close to time for you to leave.”
“I think you are right,” Georgiana replied as she stood. Heading out of her room and down the stairs, she saw her uncle Jonas and Ambrose at the door waiting.
“Ah, good, we are ready to go,” Georgiana heard a voice behind her say. Turning, she saw her aunt heading in the same direction.
“Yes, I thought you would want to leave early,” Jonas replied, as they went out of the door and towards the carriage. “Dalwater Manor is some distance away, and we don’t know what delays there might be.”
“Well, you were right,” Adelaide replied with a smile at her husband.
Soon, they were in the carriage and on their way, the ride taking them almost two hours. There was not a lot of conversation in the carriage during the journey, but what little there was consisted of light topics, such as the last time they had seen the marquess and marchioness.
As soon as they arrived at the house, they were escorted to the drawing room, where a few of the other guests were already mingling. Georgiana was not surprised to see Jane looking completely at ease with all the attention on her. She looked as though she was quite enjoying it.
Georgiana still took her moment to talk to Jane as soon as she could. “Well, if you were anyone else, I would be telling you not to be nervous, but I know you have no need of such advice.”
“Of course not. I have been looking forward to this for far too long. I am just glad to finally be making my debut. My younger sisters must wait their turn for such attention.”
“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