Wed in Disgrace (Convenient Arrangements #3) - Rose Pearson Page 0,20

for her to smile at him, to blink and look away in embarrassment, or even to flush just a little. Instead, she remained stoic, watching him carefully but without any evident reaction.

“There will be some dancing later,” he said, feeling desperate as he struggled to know what to say next. “Perhaps you would like to step out with me?” To his embarrassment, Miss Mullins did not immediately respond. Instead, she pressed her lips together in a considered fashion, dropping her gaze. Evidently, the idea of dancing with him again was something that she felt to be embarrassing. Had there been whispers about her dancing with him at the ball?

“I think,” Lady Newfield said with a gentle hand on Miss Mullins’ shoulder, “that my goddaughter is a little concerned that her uncle might not approve, Lord Coventry.” She smiled in a kind manner and Timothy felt his embarrassment lift just a little. “Perhaps if you speak to him about your wish to dance with Miss Mullins, he will be able to inform you as to whether or not she has permission to do so.”

Timothy frowned, recalling how, at the ball, Miss Mullins had danced with Lord Fitzherbert, then with himself, and then with another gentleman a short time later. Had she been given a stern reproach from her uncle for doing so?

“I shall do so at once,” he said, bowing quickly and excusing himself from them both. “I shall return the moment I have discovered the answer.”

Making his way through the grand hall, Timothy kept a fair pace, moving quickly through the guests and seeking to discover where Lord Denholm might be. He could not understand why the gentleman did not want his niece to dance and feared that it might well be something to do with him. His brow furrowed as he feared the consequences that had been laid on Miss Mullins’ shoulders for doing so, wanting to make quite certain that she did not face such a thing again.

“Ah, Lord Coventry!” Lord Denholm appeared to be in a very jovial mood, and it did not take long for Timothy to notice the large amount of whisky in the gentleman’s glass, nor the way that Lord Denholm swayed from side to side.

“Lord Denholm,” he said stiffly. “I have come to speak to you about Miss Mullins.”

“Miss Mullins,” Lord Denholm repeated, his eyes a little hooded. “My dear Delilah...has she been troubling you?” His smile began to fade.

“No, indeed not,” Timothy protested quickly, holding up his hands, palms flat. “I came only to ask you if I might have your permission to dance with her this evening.”

Lord Denholm chuckled, his brow furrowing. “I told her not to dance. I told her specifically that you did not care for dancing and berated her in the sternest fashion.” He shook his head, sighed, and took another sip of his whisky. “But she would not listen to me, I fear. I am sorry that she forced you into taking her to the dance floor. She knows very well not to do so again.”

Timothy blinked rapidly, a little surprised and irritated at the same time. “Lord Denholm, I would be happy to dance with Miss Mullins, so long I have your permission.”

Lord Denholm swayed again, one side to the other. “I do not want her making a spectacle of herself, Lord Coventry. She is only to be seen with you, is she not? Therefore, to dance with any other is shameful, surely?”

“I should not have thought so,” Timothy replied, wondering at the stern manner of Lord Denholm. “I should be glad to dance with her, at the very least, whenever she should wish it.”

Shrugging, Lord Denholm let out a long sigh. “Very well,” he muttered with a shrug. “If you should wish to, then you have my permission, Lord Coventry.”

“I thank you,” Timothy replied, relieved, wondering if he could take his leave of Lord Denholm as quickly as he could. “Now, if you will—”

“You do know you have to court her now, do you not?”

Hearing the slight slur to Lord Denholm’s words, Timothy sighed inwardly and let out a long breath. “I do not think there is any particular need to do so, given that she is, most likely, entirely suitable,” he said slowly. “Once we have spent a few hours in each other’s company, we shall—”

“Her godmother insists,” Lord Denholm interrupted with a wave of his hand. “Courtship. Courtship for Delilah’s sake, which is utterly ridiculous, but Lady Newfield will not permit me to