She ignored the curious eyes on her as she stood, her trousers a bit wrinkled from shifting in her seat during the lecture. Her mother looked a little frantic around the eyes, while the minder who Caris had left behind only appeared relieved.
“What were you thinking, slipping away like that?” Portia demanded in a low voice as Caris drew closer.
“I wanted to see what sort of engineering classes they had available,” Caris said.
“You know we didn’t have time for that, not with your final fitting happening today. As it is, we’re going to belate.”
The classroom was emptying out, and with the door at the top of the stairs, everyone had to pass by their little group on the stairs. The five people seated to Caris’ right shuffled past her mother, and then she found herself standing before Portia and the fiercely disapproving look on her face.
“If I’m to come here next term, I wanted to know what to expect. Surely that isn’t cause for alarm,” Caris said stubbornly.
Portia frowned. “It is when you tell no one where you are going. Caris, my dear, we didn’t come to Amari to spend your time here.”
“Idid.”
“Pardon the interruption, but if you’re worried about the quality of classes the Aether School of Engineering provides, don’t be. The academics here are top-notch,” her seat partner said from behind her.
Caris glanced back at the young man, looking up at him. He was quite a bit taller than her now that they were both standing, but he politely didn’t loom over her.
“I thank you for your opinion, Mr.—” Portia began.
He dipped his head in a respectful little nod since there wasn’t any room to bow. “Nathaniel Clementine.”
Her mother arched an eyebrow. “Mr. Clementine of the Clementine Trading Company?”
“That would be my father. Please, call me Nathaniel.”
“You may address me as Baroness Dhemlan. This is my wayward daughter, Caris.”
“I’m not wayward, Mother. I’m exactly where I want to be,” Caris muttered.
Portia sighed, gesturing for Caris to leave the row. “That is our problem right now. Come along, my dear.”
“Would it be remiss of me to escort you to your destination, Baroness Dhemlan? Your daughter had some interesting opinions regarding the engine Professor Arquette was discussing, and I would love to hear more of what she thinks,” Nathaniel asked.
Portia paused for a moment before saying, “You may. Our motor carriage is in the guest lot.”
“That will be on the eastern side of the school grounds. I’ll be happy to show you the quickest way there.”
“Were you a student here, Nathaniel?”
“Yes. I graduated last year with a focus on steam train engines. Professor Arquette wasn’t teaching at the time, but I’ve heard from several contemporaries who still attend that he’s an excellent professor and quite gifted in the mechanics of airship engines. I had the pleasure of running into him at a pub some months ago, and he invited me to audit his classes whenever I have the time. We’ve taken tea together on occasion since then to discuss peer reports on new inventions.”
“Did you find the curriculum invigorating while you attended?”
“Quite so, Lady Dhemlan.”
Nathaniel glanced at Caris, who tilted her head at him. “You studied steam trains for your business here?”
He smiled brilliantly at her, but if Nathaniel hoped Caris would turn into a simpering idiot simply because he looked at her, then he would be wrong. “I did.”
Caris knew the Clementine Trading Company was the largest transportation company originating out of Amari, with a fleet of steam trains crisscrossing the continent to deliver trade goods across borders. Her family’s own company, Six Point Mechanics, did business with them to move their patented filtration machines.
Unlike her family, the Clementines had been offered a noble title once several generations back but had declined, causing quite a scandal. They remained top-tier merchants, though, richer than even some noble bloodlines, including her own, and Caris wasn’t unaware of what it meant to have Nathaniel’s interest.
She just didn’t care how others might.
Portia deftly bid goodbye to the pair of guides who had been tasked with showing them both around in favor of allowing Nathaniel to escort them back to their motor carriage. The Aether School of Engineering’s campus was situated on the western side of the city, having expanded over the decades by buying up surrounding housing lots to convert them into lecture halls and dormitories.
