He blurted the words out. “Don’t apologize. I will happily dance and converse with you, Miss Armstrong.”
She met his eyes and smiled wryly. “Well, we shall see. You can dance with others, but I will be keeping a close watch. If anyone is presumptive enough to try to take you upstairs, I will rescue you.”
There was that quiver inside him that happened whenever Penelope turned forceful. He wanted to tell her how much he would like her to rescue him but decided against it. Perhaps, if he was very good and didn’t make any mistakes, he could win another kiss from her at the end of the evening.
There was a small orchestra, rather out of tune, but the couples who had taken to the floor were enjoying themselves. Penelope reached for his hand and led him into their midst. Callum slid his arm about her waist, and drew her in close, and they began to dance.
She seemed to be concentrating on watching his steps as he strove to do his best.
“You are very quiet,” she said at last. “Have you no conversation, MacKenzie?”
“I am struck dumb by your beauty,” he replied.
Penelope shot him a displeased look, but her cheeks were pink. “Rather overdoing it, MacKenzie?”
“It is only the truth,” he said boldly.
Penelope let her gaze run over him as they parted, just their fingertips touching, and then resumed the dance. “You are rather beautiful yourself,” she said in her droll way. “Has your aunt employed a valet?”
“My uncle’s valet,” he admitted. “He insisted I not leave the house until he was satisfied. I was too afraid to tell him nay.”
Penelope smiled. “I am glad to hear it. A good valet should strike fear into the heart of his master.” Her gaze seemed caught by something on the other side of the room and the pink flush in her cheeks grew more heated. Callum followed it to an alcove hidden behind a large potted plant. For a moment, he could hardly believe his eyes. He did not consider himself an innocent, but what he was seeing shocked him.
Of course he had been aware that, as well as dancing, there were other activities taking place in the room. Couples kissing and fondling and vanishing up the staircase. But now he could see that in the alcove, there was a woman on her back on a settee with her skirts thrown up, and between her legs was a gentleman, his buttocks bare and pumping.
His face must have shown his feelings at such a vulgar sight because Penelope squeezed his hand, and said once more, her voice full of shame. “Iamsorry. This is one of the more scandalous balls. If I had had a choice I would never—”
“No, I...” He cleared his throat. “I am just a wee bit surprised.”
“We can leave, but first we should make the most of the music and the dance floor,” she said in a practical voice, and they returned to their dance.
Callum thought this all rather strange. Penelope seemed more worried about his feelings than caring about the open debauchery around her. He could not imagine his mother being so unruffled—she would have taken a broomstick to the couple in the alcove—and as for his sister Cat, she would have been horrified. But as shocked as he was, Callum found that as they continued to dance together, the brush of her skirts against his legs, and the little wrinkle of concentration between her brows, her presence in his arms, held his attention significantly more than the goings on around them.
After a pause, she said, “You are very good at dancing, MacKenzie, but you need to learn to converse while doing so. Just some idle chit-chat, if that is all you can manage. Your partner will not care about deeper matters. The weather is a good fallback.”
“Do you always tell your clients to talk about the weather?”
She laughed. “Yes. Everyone in London has an opinion on the weather. I am sure it is the same in Scotland.”
“I hope my wife is not averse to a variety of different weathers. Bonnyrigg can be calm and sunny in the morning, only to turn wet and windy by noon. And then come evening, there may be a blizzard.”
She smiled but she was watching him closely. “You love it,” she declared.
“Bonnyrigg? I do. I would not want to live anywhere else.”
“Then you must find someone who will learn to love Bonnyrigg for your sake, if not her own.”
He thought about that. “I would not ask anyone to playact. That way lies misery for both parties, surely?”
She considered her answer. “I think if you love someone enough you can see a place through their eyes. Is that not just as good as loving it yourself?”
The dance had ended and another one began. Callum noticed a rakish looking gentleman hovering nearby, wanting to take his place with Penelope, and he gave him one of his formidable glares. The man turned around and hurried off.
Satisfied, he turned back to find Penelope watching him, her grey eyes sparkling. “Very good,” she said, her voice breathless and trying not to laugh. “That worked a treat. Lord Freith will not bother us again.”
“Did you know him?” Callum asked with a frown. “Did you want to dance with Lord Freith?”
Penelope shook her head. “I do not.” She paused and then added, “He was one of the gentlemen who made me an offer after Lord Muir died.”
