Turning back to the room, he scanned the audience for his quarry and true reason for attending the night’s lecture.
Being tall did have its advantages as he could see everyone in the audience, of which there must be over a hundred. He hadn’t thought a new design for coal lamps would be of such keen interest. He took a methodical approach, studying people in each row, looking for two women, one with thick dark brown tresses and one with chestnut seated next to an older gentleman. It was more difficult than he anticipated since there were far more women than he’d expected to see at a lecture. Did they really find the safety of coal miners or the mechanical working of their lamps so interesting?
He finished his perusal of the room, but had only two possible prospects. Neither of which seemed exactly right. Lady Joanna usually wore her hair in a braided knot with a single long curl that came over her shoulder and Lady Mariel wore hers pulled back in a knot at the base of her neck, with wispy curls of hair about her face. If he remembered correctly, neither lady sported extravagant accessories. He only found one lady who appeared to have the braided knot, but the woman next to her had golden hair loosely knotted and many curls on the sides, much like Lady Caroline’s.
Had the Mabrys eschewed the lecture for a livelier entertainment? If he had attended alone, he would have considered leaving since the lecture was of little interest to him. He was primarily in attendance to discover if Lady Joanna was his thief. An older gentleman stepped onto the dais, upon which was a table with various items that would no doubt be explained in the lecture. The older man welcomed them all, explained there would be refreshments in the other room afterward so that people could talk further with Lord Davy, then he went into the man’s credentials. Despite his lack of interest, James admitted Lord Davy seemed to have a significant background to speak on it.
Finally, Lord Davy stepped upon the dais. The younger man, or at least younger than James expected, smiled as he explained how excited he was by his new design, then proceeded to detail the origin of his thought process. James could not fault him for his logic and by the time Lord Davy demonstrated the lamp, he found himself clapping with the rest of the audience. There was something so simple in the principle yet genius in its application.
As the audience filed into the other room, he remembered his purpose. Standing to the side, he allowed his companions to precede him. “I will join you in a moment. I wish to ask Lord Davy a question.”
Lady Caroline nodded and continued forward while Lord Holburn leaned in to whisper. “A tad dry to me, but to good purpose, I suppose.” The older man took his daughter on his arm and followed the people slowly leaving the room into the next one.
James studied each group of people. A small number milled around Lord Davy, and that was there he found her. She was with the blonde woman and an older gentleman. Joining the group of no more than six, he waited patiently as Lord Davy finished answering a question, and two young men moved off. As the lord gave his attention to the last young man, James spoke quietly, so as not to alert Lady Joanna to his presence. “My Lord, may I inquire? Are you Lord Wakefield?”
The older gentleman turned around, a smile of welcome on his face. “I am. And who do I have the pleasure of addressing?”
“I am James Huntington, the Duke of Northwick.”
The older man’s eyes widened. “Your Grace, it is an honor. I did not know you were in London.”
He raised his eyebrows at that. “I apologize. I thought you would be aware as your two daughters and nephew attended a dinner I hosted earlier this week.”
The man looked over his shoulder before turning back, his bushy eyebrows knit in confusion. “This I was not aware of. Which of my daughters attended?”
It was his turn to be surprised. “Lady Joanna and Lady Beaumont. Do you have more?”
The man’s smile returned. “I had four. If you have met Joanna, I must introduce you to Amelia.” Lord Wakefield turned, waiting for Lord Davy to finish his answer to the blonde woman, who must be another Mabry.
It was then that Joanna noticed him. Her eyes widened in surprise before narrowing in calculation. Not one to play ignorant, she approached. “Your Grace.” She gave the barest of curtsies. “I was under the impression you were otherwise occupied this evening.”
He gave her his most haughty tone. “My plans changed.”
“Obviously. My question is why?” Her hazel gaze, which looked more blue next to the aqua-colored dress she wore, didn’t waver.
“I believe that is rather obvious. I determined that a lecture on miner’s lamps would be more interesting than a recital.”
She clearly didn’t believe him. “And what of Lady Elsbeth? I’m sure she was hoping to attend the recital.” She scanned the now empty room. “Unless you brought her with you?”
The question sounded hopeful. Why would she think Elsbeth would be interested in coal lamps? Then again, why was she? “No, she did not deign to accompany me. She preferred to attend the theater tomorrow night.”
Before she could reply, her father brought a lovely blonde who was clearly related to Lady Joanna, but in every instance where Joanna was dark, the woman was light. “Here she is, Your Grace. This is my youngest, Lady Amelia.”
She curtsied. “It is an honor to meet you, Your Grace.”
He nodded. “And I you. I was not aware that Lady Joanna and Lady Beaumont had another sister.”
Lady Amelia gave a soft chuckle. “I’m afraid that’s my fault. I’m so rarely out and about that I think they may forget about me.”
Lady Joanna grasped Lady Amelia’s arm. “We never forget her.” She looked fondly on her younger sister. “She is our pride and joy. The most talented of all of us.”
The warmth with which Lady Joanna delivered that caught him by surprise. There was true affection in her gaze. Something in that look triggered a long-forgotten memory of his older sister holding his hand and gazing at him in the same way.
Confusion filled him, and he stiffened.
“Oh, one moment, Lord Davy.” Lady Amelia disengaged her arm from her sister’s and winked at her. “Excuse me, Your Grace.” She joined her father in following the speaker from the lecture hall.
“Is something wrong?” Lady Joanna stared at him.
