Ertugrul shook his head. “Not exactly,” he replied. “I fear I didn’t have much time for such pursuits.” He dipped his head. “I cannot help but think my presence means you’ve lost the opportunity to spend time with him,” he said by way of an apology.
Waving him to join her on the settee, Adeline said, “Oh, not to worry. David would have his attentions if you weren’t here. Even so, given the time of the year, I best spend my evenings helping Mother with replies to all these invitations.” She waved toward the escritoire. “We worked on them the entire time you were in the billiards room, and there are still several that need responses.”
Ertugrul’s eyes rounded. “I’ve interrupted,” he said, about to rise.
Adeline held out a staying hand. “Not at all. My parents have gone up to the their apartments. My mother will finish them in the morning,” she said. She took a sip of tea and added, “I understand you’d like to go to the British Museum. Father says we can take the coach.”
“If it’s not too much trouble,” he replied. “I should probably practice my dancing, but... there is so much to do and see here in London—”
“Do you know how to waltz?” she asked.
Ertugrul furrowed a brow. “Of course.”
“Good. There will be two of those. No need to be concerned about knowing the Scottish Reel as Lady Weatherstone—she’s the hostess of tomorrow’s ball—she never has a Scottish reel on the schedule,” she explained. “So if you’re inclined to ask her to dance, you might suggest that one just to gauge her reaction. Shelovesit when younger men ask her dance to dance. The rest... you’ll probably remember when you see them performed.”
Chuckling softly, he said, “You seem to think I’ve been to an aristocrat’s ball before.”
Adeline inhaled softly. “Haven’t you? Whilst you were at Cambridge?”
He was about to respond before he dipped his head. “There were district balls, of course. I... I attended but did not dance.”
“Why ever not?” she asked before a hand went to her mouth. “Oh, you’re probably a Muslim. Do you... do you dance?”
A grin split his face. “Yes. Yes, of course we dance,” he replied. “But... when I was last in England, I was probably the only Muslim in England. Although there might have been some of the sailors that worked for the East India Company who stayed in the port cities,” he explained. “I knew I wasn’t the first Muslim to attend Cambridge, though, because one of my professors explained that he’d had a Persian student years before.”
“You must have felt terribly lonely,” Adeline remarked.
He considered the comment a moment before he shook his head. “Actually, it wasn’t much different from living in the sultan’s palace. Sons are always very sequestered from one another,” he explained. “Once I was old enough, I spent my time with my tutors. Occasionally saw my sister and my... mothers.” He winced when saying this last, as if he was embarrassed by the arrangement.
“I do hope you’re not going to feel overwhelmed by the crush tomorrow night,” Adeline murmured.
Ertugrul furrowed his dark brows. “Crush?” he repeated, obviously confused by the word.
“Oh, thecrowd,” she said by way of clarification. “There will be a lot of people there.”
“So I’ve been told.”
“You’ll be welcomed, though. The Weatherstones might be old-fashioned, but they’re the very best hosts.”
He took a sip of tea. “I seem to remember Sultana Charlotte saying something about them. An older couple, are they not?”
“Positively ancient,” Adeline said before she tittered. “Lord Weatherstone is very proud of his gardens. He’s all about planting the very latest in unusual blooms.”
“Blooms?”
Adeline straightened on the settee. “Flowers. This time of the year he’ll have tulips and jonquils. I don’t know about the roses, but he has an entire garden devoted to roses.”
Ertugrul angled his head to the side. “They are your favorite, are they not?”
Adeline inhaled softly as she eyed him with suspicion. “I suppose they are,” she admitted. “There are so many colors, though, it would be hard to choose just one as my favorite.” She noticed his teacup was empty. “Would you like more tea?”
His gaze darting to his cup, Ertugrul gave a start. “Is there more?”
“Of course. Elkins brought up a new pot a short while ago,” she said as she set her saucer on the low table in front of the settee and took his from him. She moved to where the tea service was set up. “He’s a very attentive servant.”
“I understand your father asked you about the museum? He... he may have volunteered you—”
“He did, and I don’t mind accompanying you one bit. I haven’t been since they opened another hall in the newest wing. The entire museum has been under construction for years, you see,” she replied as she filled his cup and added the milk.
