Page 18 of Mirrors of the Past

Viola forgot herself for a moment. ‘Elsie! No! I’m sure we don’t want to spend any time together. That’s quite all right.’ She shook her arm fruitlessly. Yes. That grip was definitely vice-like.

‘Oh, no. Not at all!’ Elsie would not be dissuaded. ‘Laurie would, I’m sure, prefer to spend some time with you, rather than be paraded like a prize piglet for the ladies here tonight.’

‘Prize piglet?’ Viola was stunned. What was the “prize” with Laurie Teague?

‘Yes. They all know me, of course,’ said Elsie, but without a trace of entitlement. It was simply a fact. ‘They know my father was the Duke of Trecarrow, and all about Pencradoc and Wheal Mount and everything. In fact, the reason I’m even here tonight is because our dearest hostess wishes me to recommend her godson to the Royal Academy.’ Elsie pulled a face. ‘Not sure if she knows I have no influence over that whatsoever. Quite. Anyway. Laurie — the son of the famous artist Ruan Teague — is, of course, Ruan Teague’s heir. And as such, is a good catch.’ She raised her eyebrows, watching her brother gradually come back to life from his stance of frozen horror. ‘So inevitably, once our delightful hostess realised Laurie was in the vicinity, she of course invited him too. In the hopes that a young lady here will indeed reel him in.’ She left loose of Viola’s arm and mimed a fishing rod.

‘I do not envy the young lady who does succeed in reeling him in,’ Viola somehow managed to say. Silently, she added, But it won’t be me! ‘But seriously, Elsie, I can just find my brother and help him manage his moral compass tonight, and all will be well.’

She made to leave, but she was too slow and all of a sudden he was in front of her.

It annoyed her that he was so tall. Even in her heels, all ready for dancing, she really felt unbearably short tonight. And the fact that, for a brief moment, she had seen him smile and knew that expression would never light on her. It gave her a feeling she was unaccustomed to, deep in the pit of her stomach: jealousy. Pure and simple jealousy.

The feeling made her start. Why would she be jealous that Laurie Teague would smile at other girls in a way he wouldn’t ever smile at her? Surely, she shouldn’t care one jot. But she didn’t have a chance to ponder it further as he was only inches away from her now.

‘El,’ Laurie said, not looking at Viola. ‘And Louis. I thought I saw you hiding over here.’ He raised the glasses of champagne he was holding, two in one hand, one in the other. ‘Just went to get some refreshments.’

‘We found Viola and Sam when you were . . . refreshing,’ said Louis with a smile, taking one of the glasses.

‘Not for me, thank you,’ said Elsie, looking at the sparkling liquid. ‘I want to keep my wits about me tonight, thank you. I shall just have some — normal — wine.’

Louis looked at Viola wryly. ‘I’m not speaking out of turn, because she would be the first to say it — but Elsie and champagne don’t go well together.’

‘Oh, I’m sure Viola can recall Pearl’s last ball,’ said Elsie comfortably. ‘Champagne definitely didn’t suit me then — but look at the outcome.’ She touched Louis’ cheek. ‘I’m rather glad I was so outspoken.’

‘I am also rather glad,’ said Louis, taking hold of her hand and kissing it.

Viola did indeed remember Elsie’s declaration. It had been an education. But she was too polite to agree, so she simply smiled.

‘Laurie, perhaps Viola would like that spare glass of champagne?’ said Elsie. ‘And also, you two haven’t greeted one another yet.’

Laurie fixed his gaze on Viola, his eyes like burning embers, emanating something she couldn’t quite decipher.

He bowed, rather stiffly. ‘Good evening, Miss Arthur.’

She bobbed a tiny curtsey and inclined her head just a smidgen. ‘Good evening, Mr Teague.’

He offered her the champagne glass and she hesitated, then took it with another quick nod of thanks.

She was spared any further horror by the reappearance of Sam.

‘Laurie!’ he said expansively. ‘Good to see you! I was just talking to that delightful young lady over there,’ he indicated the pretty brunette, ‘but then her beau reappeared and I was sadly sidelined. Viola, would you care to dance?’

‘Oh — yes. Please. That would be wunnerful.’ Viola was so relieved to be able to escape Laurie’s immediate vicinity, she would have agreed to almost anything at that moment.

‘Even though it’s quite old-fashioned compared to our ragtime routines?’ Sam smiled.

‘Even so,’ she replied.

‘A little Parisian waltz, then? Just to mix things up here?’ Sam and Viola had made up their own version of the waltz in Paris and, rightly or wrongly, enjoyed the look of confusion on peoples’ faces when they started dancing.

Viola agreed and allowed her brother to whisk her away, far away, from Laurie Teague.

Well — as far as she could get, anyway, in a full-sized ballroom in a house in Mayfair.