Eden smiled without humor. “I know I hold little sway anywhere, but if I mention my wife…”
Michael shook his head, sighing heavily. “For Lady Eden’s comfort, I will dance the first three dances.”
“As will I,” Henshaw added. Then there appeared a devious quirk to his mouth. “Provided you and Lady Eden dance the first with us.”
Eden grimaced in response. “That was already determined, thank you. In exchange for your sacrifice, you all get a half a crown lead on any gambling you do in the card room.”
Michael snorted softly. “Can I just get half a crown? I’ll lose it in the first hand if I gamble.”
They all chuckled and Eden thanked them again, before moving to the musicians.
“You were supposed to refuse!” Tyrone hissed when out of his brother’s earshot.
Henshaw gave him an incredulous look. “When he asked us to help make Lady Eden more at ease? Just how heartless are you, Demaris?”
Tyrone scowled and shook his head. “Just enough for my own self-preservation. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to procure my partners for these ridiculous dances to ensure I survive them.” He bowed dismissively and strode away.
Michael and Henshaw watched him go, then looked at each other. “Is Annabelle Wintermere here?” he asked Henshaw.
“No,” Henshaw replied with a confused frown. “Why?”
“No reason.” Michael glanced at the door to the ballroom, seeing Sebastian and Izzy Morton entering, followed by Sebastian’s sister, Kitty. He smiled to himself and indicated them with his head. “The Mortons are here now, Hensh. If you’re still in search of them.”
Henshaw left him at once, moving directly for them, leaving Michael laughing to himself.
Unfortunately, Diana had not arrived yet, so he would not have the same pleasure as Henshaw in the dancing of the first three dances.
“Right,” Michael muttered, looking around at available options. “Better see to it.”
An hour later, his duty done, Michael exhaled and desperately wished for a chair to rest himself for a while. But supper wasn’t for a time yet, and gentlemen did not generally sit at a ball. He’d have to increase his endurance where dancing was concerned if he would be expected to continue in this vein.
Three dances in a row was not his usual routine.
“You look quite done for.”
Michael laughed to himself and glanced at Hugh Sterling, now nearing him. “I feel quite done for. But my duty is discharged, so I can be satisfied with that.”
Hugh nodded and handed him a drink. “Well, you did garner some attention for yourself, you know, doing those dances at the beginning of the evening. Several young ladies are asking questions about you.”
“Are they?” Michael toasted to that with his friend, then surveyed the dancing, now that his help was no longer needed to ensure it went on. “Have you seen Miss Palmer this evening?”
“As it happens, yes,” Hugh said with a knowing chuckle. “She’s chatting with my wife. Piqued your interest, has she?”
Michael only smiled. “I’ve called on her a time or two. I may venture to court her in truth.”
“Really?” Hugh queried, sounding impressed. “Well, well. What do you know of her family?”
“Not all that much,” Michael admitted with a wince. “Outside of Mrs. Greensley’s family, none at all. Our conversations have been more on interests than on personal details.”
Hugh sipped his drink, cocking his head. “How very modern of you. Most men wouldn’t dream of calling on a woman without knowing exactly how her dowry is settled.”
“Did you ask Elinor’s dowry before you ventured?” Michael countered without missing a beat.
“My situation was different,” Hugh insisted. “I was stranded at her family estate at Christmas.”
Michael’s expression turned dubious. “You could have kept to your rooms or kept a polite distance, but you still romanced her.”
“This is not about me!” Hugh laughed, grinning at him. “But I take your point well enough.” He sobered suddenly, eyes widening. “Would you let Elinor look into Miss Palmer? She’s been rooting out information on bachelors for years for the Chronicles, it would be no trouble to find details on her.”
The offer was a kind one, but Michael could not help but feel uncomfortable with such an intrusion into Diana’s life. He knew it would not be that invasive, all things considered, but what difference would it make? He already liked Diana, thought of her by her Christian name rather than the more formal address Society would prefer, and was ready to offer her courtship.
What would change if he knew her dowry or how her family was set up? He had no need to marry a fortune, so money was of little matter. His family was already respected enough, so he did not need to marry into an established bloodline. All he needed was to marry a woman he would enjoy spending the rest of his life with. Diana could fit that quite nicely.
Two weeks of association was not long enough to be sure of such things, of course, but he knew enough to desire to know more. To know if she could fit. To know if he wanted her to.
“If she likes,” Michael settled on, a simple smile remaining on his lips. “It won’t sway me one way or the other, but if she would feel more comfortable knowing the information, I’ll not stop her.”
Hugh gave him a careful look. “She only wants you to be happy, you know, and to see you well situated in that happiness.”
Michael’s smile spread with fondness as he glanced over in Elinor’s direction, though he couldn’t see her clearly for the dancing. “I know. She is kind for caring so, but, as I said, it will change nothing for me.”
“And that, I think, will make her even happier to do it.” Hugh thumped him on the back in encouragement. “Shall we go to them?”
“Lead on.”
The pair of them moved about the onlookers in Lord Eden’s ballroom, nodding at several people and pausing for brief words of politeness with some. And Michael could not fail to notice that
