10. Jonto #3
As the music began, Jonto was hard-pressed to lead the woman into a proper waltz.
Where Isla, Celie, and the Archduchess had skillfully followed her lead, Rosetta had no idea what any of Jonto’s cues meant.
The woman went right when she signaled left, backward when she should have come forward, and stepped on her feet so many times that Jonto wondered if the shine would be gone from the top of her boots.
Rosetta finally stopped and shoved her hands onto her hips. “Do you really have no idea how to waltz, Admiral Jontoreaux? Perhaps lessons might be in order.”
Knowing how critical it was to remain in Lady Pierpont’s good graces, Jonto swallowed her pride and dislike of her granddaughter and shrugged.
“Forgive me, Lady Gallacher. I’ve been on board the rolling deck of a ship far too long.
” She held her arms in the proper position, inviting the woman to join her again. “Perhaps we could try again?”
With rolled eyes and a long-suffering sigh, Rosetta stepped back into her arms. This time, she moved in far too close for comfort.
Jonto tried to back away with each step, but the young woman was having no part of it.
Bountiful breasts barely contained in the low-cut bodice bumped against her with such frequency that, for the first time, Jonto was relieved the wrap she used to bind her own breasts tight to her chest was holding firmly in place.
The knowing leer she saw in Rosetta’s hungry eyes was even more disconcerting.
Rosetta leaned in and said quietly, “It must be quite lonely on board those rolling decks.”
Jonto had to forcibly push her away while maintaining the waltz’s three-step rhythm.
“No, not lonely, My Lady.” They happened to pass close to Isla, who was dancing with a handsome man in his mid-forties.
Humor flitted in her vexing neighbor’s eyes as her gaze darted to Rosetta and then back to Jonto.
Swinging Rosetta away from Isla’s evident enjoyment of her misfortune, Jonto searched the room and found Judge Riordan watching them from about twenty paces away.
She sent him a heated glare, and a look of such fear came over the man that she belatedly remembered it was impossible for a dreaded pirate to send anyone a scathing look without them thinking she was going to slit their throat the next time they met.
To Riordan’s credit, when he saw Jonto’s dancing partner bumping her ample breasts against her chest, his eyes opened wide, and he hurried to the conductor, hopefully, to instruct the man to bring the song to a close.
The music stopped shortly thereafter, and Jonto tried to extricate herself from Rosetta’s grasp.
Rosetta was having none of it. “You’ve danced more than one dance with others, Admiral. Surely, you’ll afford me the same courtesy.”
Riordan correctly read the situation a second time and announced, “The orchestra will be taking a short break and will return for more dancing in a little while. Feel free to indulge in the lovely desserts and enjoy the exquisite wine and spirits during your break.”
Rosetta’s full, red lips formed into pouty disappointment.
Once again, Jonto pushed away from the spoiled brat and led her back to her grandmother.
She bowed to both women and then practically ran to where Nico stood visiting with Celie, who tried to hide a smile behind her dram of whiskey.
Not bothering to hide her irritation, Jonto growled at the woman. “A warning would have been nice.”
“But not nearly as much fun.”
Celie’s wicked grin had Jonto shaking her head with an answering half-smile of her own. “I’m honored to be your evening’s entertainment, Miss Smythson.”
“Did you get any horsehair in your mouth?”
This time, a full smile graced Jonto’s face as she stared at Isla’s friend with wide-mouthed astonishment. “You’re incorrigible.” When Celie batted her eyes, Jonto burst into laughter. “Miss Smythson, you’re going to get me in trouble. Behave yourself.”
“And what fun would that be, My Lord?”
Nico stopped a passing waiter and snagged a brandy snifter, which he handed to Jonto. “You look like you could use this.” He pointedly glanced down. “And you’ll have to polish your boots before you wear them again.”
After a long swallow, Jonto squeezed her eyes shut while the brandy took its time burning its way down her throat. She opened them to see that James had joined them. “I definitely owe you my thanks and a drink, Lord Riordan. What can I get you?”
Riordan held up a glass Jonto hadn’t seen. “I have a whiskey, thank you, My Lord. I’m sorry I didn’t act sooner, but many men enjoy it when Lady Rosetta honors them with a dance. Until you signaled me, I couldn’t be sure whether you were….”
Jonto’s brows shot into her hairline, but she refrained from saying something negative that might get back to Lady Pierpont. “Yes, well, for future reference, I’d rather not take up all of Lady Rosetta’s time on the dance floor.
James glanced across the room. “Speaking of Rosetta, I was surprised when her grandmother agreed to dance with you. Well, actually, I was shocked you asked her to dance.” He held his arms out to the side.
“To be perfectly honest, I didn’t expect the Archduchess to be at the ball at all.
I’m worried I may have offended her when I didn’t invite her to dine with us. ”
Jonto glanced sideways at him. “Did you invite her to the ball?”
“Of course!” James shouted the words before catching himself and lowering his voice. “She’s invited to every event in the city but never comes, so I assumed she wouldn’t come to this. But here she is, and I didn’t invite her to dinner, which will be the biggest social gaff of the year.”
Celie put her hand on his arm. “James, calm down. I doubt she would have come for the dinner.”
Isla must have seen James’s distress because she walked to where they were gathered. “Problems?” she asked, looking from Celie to Jonto and back to James. “What’s the matter?”
James pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his brow.
“What’s the matter? I didn’t invite Lady Pierpont to the pre-ball dinner.
That’s what. I wanted everything to be perfect, and I hadn’t realized she’d arrived.
She must have come in a side entrance, and then when I saw Lord Jontoreaux speaking with her, I didn’t know what to do.
” He anxiously turned toward Jonto. “And then you asked her to dance. And she accepted!”
The man looked near panic and Jonto put her hand on his shoulder.
“Lord Riordan. She wasn’t upset in the slightest. We had two very nice dances, and she was quite a lovely conversationalist. I think you’re worrying about nothing.
And by the way, that was a perfect call, telling the conductor to play Csaba’s Overture to the Lost Kingdom. The tempo was perfect.”
James calmed a bit at her words. “Do you think so?”
Jonto smiled. “I do. And do you know what else? I think she would be forever grateful if you took two goblets of syllabub to her table and sat and chatted with her.”
“Syllabub?” James’s brows danced low over his eyes and then rose again. “What would I talk about? I mean, she’s?—”
“I imagine she’s an old woman who’d enjoy talking to someone other than her cohort of rather dull, empty-headed women.” Jonto thought for a moment. “Do you know much about syllabub?”
“What? Well, yes, I love it. It’s the one dessert I know how to make.”
“Then there’s your topic. Mention to her that I said she’d enjoyed a good syllabub and, hearing that, you wanted her to experience some of the best in the land.” Jonto glanced at Isla. “Didn’t I overhear the baker tell you that Mrs. Wainwright makes the lightest, frothiest syllabub?”
Isla put her hand on James’s arm. “She does. You know she does, Uncle. Take her some, and then be your friendly self. Who knows. You might make a new friend.”
With a tug on the lapels of his coat, James left without saying another word.
As Jonto watched him head to the kitchen, the orchestra retook their seats, and she saw Rosetta making a beeline toward her. Jonto quickly stepped in front of Isla with her back to the approaching woman and begged, “Please, My Lady. Will you dance with me?”
Isla glanced over Jonto’s shoulders and sucked her lips into her mouth to conceal the laughter bubbling to the surface. “What’s it worth to you?”
Jonto blinked and thought fast. She blurted the first thing that came to mind. “I’ll take you and Miss Smythson on a tour of my ship, Morgan’s Jest.”
Before Isla could respond, Celie burst out with enthusiasm for the idea. “Done!”
There was such excitement in her friend’s eyes that Isla gave in. “Yes, Lord Jonto. I’d be honored to save your boots from any further abuse.”
Jonto immediately offered his arm and practically dragged Isla past a startled Rosetta onto the dance floor.
They fell into an immediate rhythm, and as they twirled in a circle, Isla noticed James coming from the kitchen with an entire tray filled with crusty confections.
“Poor Uncle James. Sometimes, he’s a sophisticated judge in charge of his domain, and at other times, little things can set his entire world on edge.
My mother was good for him in that regard.
Whenever he became overwrought, she’d sit him down with a good bottle of brandy, a couple of cigars, and a card game, and they’d work through whatever had caused his anxiety. ”
Jonto led her into a weave, stepping so their feet moved in an elaborate pattern across the floor.
The delicate, barely discernable scent of gardenia wafted off Isla, and the way the floral fragrance played off Isla’s natural scent was utterly captivating.
Jonto thought that particular perfume might have just become her new favorite.