Edward seemed not to mind his next partner and bowed to her with a smile.
"Always a pleasure, Lady Theresa," he said with a grin. "So you'd like a dance? Well I'm always happy to accommodate a beautiful woman."
It didn't matter how long a woman knew Edward. Unlike Stephen with his stiff formal manners, Edward was casual when it came to names. He always called them by their first names, unless there was a chaperon or parent within ear shot.
He offered his arm, completely different to how he'd been with Ella.
"Shall we, my lady?" he asked as the band struck up.

Avril had to admit, only to herself though, that Stephen had looked so... she couldn't think of the words. He was so gentle, and though she'd pushed him, it would have cost him a lot to agree to dance with her. Then Edward had swooped in, and Ella obviously was sorry, but also happy.
Edward, she said, was already engaging a new partner. She looked to her friend in time to catch the last part and found her cheeks flush.
"Please," she said, rolling her eyes and quickly looking away. "The boys here are just that. They think because they have a title they are entitled."
She didn't want to think of the incident upstairs. Nor of that strange guard.
"I think my mother will end up arranging my marriage," she added. "She may even just make me a dance card and force me to dance with all the eligible gentlemen."
The Queen was protective of her daughter, but it was also clear that she wanted Avril to marry well. Avril's greatest fear was that she'd be sent to another kingdom as the bride of some ogre. Her parents wouldn't do that to her, but it was something she sometimes worried about. Maybe she'd never be married. She knew she wanted to make Stephen happy first. She could wait until then.
"What are the village boys like?" she asked in a nonchalant way, wondering for the first time if they would have betters manner and be more interesting than those that attended court.
She felt her cheeks get hot and laughed a little. 
"I bet they're all the same," she added, though she secretly found herself hoping they weren't.