Katherine's heart was beating painfully quickly, mostly out of anxiety, but it was soon becoming apparent to her that the cloak was too heavy for indoors. But she dared not to take it off, lest she stand there in just her dress when she was feeling uneasy as it was. She brushed the dark waves of her hair away from her face, hoping to cool it and her neck, and all the while watched Eward as he stood before her, sipping his drink, thinking.
At last, when he had responded, Katherine felt her cheeks flush with flattery and surprise; it was entirely unlike Eward to state simply any admiration for anyone else, let alone her, and then justify it. But his last statement worried her. "I beg your pardon?" Katherine inquired, perhaps a bit naively. "Fair?"