Was he being purposefully obtuse? Topaz knew her father to be very intelligent, and she felt she was being rather heavy handed with her hints, so that was the only thing she could think. Surely her father already knew what she was getting at, and was asking questions as a means of stalling so that he could find a way to turn her down gently. This was exasperating. If he was going to refuse to teach her, best to just get on with it.

"I don't know how to waltz," she said bluntly. It was a needless announcement. Her father had taken charge of her education from the moment she'd been outed as a werewolf, so he knew very well which tutors she'd had access to, and for which subjects. Dancing had never been a part of the curriculum — and why would it be? It wasn't as if Topaz was expected to receive a great number of invitations. She had never formally debuted at all (probably for the best; someone would have felt obliged to send her an invitation or two out of pity if she had, and Topaz had no desire to be the center of attention for an evening in that capacity).

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