Snippet #1380066

"She what?" said Ian, not letting his mild surprise show on his features or permeate his tone. He had no idea why a young woman should come to see him. Well, actually, he did, but certainly not at this hour.

"-she's asked to speak with you regarding a business matter, sir," said Alvaro, raising one eyebrow delicately.

Ian now understood the source of the older man's disapproval. It was not, for the most part, because a lady was calling on him unannounced but because this lady seemed to be calling on business. Alvaro was of few beliefs but the ones he did hold were firmly rooted. One such belief was that it was unseemly for women to be involved in matters that were traditionally the domain of men.

Ian himself had even fewer beliefs. And he had no qualms about dealing with a woman on business matters, though he had not had to do it very often.

"Well? Show her in, Alvie," said Ian, with an impatient gesture.

Alvaro bowed with meticulously strained patience then disappeared for a few moments to retrieve the visitor from downstairs. When he returned, he was accompanied by the lady in question. Ian held out his hand for her to shake, just as he would have done a man, not bothering with finicky bows or the sorts of flourishes that infuriated him in society. Behind them, Alvaro frowned and closed the door.

Unlike he might have done with a man, Ian did take the time to look at her properly. She was young, a good few years younger than himself, and tall. Her height and manner of holding made Ian imagine that she would immediately draw gazes whenever she walked into even the most crowded rooms. She was fair, and in the bright sunlight that streamed in through the French windows of Ian's study, her skin and eyes took on a luminous translucency, as if she was a figure in a stained glass window.

"Ian Thornton," he supplied. "But of course you already knew that. What business do you have to discuss from me, Miss...? Because as pleasant as it is to have something to look at whilst we talk numbers, my time is very valuable." Indeed, he could still be dozing in his chair. Although he had to admit the view was probably worth being roused by Alvaro for.