"You and he are welcome to play. Just not the women."
"I won't play if you won't allow my friends to play," William said. "And consider this: The father of one of the young ladies is the Secretary of the Treasury of the CPE, and a confidante of Gustavus Adolphus."
"I care not a fig. Get out, or I will have you dragged out."
William put his hand to his hip, reaching for the sword that wasn't there.
Judy saw the gesture. "It's too hot to play, anyway. Let's get some fresh air." She looked at the other girls. They took their cue, and agreed with her.
Once they were outside, of course, they were quick to vent their spleen. "I can't believe that in Halle, which gets so much business from Grantville, someone could be so obtuse."
"Don't forget that this kind of tennis isn't known to any up-timers, save us. The creep probably doesn't have much contact with people from Grantville."
Judy looked at William. "Are you disappointed? You said that tennis courts were rare in this part of Europe."
William shrugged. "As Vicky said, it was too gloomy in there. Don't worry about it."
"I wish there was a royal tennis court in Grantville. That would serve him right."
The barge ride down to Magdeburg was picturesque, Judy supposed. Meaning, boring after the first hour. With the day a balmy one, Judy dozed off. And found herself dreaming about William. More specifically, dreaming about kissing William.
She awoke with a guilty start, and saw Hobbes and William playing a game of chess, with Heather watching.
Good thing Heather doesn't have telepathic powers, Judy thought. Or I might be swimming right now.
Judy had thought that she just wanted a guy who was smart, and could make her laugh, she didn't care how handsome he was. Okay, now she had to admit, looking like a young Brad Pitt was a plus.
William had stood up for the girls in Halle, even though, let's face it, he'd never heard of women's lib. Of course, from what Judy had heard about his mom, he probably thought there was more of a need for men's lib. But still, Judy had been pleased by his actions.
And he did have, for lack of a better term, a curious turn of mind. Judy wouldn't have thought of descending by rope into Mount Vesuvius, that's for sure. Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing, Judy hadn't decided.
Okay, she admitted, maybe she was interested in William. And Heather had had a fair shot at him.
But Judy wasn't sixteen yet. And her parents had set sixteen as the rockbottom minimum dating age. Which Judy wouldn't reach until next year. By which time William would be back in England, for sure.
It wasn't the sort of thing Judy could renegotiate. If she tried, her older sister Sarah would side with her parents. Because Sarah had to wait.
At least it was an equal playing field. Heather was also fifteen and her parents would make her put off dating, too.
Of course, the definition of a "date" could be pretty elastic. Judy would just have to think about how to stretch it.
Imperial Palace, Magdeburg
July 1633
"A distinguished visitor? From England? Can't you fob him off on someone else? Isn't that what my staff is for? I have a war to win." Gustavus Adolphus was not really into the ceremonial aspects of royal office.
"If you insist, Your Imperial Majesty, but I think you should make the time. He is a young man, the earl of Devonshire. They are one of the wealthiest noble families in England, and he is at an impressionable age. If you will excuse my saying so, you do intend to inspire hero worship in such youths. That may come in handy when he is a bit older.
"And, sir, he is accompanied by a Mister Thomas Hobbes."
"That name sounds vaguely familiar."
"In the old time line, he became a famous political philosopher, a defender of monarchy. And yet his writings were influential in the development of the American political system."
"Yes, yes, I think someone showed me something about his book Leviathan. You think he could be useful to us?"
"He is quite a forceful writer."
"All right. Fifteen minutes."
Hobbes and William were ushered into the august presence of Gustavus Adolphus, Lion of the North, King of Sweden, Emperor of the Confederated Principalities of Europe, and Captain-General of the State of Thuringia-Franconia. Unfortunately for the royal schedule, the conversation drifted to the subject of tennis.
"Tennis, you say? I adore the game. I learned it when I traveled in France, as 'Captain Gars.' "
"We played it in France and Italy," William said. "And, after we crossed the Alps, in Augsburg and Nurnberg."
"Nurnberg, yes. I was there last year, dealing with Wallenstein's army. Somehow never had the time to play tennis.