He leaned forward. “If a caroler’s high-pitched falsetto cracks the lenses of my spectacles, what do I do?”
“If, whilst playing charades, I’m meant to imitate the Prince Regent singlehandedly consuming the buffet at Carlton House, what do I do?” she countered.
Theodore widened his eyes. “If the woman across from me doesn’t realize she’s already the perfect dinner partner just as she is, what do I do?”
Virginia’s cheeks flushed with pleasure. She wasn’t the perfect one.Hewas. Or perhaps two imperfect people could be perfect together.
As soon as the supper dishes were cleared, a footman swept into the dining room bearing a silver tray. “Pupton of apples.”
Theodore’s face lit up.
Virginia’s feelings were more bittersweet. There was nothing she loved more than dessert. But there was nothing she hated more than knowing this course meant their impromptu dinner party was coming to a close.
“If you’re not going to eat your dessert,” Theodore said, “I will do the honorable thing and personally dispose of both portions.”
She stuck her fork in the corner of his dish and lifted the morsel of baked apples to her mouth. “Mmm.”
He reached across with his fork to do the same.
She lifted her dish close to her chest to keep it out of his reach.
“Unfair,” he said. “If I held a pupton that close to my chest, the majority would end up in my neckcloth.”
“I’ve lost several crumbs down my bodice,” she admitted. “You don’t want them.”
“That is an erroneous assumption.” The heat from his dark gaze melted her to her core. “If my ungainly hobble wouldn’t ruin the moment, I’d stalk to your side of the table and steal a kiss for my dessert.”
Heart pounding, she set down her plate. “Stand up. I’ll meet you halfway.”
Theodore scrambled to his feet at once.
Virginia placed her hands atop the table and leaned as far forward as she could.
He glanced down at her bosom. “Should I rescue those crumbs, or—”
She lifted her gaze to his. “You should kiss me.”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
When his mouth touched hers, the world about them fell away. He tasted like cinnamon sugar apples and warm mulled wine and cozy winter nights. It was impossible not to wish every meal she took could end just like this.
The width of the table prevented them from falling into each other’s embrace. They could lock nothing but mouths, touch nothing but tongues. It was more than enough. He didn’t just make her feel visible. He made her feel like she mattered. Like nothing was more important than their mouths joined in a kiss.
She had to remind herself that none of this was real. A romance could never be. The only reason either one of them indulged the irresistible force drawing them together was because the night was wrapped in make-believe. The pretend dinner party. His cloak of anonymity.
Soon enough, this holiday would end.
Virginia didn’t want to think about any of that. She wanted to pretend his kisses would belong to her forever. That when Theodore’s legs were strong again, he would use them to sweep her off her feet, not to waltz with Lady Beatrice at their wedding. Virginia needed to stay strong.
Theodore could have her kisses. But she could not let him have her heart.
A throat cleared in the doorway.
Virginia and Theodore jerked apart to see Swinton gazing at them with an impassive expression. “Dinner was to your liking?”
Too much so.
“I have to go.” Virginia dashed from the table, squeezed past Swinton, and hurried back out into the snow before her ardor could cause her to make even bigger mistakes.
