“The man has a soft spot for gossip, and was certainly hunting for it with our conversation, but I do not have any ill will toward him.” That wasn’t completely true. It was a little too easy to get defensive about Miss Thorne. He knew the rest of thetonwould view her coldly because of her father’s reputation, and he thought he had been adequately prepared for that, but apparently not.
He didn’t understand why the rest of them could not see Joanna for the intelligent and charming lady she was. As far as he was concerned, it was a crime that she had not been out in society for the past three years. She was certainly more adept at it than he was.
He felt himself relax a little as they danced the quadrille together. He didn’t think about all the eyes on them and the whispers that followed. Instead, he focused on how gracefully she moved and the genuine smile on her slightly flushed face. The sight of her reddened cheeks sent wicked thoughts through him. He wanted to peel back the layers of her dress to see how far down her body the blush would travel. His eyes went to the blue diamond necklace decorating her neck, and he imagined her wearing only the necklace without a stitch of clothing on her, just for him.
She would look absolutely ravishing, and he felt himself get hard from imagining it. But he shoved that thought away immediately. After all, that was not the agreement. When the dance ended, Joanna’s face was flushed, and she was a little out of breath. Her eyes shone with happiness, and the sight of her sent heat through him. What he would not give to make her breathless and flushed in other ways.
Calm yourself, you lecherous rake.
“You dance wonderfully, Your Grace,” Joanna said as they left the dance floor. “I am pleased, because I dearly love to dance.”
“You were beautiful out there,” he replied. “But I knew you would be.”
A young man shyly asked Joanna for the next dance, and she accepted. Evan offered no objections, but he could not help but watch them go to the dance floor together. He had no right to stop her from dancing with other men. They would only be able to dance two dances together anyway, without causing a scandal, and Joanna needed to enjoy herself and make the most of her re-introduction to society.
But, despite what he told himself, anger and jealousy rose up inside of him at the sight.
He distracted himself by finding Lady Penelope and asking her for a dance.
The young lady, who had been standing next to her mother, agreed with relief flashing across her face. “Thank you,” she whispered as they reached the dance floor. “I believe if you hadn’t intervened, my mother would have arranged for me to dance with a marquess twice my age and drunk.”
“I am happy to be of service.” He could not help but look at Joanna, who was three couples away from them, as he danced with Penelope.
The young lady noticed and was quite amused. “Miss Thorne looks radiant tonight, doesn’t she?”
He cleared his throat and focused his attention on Penelope again. “Forgive me.”
She laughed. “There is nothing to forgive. I must admit, I am very happy you are so taken with my friend. I daresay she is quite smitten with you, too.”
“Indeed?”
“Yes. After your first date with her, she was confused about why you would want to see her again. But after the second, when she was sure you would no longer want anything to do with her, she was quite heartbroken.”
Evan didn’t know what to say to that. The thought of him being able to break any woman’s heart had never even crossed his mind.
Penelope took his silence for discomfort and smiled demurely. “Forgive me. Perhaps it’s not my place to talk about that, Your Grace.”
“It’s all right. For what it is worth, I quite enjoy Miss Thorne’s company myself. And I am glad she has you for a friend.” It was clear that Lady Penelope cared very much for Joanna, and he was happy about that. He was happy Joanna had at least one true friend in thetondespite all the unfortunate events regarding her father.
After the dance was over, he bowed to Penelope and left as she reluctantly accepted a dance from a viscount. Meanwhile, the duke expected to join Joanna again, but he found she had already accepted a dance from another man. She was laughing at something he had whispered in her ear. Envy filled him again, and he did his best to ignore it. Why was he acting like a jealous brute?
This had been our deal from the start.
Some people approached him and offered him their congratulations and tried to engage him in conversation, but he only had eyes for Joanna. As soon as the dance ended, he made his excuses to get out of the conversation and walked over to her. He grabbed her hand gently, and she turned to him, surprised, but smiling.
“I need to talk to you,” he said quietly.
“Of course, Your Grace,” she said. “You are always free to talk to me.”
“Not here. I must speak with you alone,” he said with a little more impatience. “It is about our agreement. Make whatever excuses you must, and meet me in the sunroom in a few minutes.”
Her eyes widened, and nervousness flickered over her face for a moment before she nodded. “Yes, Your Grace,” she said, swallowing.
“I will see you there,” he murmured in response.
CHAPTER 20
Could it be that he is angry at me?
