“I do,” Dietrich said quietly. “I am one of the duke’s most trusted men. One word from me, a look from me, and the guards will have you out of here before you can sneeze. I suggest you don’t try me.”
The stepmother stared at him before turning up her nose in a huff and spinning away.
Dietrich let out a satisfied grin.
They may not have expected anything from him, but he would protect Ella—no matter who she was with or who tried to hurt her.
He caught the eye of one of the guards stationed against the wall and used his eyes to inform him of who to pay closer attention to. The guard nodded, his gaze turning to the stepfamily, who were positioning themselves next to a table piled high with food.
Confident that he wasn’t the only one paying attention now, Dietrich turned his attention back to the dance floor, where Ella and her father had taken the floor as the musicians began to play.
He watched in satisfaction as Ella twirled around the room, looking as if she hadn’t a care in the world as she danced with her father.
It was everything he had ever hoped for in his search for the missing girl. She was where she belonged, and he was so happy for both of them.
Everyone in the room was whispering as they danced, and he began to slide sideways, hoping to overhear some of the conversations. Had the people outside the estate not known the purpose of this ball? Had they been surprised to see Ella emerge?
It should have surprised him, but it didn’t. The duke had always loved a mysterious surprise.
As the dance ended, he looked around the room to find her stepfamily again. If they wanted to cause trouble, they would have to go through him.
But he didn’t see them anywhere.
Where had they gone?
He was still scanning when he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see who it was.
It was Ella, with vulnerability in her eyes.
“Will you dance with me?” she asked quietly.
Dietrich didn’t want to dance with her. He wanted to fulfill his obligation to the duke, who had insisted that he be here for at least the first hour, and then leave. But he couldn’t be the man who told the new duchess no when she asked him to dance.
That would be cruel. Not in front of all these people.
So, as much as he wanted to say no and run away, he knew he couldn’t.
“Of course,” he said, offering his arm.
He scanned the crowd one more time, looking for her stepfamily, and instead found his mother and John standing in the front, watching him with wide smiles on their faces.
It should have surprised him that they had found each other, and yet it didn’t. They were probably talking about him and laughing at him for having been caught by the duchess he had been so desperate to avoid.
As they reached the center of the dance floor, Dietrich offered his hand to Ella, who took it with a smile.
“May I have this dance?” he asked, even though she had already asked him.
“You may,” she said with a smile as she placed her hand in his.
He looked around the room for her stepfamily one more time, but they were nowhere to be found. Perhaps they had left.
He turned and bowed to Ella, then pulled her into the proper stance as the musicians began to play a waltz.
Because, of course, it was a waltz.
Why couldn’t it be a dance that didn’t require so much physical contact?
He sighed. After this dance, he would leave. He had fulfilled his duty.
