Tristan lost the opportunity to reply when the women approached. He put out his arm and Caroline put a gloveless hand on his elbow. The slender, pale fingers wrapped around him, making him want to hold them. They startedtoward the center of the dance floor, just behind James and Kitty.
“Oh, my gloves.” Caroline looked back toward the supper tables. “I was eating when you approached, and I forgot to put them on.”
“Surely one dance won’t matter.” He tried to speak in a lower tone, but it only sounded forced.
“I suppose not.”
The music began, and their hands came together above their heads. Tristan circled her waist with a firmer grip than he had at Almack’s, but the dance was nearly the same. Caroline sucked in a quiet breath that made him want to pull her even closer. He looked into her eyes, rimmed by the scarlet mask, as he spun her about the floor. For this dance, at least, he did not have to reserve any of his feelings. He was able to release the tight hold on his inhibitions and relax into the warmth of his attraction to her.
“There is something familiar about you,” Caroline said. “Are we known to one another?”
“Yes.”
“I thought so,” she muttered.
For a brief moment, he feared she knew who he was, but her eyes searched his for so long, he decided she had not quite reached that level of understanding.
“The man dancing with Kitty is my brother, I presume?”
Blast. Perhaps she had known him after all. “How did you know?”
“He cannot disguise his voice from me. Though I am certain he’s fooling her.”
“Is that why you accepted so easily?” Tristan asked, curious if she had guessed at his identity as well.
“I could not allow my friend to remain under…” Caroline glanced up at him and snapped her mouth closed.
“In Bengard’s greasy paws?”
“I would not have said it so plainly,” she countered.
She had stopped herself from saying it at all.
Tristan grinned. “I have no compunction in saying it for you.”
Caroline looked into his face, her red mask marring everything but her eyes and lips. She had a focus about her gaze that made him wonder if he’d been too free with her and given himself away.
“The man is forever taking liberties,” Caroline said, “though they are small enough to remain merely questionable and not severe enough to call him to account. Although I suppose that’s no better than proposing to a woman for the sake of a wager.”
Was that what she’d thought he’d done? Tristan maintained a placid expression, certain she knew who he was. But how did he want to spend the remainder of their time together? He searched his mind for a way to steer her off the path of certainty she currently trod.
“What a beastly thing to do.” He spoke with an added degree of gentility to his tone. “Though I do wonder if you misunderstood the gentleman. No one would propose to youmerelyfor the sake of a wager.”
“Give up, Tristan,” she said. “I know it is you.”
“I stand by my words,” he replied smoothly.
Caroline left his side for a portion of the dance and returned, chewing her lip. He could not take his eyes from it. “How did you know it was me?” she asked.
“Your red domino was a dead giveaway. How did you see through my charming facade?”
“I do not know.” She took his hand, raising it above their heads for the last part of the dance. She must have forgottenKitty had told him the color of her domino. “Something about the way you looked at me, I suppose. It was familiar.”
Warmth climbed up his torso, encasing his limbs. Hefeltas though flames licked the air around him when he was with her, but he didn’t realize it came through his gaze as well. Could she see through him?
Undoubtedly not, for she believed the only reason he had proposed was because of the wager. Which…could have been true at one time, but it wasn’t now. He also knew her to be of good character, from a good family, and possessed of a good dowry. All those points had run in her favor at the time.
Unlike Dennison, Tristan could stomach marrying a woman who didn’t share his appreciation for horses. They had spent a good deal of time together and he enjoyed her company immensely. She didn’t need to ride with him, as well.
