I paused just a few feet behind him. My mouth suddenly dry, I swallowed harshly.
“You know, when a lady smiles at you, it is an invitation to ask for a set, not to run away.”
He spun slowly on his heel, wrapped in shadows and moonlight.
Oh my.
* As an earl’s daughter, Juliet retains her title even after her marriage to a commoner. She can be Lady Juliet or Lady Juliet Wayland. She cannot be Lady Wayland because that implies her husband is Lord Wayland, which Michael is not.
Four
WAYLAND’S, LONDON - JUNE 5, 1816
WILLIAM
I spun slowly,certain I would be faced with a phantom. It would be some other lady behind me. Or, if it was her, she would not be nearly as enchanting up close.
I was wrong.
The light that spilled from inside the hell through gauzy curtains was minimal, but the moon was full and the clouds had parted after an earlier rain. It was more than sufficient to see, even without my spectacles.
Every attempt to convince myself that her beauty was a lie had been a pitiful exercise. She was breathtaking. She stood before me, her hands clasped in front of her gown. A gift wrapped in the finest of silks, her gilded mask the bow on top.
She called herself a lady and that was evident in her carriage and gown. Not just anyone could afford fabrics that fine nor the pins scattered in her hair topped with glittering stones that caught the light.
A frown graced her face once again. It was a sharp reminder that I’d been staring, awestruck and silent, for far too long.
I exhaled, breathing a minuscule bit of my anxiety into the night. And then I replied, praying it would be the least bit sensible. “I’ll make a note. Smiles for a set. What does it mean when a lady follows you onto an abandoned balcony?”
An unexpected laugh burst from her. Her hand found her chest, where she traced a glinting chain that dipped beneath the bodice of her gown.
“In my experience, it means she intends to seduce you,” she retorted, her voice was full, midrange and sensual.
She was a forward one. There were no unintelligible riddles to decipher here. I feigned a casual air, leaning back against the rail. My success was debatable, but at least she did not laugh outright. “And in this instance?”
Her slippered feet were tiny when they took a step forward. With another, she positioned herself beside me. She braced herself on the balustrade with her forearms, preserving her gown. Her forearms were bare.
Now close enough to touch, her scent enveloped me. A warm, spiced vanilla overpowered the suddenly cloying cacophony of flowers below.
“Perhaps a conversation? A set? I hadn’t intended a seduction.” She turned her head toward me, capturing my gaze.
Now that I could see clearly, I was certain. This was no debutante; she was a woman grown.
Amusement crinkled at the corners of her eyes, barely visible at the edges of her mask. But those lines were a worn and familiar track across her skin.
“Tragedy,” I replied boldly. My heart tripped when my head caught up with my mouth. But what good was a masquerade if I couldn’t be someone different tonight? Someone better, braver. Someone worthy of such a lady’s flirtation.
Her shoulder brushed against mine in a motion that could only have been deliberate.
“I haven’t ruled it out entirely,” she teased, a smile crossing her lips.
I raised a brow in deliberate interest. Of course, I had no way of knowing how effective the effort was with the mask.
“You do not attend these events often,” she added, moving to slightly safer topics.
“No, not if I can help it.”
“What happened tonight?”
