“I thought tonight would be dreadfully dull. But it turned out to be rather interesting.” He said, the feel of her lips against his palm still fresh in his mind.
Control yourself, Matteo! Good god, you are thinking like a schoolboy.
To hide his sudden flare of feelings, he raised his brow and spoke again, employing every particle of charm he’d learned over the years.
“I do hope we meet again soon. I would welcome another argument with you, my lady. Or if you prefer hiding?—”
But before Matteo could continue, a loud smack filled the air, surprising him. The stinging feeling in his cheek rendered him suddenly still.
Helena, her face red and hot, had slapped him.
Chapter Four
“Sally, has Chastity risen yet?” Helenaasked the lady’s maid as she had entered the sitting room.
“She has, m’lady. Just a few minutes ago. I have just sent for her meal as well. She preferred to take it in her chambers.”
“I hope she was able to rest properly. You did not wake her as per my instructions and let her sleep long?”
“Yes, milady.” Sally nodded. “I waited until she rang for me before I entered her bedchamber.
“Good girl, Sally. Thank you for that.”
Sally looked at Mrs. Brown, the Ayle’s cook, who was at that moment planning tomorrow’s menu with Helena and Mrs. Fielding, the housekeeper.
“Begging your pardon, m’lady, but Lady Chastity has asked me to relay to the cook that she requests watercress sandwiches to be served for tea later today.”
Mrs. Brown looked at Helena for confirmation, to which she nodded.
Helena hid a smile. She knew the source of Chastity’s sudden preference for the said sandwich. After her dance with Lord Strong, he had stayed with their group until Chastity was claimed by her next dance partner. In their conversation, Helena had heard them discussing their preferred tea sandwiches. Lord Strong’s was, of course, watercress.
So, Chastity is hoping that Lord Strong will call on her today.
She played back their interactions after their dance. It did not go unnoticed by her that Lord Strong had tarried as long as he could in Chastity’s company. Leaving her only when her next dance partner arrived to claim her for the promised dance.
Helena found no objection to this, for the gentleman seemed to be the perfect candidate for a husband—as far as she knew, of course. Their ages, not so far apart from each other, also helped, as it ensured a similarity in their maturity. But the most important consideration was that Chastity seemed to like him.
“Sally, you may tell Chastity that her request is granted. And please inform her that I shall be up to see her after her meal.”
When the menu was finalized, Helena went to the desk in the corner of the sitting room that contained her writing implements. She laid out a new sheet of parchment and prepared her pen. She fully intended to write down the names of potential suitors that her sister had met at the ball.
I am getting ahead of myself, I know. If Chastity ever finds out what I am doing, she will be sure to be displeased with me.
But Helena’s only intention was to be able to know more about the gentlemen that her sister would soon be socializing with, for indeed, Chastity’s first ball was a very successful one.
She wrote down the names of the gentlemen who had asked for a dance with Chastity, recalling each one perfectly in her mind. Their names, titles, and details of their interaction with Chastity.
She had listed a good number when she stopped suddenly. She remembered that, had she not intervened, the Duke of Valen would be on Helena’s list too.Hehad certainly been surprised when Helena had insisted that they should not dance together.
It continually annoyed her how he thought that every woman should fall at his feet. Although he was handsome—he would give him that, and he was charming—she would give him that as well, the fact still remained that he was a rake. He used his good looks and his charm to seduce women.
But Helena also knew that Dahlia had become good friends with Matteo. And she, acting out of deference to her friend, had tried to maintain every exchange with him in a civil manner.
Except for last night. When we were alone together.
Last night, when she had stood so close to the man that she could feel the heat of his body. There certainly was no need to keep up the appearance then.
Last night. I had almost been caught in the company of a man—a rake—alone in the middle of a deserted garden. Good heavens, what if we had been seen?
