How beautiful this man was, Lydia thought. Strands of sandy hair gleamed silver in the pale moonlight and his green eyes were like precious stones. The boyish smile so often in evidence was absent now and the set of his mouth betrayed some of the anxiety he was feeling. There was the smallest tremor in the large, smooth hand that held hers.
Lydia’s eyes darted over his face, the stillness with which he held himself betrayed by the faint muscle working in his cheek. “I’m not certain it’s what I want,” she said finally. “What you’re asking…it’s so much more than marriage for me. It would mean leaving my mother and father, leaving behind everything that is familiar, and taking up a way of life in a land I’ve heard described as bleak and unforgiving.”
“But you’re not saying no,” Brig inserted quickly. “Is there reason for me to hope?”
Lydia eased her hand out from under his and stood up. “Of course you may hope, Brigham. In fact, I wish that you would. I shouldn’t like it if you gave up so easily. I’d like to think about it…give you my answer later.”
He also got to his feet and stood in front of her. “Later? You mean tonight?”
“Yes,” she said, raising her eyes to him. Her thick lashes framed eyes that were almost black and her lips were fractionally parted, wet and inviting. “I mean tonight. But not here. There are too many things I still want to know.” She hesitated, looking away.
“What is it, Lydia?” he asked gently.
She spoke in a rush. “Would you meet me later? Somewhere…I don’t know—at my home perhaps. I could let you in after my parents go to bed and we could finally talk privately and with complete candor.” She saw Brig’s frown and immediately began to retract her statement. “I’m sorry. I’ve been forward again, haven’t I? Oh, God.” Despair was rife in her tone and she caught her bottom lip between her teeth. “I shouldn’t have suggested it. If you want to take back your proposal, I’ll understand. I don’t know what made me think that you’d—”
“Come,” he finished for her. “I’ll meet you, Lydia. You’re an intriguing mixture of propriety and daring, aren’t you?” In that dress she was a damn siren, he thought. His eyes darted to the curve of her naked shoulders. “Something else to love about you, darling.”
Her eyes widened and darkened further at the center.
“I hadn’t said it yet, but surely you’ve known. I’m in love with you, Lydia Chadwick. Quite hopelessly in love with you.” He took her in his arms and kissed first her forehead, her closed eyes, then the tip of her nose before settling and lingering on the fullness of her ripe mouth. He kissed her deeply, almost drawing the air from her lungs, and didn’t release her until he felt her sag helplessly against him. “I’m not above using everything at my disposal to win your hand,” he said, lifting his head. He kissed her again, briefly this time, and then left her to regain her composure before she entered the ballroom, certain he had sufficiently unbalanced her heart.
Nathan excused himself from the men he was talking to when he saw Brigham come back inside. More than a minute later Lydia followed. She looked as if she could use a drink, something more powerful than the party punch he eventually offered her.
“Thank you,” said Lydia, holding the crystal cup between her palms. “You’re very kind.”
One of Nathan’s dark brows kicked up. “I’m not,” he said. “Not at all.”
Over the rim of her cup she smiled. “Say whatever you like. I shall think what I like.”
Frowning, Nathan slid his hand under Lydia’s elbow and urged her toward the exit.
“Where are we going?” she asked. “I just came from outside.”
“And I think you need to go back. It’s obvious to me at least that you need some fresh air. You haven’t cooled down sufficiently from Brigham’s mauling.”
Lydia laughed as they stepped onto the terrace. “Mauling? Why, Mr. Hunter, you sound almost jealous.”
His only response was to grip her arm a little tighter. Glancing sideways at her face, Nathan could still make out the high color in her cheeks and the swollen sweetness of her mouth. She was full of herself this evening, he thought, confident in a way he had never seen before.
“May I at least put down my cup somewhere?” she asked as they came upon the fountain. He didn’t say anything but paused long enough for her to set it down on one of the stone benches before pulling her into the shadowed recesses of the yard. Light from the house could not reach them; strains of music could. When they stopped walking, Lydia held up her hands, her face tilted to one side in question.
Nathan didn’t hesitate. When Lydia began to hum the melody, he took her in his arms and led her in a waltz. “How did you get out of the house in that gown?” he asked baldly.
What confidence Lydia had was shattered. Her steps faltered momentarily, and when she trounced his toes, it was her fault, not his. “I didn’t have anything else to wear,” she said softly. “Mother didn’t like it either.”
“Either?” Of course Madeline hadn’t liked it. “I didn’t say I didn’t like it. In fact...” She was radiant, luminous. Or she had been until she thought he’d been expressing disapproval. “...you should always have nothing else to wear.”
The smile that had faltered on her lips brightened fractionally. “You don’t think it’s too…too...”
“I do.” His eyes fell briefly on the hollow of her throat and then came to rest on her mouth. “Indeed, I do.”
Embarrassed by his regard, Lydia lowered her head. She said the first thing that came to mind. “You’re a much better dancer than you were a few—” She cut herself off, appalled by her lack of good manners, and looked up at Nathan to see if he was offended. It seemed that he was. His jaw was clenched now. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”
“It’s all right,” he said, his voice rough. He wasn’t about to tell her he had been practicing, taking lessons from Miss Wilhemenia Gardner at her School of Dance.
It was the first time Lydia had sensed any vulnerability in Nathan Hunter and she wondered at it, wondered if she had been mistaken about the aura of confidence, even arrogance, that he showed most often. She wouldn’t allow herself to think on it long, afraid it would sway her. After all, she already had Brig’s proposal. “I’m glad you came this evening,” she said. “I understand you have something to celebrate.”
“I do?”
