Christopher did not miss a beat. “You. I was waiting for you.”
And with that Christopher brushed his lips against Alaina’s, the featherlight touch starting a flame deep inside her. She could feel her body respond as Christopher deepened the kiss, slanting his head and pulling her closer to him. Alaina’s feet left the floor, and it was a long time before either of them realized.
Chapter 16
Alaina beamed, and the brightness of her smile came only second to the twinkle in the eyes of the Marquess of Rochester. Christopher offered his arm, and Alaina happily accepted, making their way through the door to the grand staircase of the Leicester Ball, the announcement of their names only a distant sound, their eyes seemingly only for each other. They walked down the stairs and into their first official dance as a couple, a waltz.
After Alaina had agreed to a courtship, her mother and father had promptly shown up in the front parlor with tea, making Alaina suspect that they had been waiting just outside the door. Though Alaina knew that her father had some hand in their encounter that day, it was her mother that had been all questions. Christopher charmingly assured both Edward and Charlotte that Graham, though a little put out that his courtship had not yielded the desired results, had been most insistent on his friend visiting Alaina. Out of deference to Graham, Alaina suggested they keep their courtship quiet to avoid any salacious rumors about the circumstances.
Christopher agreed to only visit at tea or dinner, and then they ventured forth on a walk in Hyde Park with her mother and sister as chaperones a couple of times. In true London fashion, rumors circulated that Graham was the jilted party, but these rumors were quickly drowned, as the news of the arrest of Percy made the rounds.
It was this very evening that Alaina and Christopher made their courtship official in the eyes of London society. Few people knew any details as to what had transpired to make their courtship come to be, but there had been a few whispers about jilted best friends and the like, which Christopher warned her to ignore. As Alaina and Christopher made one last sweep across the dance floor, she tried to put those rumors and thoughts out of her mind.
“You are worrying about something, again,” teased Christopher, as he noticed Alaina’s furrowed brow. They may have known each other for only a short time, but Christopher felt he could read her mind and thoughts. He knew she had worries about what society would think, but to him, the approval of the ton did nothing to dull or raise his happiness.
“My apologies, I do not wish to ruin the evening. It truly is magical, I promise.” Alaina mentally shook off her anxious reverie and smiled up at Christopher. Where they had been most at odds with one another a few weeks ago, or at least unsure of the other’s feelings, their time together in the past couple of weeks had done well to foster a connection that Alaina had only dreamed possible. She could look into Christopher’s eyes and feel safe and giddy and nervous all at the same time. Her stomach did flips when he looked at her, his blue eyes full of heat, despite their icy shade. The simple act of dancing made Alaina heady with anticipation, her skin burning where he touched.
Christopher led Alaina through the last turn, setting her apart from him and bowing to finish the dance. Alaina’s eyes sparkled and she returned his bow with a deep curtsy of her own. The kiss they had shared earlier in the season, unexpectedly, after her run-in with Percy, played over in her mind. With the limited visits over the past couple weeks and the constant chaperoning of Alaina’s parents, they had had no opportunity to reignite that particular flame.
Christopher offered his arm to Alaina so they could properly exit the dance floor, and took the opportunity to lean in. “The look on your face, my dear, makes me wonder if you can actually read my thoughts.”
Missing his full meaning, Alaina was quick to reassure him. “No, I assure you it is solely due to my own thoughts. I fear our first kiss is on my mind.”
Christopher let out a laugh, amused and endeared by her naiveté. Now that they were courting, he had much more delectable things on his mind than a simple kiss. Leaning in again, he got one last private statement in before they made it back to her parents at the edge of the dance floor. “I did enjoy our kiss, to be sure, but I had more on my mind.”
The nearness of his lips to Alaina’s ear, and the idea that he had something more than kissing on his mind, tripped something deep in her core, making it difficult to calm her breathing before reaching her parents. Of course, her mother decided to point such a thing out.
“Alaina darling, I hope you are not close to expiring, you are breathing quite heavily. Maybe that is too many dances in a row. Christopher, would you be a dear and get her something to drink? You seem to have nearly exhausted her with all the dancing,” Charlotte chirped, unaware of her daughter’s increased unease.
Christopher chuckled and took the order in stride, not sure what amused him more: Alaina’s embarrassment from their conversation or her mother’s worrying. “Of course, I will be right back.”
As Christopher made his way to the refreshment table for punch, thankfully close by, Edward took the opportunity to correct his wife’s assumption.
“Dear Charlotte, I fear Alaina’s breathing may be due in part to her proximity to Christopher. Remember how young love used to feel?”
Alaina watched her mother consider her father’s statement, and noticed that she almost seemed embarrassed herself. Her eyes went wide as she looked at Edward with a sidelong glance and then back at Alaina. Alaina groaned, mostly on the inside, and was about to refute both of her parents, when Charlotte caught sight of someone over Alaina’s shoulder and her face lifted.
“Eleanor! How nice of you to seek us out in this crowd. I was unsure from your letters whether you would be able to join the festivities.”
Alaina turned around to see the dowager duchess approach with a smile on her face, and in her eyes. The two friends met in an embrace, as though they had been lost to each other for years. When Eleanor and Charlotte stepped back from one another, Eleanor turned her affection on Alaina.
“Alaina, you look radiant, my dear. You must forgive me for hoping to have you as my daughter-in-law, but I was denying what was before my own eyes. Besides, Christopher is practically my second son, so I should think to see plenty of you.”
Unsure of how to respond to such a conclusion about the future, Alaina smiled back at Eleanor and searched for words. Luckily, at that moment, Christopher returned with a glass of punch, pushing it into Alaina’s hand and taking Eleanor’s outstretched hand in his.
“Eleanor, I do hope you are telling no stories about my youth that might scare Alaina away,” Christopher stated. As Alaina glanced askance, she caught the twinkle in his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief that such an encounter should lack any true tension.
Eleanor was quick to parry, “No story I tell would scare her away, although some recounting of your youth may make her think twice. However, those stories usually involved my son, which would not accomplish my task of keeping Alaina close to me.” Eleanor looked at Alaina and winked.
“Speaking of your son, I assume he escorted you here?” Charlotte leaned in to inquire, hoping an encounter between Christopher and Graham would not ruin the evening.
“Of course, but as per usual, he has been waylaid by friends or acquaintances,” Eleanor’s response was easy. “As a matter of fact, he is approaching now,” she continued as she half-turned to welcome her son to the group.
Everyone offered their greetings to the Duke of Ashford, Alaina and her mother a bit on edge in anticipation. Alaina clasped her hands in front of her in trepidation, but all nerves were quelled when the two best friends clasped hands in greeting.
“Good to see you out and about with such a lovely companion,” Graham teased with a smile, winking at Alaina in an attempt to avoid sending a wistful look her way.
“It is good to see you out in society as well,” Christopher agreed, truly happy that his friend should see fit to join them in public so soon after his own courtship had ended. “With Percy behind bars, I assume you are breathing easier?”
