He glanced down at her to see her grinning. He grinned as well. “Any place makes for a unique experience.”
“Even in the dressing room?”
His body immediately heated. “You were in there.”
Though he hadn’t asked a question, she still nodded. “I believe there is much more I need to learn to truly be a mistress. You will teach me, of course.”
He swallowed hard at the thoughts she instigated in his head. “I think we should focus on our place of discovery for this interlude first.”
“I was just thinking of in the future, as in tonight.”
The shock of desire that hit his groin had him coughing. “Yes, well, it’s best not to plan but allow the atmosphere to dictate the terms.” Though the atmosphere felt as if it would combust any minute. Even now, walking sedately past the library’s closeddoors, he wanted to press her to the wall and have her again. He should have never seen her in a dress or undressed or—
He forced his mind back on their task and nodded to the billiard room, where male voices could be heard.
Lissa sighed. “I guess those gentlemen must wait until this evening.”
Since her comment started his mind in the wrong direction, he determined he needed her to focus as well. “I did enter the next set of doors, which are the ballroom, as are the set after them. I was hoping there was a room I missed, but we are almost to the end.”
“Is there no other corridor? If not, the weapon room may well be off the ballroom.”
That was a possibility, but if so, that would be very public when there was a ball. As they approached the end of the corridor, they could go no farther. “It appears we will need to search the ballroom, as you suggested.”
They turned around and walked to the set of double doors. Opening one, he hoped the room would be unoccupied.
Lissa preceded him. “It’s not particularly large, though it could take us a while.”
He stepped to the right and viewed the entire room. She was correct—it was small for a ballroom, but checking every inch of wall would take quite some time. “I don’t see another china cabinet or even bookcase in here that might be an entrance.”
Lissa wandered into the middle of the room, the light from four sets of French doors illuminating the space. She slowly turned. “I imagine dancers escape to that terrace in the middle of events.”
He strode across the empty room and looked out. The angle was wrong for a secret room to be connected. “I don’t think we’ll find what we’re looking for in here. It’s the wrong layout.”
She looked at him over her shoulder. “But not if it’s off that room.” She pointed to her right, and he strode past the column in his line of sight.
She was already heading for the single door with a walnut doorframe much like in the rest of the house. Before he could reach her, she opened the door. “Oh.”
When she didn’t move inside, he quickened his pace. “What is it?”
“I believe this is where all the married men hide during a ball.”
“Hide?” He stepped inside and to the right to examine the room. Though there were no windows, the sunlight from the ballroom was enough to see the interior. It was covered in pale green wallpaper with no design. On the walls hung a number of stuffed animal heads, a coat of arms, and two paintings of hunting dogs. Though smaller than the parlor, it boasted a large fireplace, at least a dozen wingback chairs, end tables, card tables, and a sideboard with a variety of liquors. “Yes, I imagine this would be the place to hide.”
She stepped across the wooden floor toward a cabinet of rifles. “And look. I wonder if some of these were used on them.” She waved her hand toward the animal heads on the walls.
He was less interested in what they were used for than in what they might be hiding. If he weren’t mistaken, the wall with the gun cabinet could be the one for the secret room. Walking over, he began to run his hand along the side of the cabinet.
Lissa didn’t say a word. Instead, she moved to the other side and began to feel along the wall as well.
He froze when his fingers encountered metal.
As if she sensed his excitement, she stopped. “You found it?”
He nodded then pushed down on what felt like a lever behind the cabinet. Immediately, there was a click.
Lissa walked over to stand next to him. “Now what?”
Studying the area, he saw there was only one way it could move, so he pushed. The whole gun case slid to the right, revealing a door.
