He was aware of it too.
Alexander felt her breath brush against his throat when she exhaled. Her cheeks flushed a delicate pink and her lashes fluttered when he drew her closer for a turn.
“I am not surprised that you dance well,” she murmured.
“You are easy to lead,” he replied. “We should have danced at the masquerade.”
She looked up at him, eyes bright. “You would dance with an alchemist? I thought men are not attracted to women who dress as such.”
“Ah, that ismostmen,” he said confidently. “And I am not most men.”
Her blush deepened as they turned with the music. Their bodies moved in perfect synchrony.
After a moment, Theodora said, “Doyoubelieve in love?”
Alexander’s brows raised, the question was unexpected.
“Yes,” he said simply and without thought. “Why? Does that surprise you?”
Theodora seemed to not believe him. “You are the Scarlet Duke… your reputation does not prove your answer.”
Alexander scoffed. “My reputation does not suppress my beliefs.”
He noticed the brief second her eyes dropped to his lips.
“Why?” she asked quietly as they danced gracefully around the room.
“Why what?”
“Why do you, of all people, believe in love?”
Alexander’s mind drifted. He remembered his father always bringing flowers from Hawthorne Gardens before traveling. He remembered his mother placing them gently in a fine vase, sniffing the blooms and smiling to herself, patiently waiting for her husband’s arrival until one day they both decided to travel together?—
“Because I have seen it,” he said, cutting off the thoughts of his parents.
“You have?” Theodora cocked her head curiously and Alexander was not sure if the sight of her stole his breath or if it was the dancing.
“Yes…I saw it in my parents’ marriage. And again, with my best friend.”
“But you want none of it?” she asked curiously.
“No,” he admitted. “I have also seen what being in love does to people. How it eventually destroys them and leaves them hollow. Love is real, but it brings pain when it does not work out...”
She seemed to consider his answer.
“I agree that it destroys people but I also believe it is an illusion,” she finally said. “A trick of the mind, or a chemical reaction or maybe just a temporary madness.”
Alexander smiled. Looking at her then, he could see how her mind filled with answered questions about love.
“You make love sound like a disease.”
Her brows knitted together.
“Perhaps, it is,” she concluded. “Some people are married for years but they will ruin everything overnight. That is not love but foolishness.”
This time Alexander frowned.
“You sound as if you have experienced this yourself.” His interest in her deepened further.
