“Ah? Whatever do you mean by ‘Ah’?”
The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a small book. She gasped when she noticed that it washers. Her hands quickly tangled with the tassels of the satchel at her waist. The bag was empty. The notebook must have slipped out during one of her hasty retreats. Her only hope was that this gladiator was a gentleman and did not open it?—
“It is my belief that one can sufficiently prove the notion of ‘butterflies’ in one’s stomach in relation to a kiss is just distress caused by hysteria.” His fingers turned the page and his eyes lit up. “Ah, this is my favorite one,” he said with a devilish wink. “The next and final stage of romance’s grand delusion is the physical act of love.”
“Do try to havesomedecorum by not reading out my experiment for the entiretonto hear!” she hissed.
She did not know what was worse, the fact that this stranger stood in front of her, reading from her notebook or the fact that his voice sent unfamiliar shockwaves through her body.
“For a woman who is so concerned with decorum, you certainly have an interest in quite the opposite.” His voice rolled over her like velvet.
She shuddered and took a step back.
This is just my body, distressed. The man himself has no effect on me, but his actions do.
With a bit of clarity, she shook off the feeling. She reached out and snatched her notebook back. “It is rude to look at something that is not yours.”
The gladiator’s eyes flared behind his mask. “Is that so?” He purred. “Well, to settle your worry, I only looked at a few pages but, as I noted, I did take interest in your seven stages of delusion.”
Theodora looked around the room. Surely her sister should be showing up with another man for her.
“Tell me…” He looked over her costume. “I am sorry, but what are you supposed to be?”
Theodora let out an exasperated sigh. “An alchemist!”
The gladiator shook his head in acknowledgement. “So, tell me, sorceress?—”
“Alchemist,” she interjected with annoyance.
He ignored her correction. “You would not have been conducting an experiment with the gentlemen off thetontonight, would you?”
Theodora chewed her bottom lip, an action she noticed he paid attention to keenly. She shifted her weight between her feet as she held her book close to her chest.
“And if I was?”
The gladiator snorted. “You might want to consider changing your outfit if you want any man here to take the bait.”
“Ah ha!” Theo stuck her finger in the air. “So, it is about what is pleasing to the eye. For you, and Lord Daniel…” She nodded in the direction of the dance floor. “Attraction has nothing to do with magic feelings but is a reaction to something the mind designates as pleasant.”
The gladiator stood staring at her. “I am afraid that is true. Men are visual creatures. And at this moment you do not look…visually pleasing.”
Theo sighed. “If love at first sight existed, it was supposed to transcend all rationale. I am dressed as a homely alchemist, and no one wants anything to do with me. Perhaps I should have dressed as a French courtesan instead.”
Theodora needed to find a quill to write all this down. She looked up at the gladiator who stared at her intently.
“I imagine you would look fine as a French courtesan.” He smirked.
Theodora blinked. “How dare you!”
The gladiator stretched his long arms out to the side and shrugged. “You stated it. I am just agreeing with you.”
“Men are so shallow. The simplest things can seduce and ruin them.” She shook her head in exasperation.
“And you intelligent women should learn not to write your deepest, darkest thoughts for a stranger to find.” He looked pointedly at her notebook, and she slipped it back into her satchel.
“Is this your first Season?” He inquired.
Theodora’s mind was too busy dissecting this latest information and wanting to find a study or library to process what she just discovered.
