The words were spoken easily, yet something about the quiet confidence in his tone made her pulse shift in a way she did not entirely appreciate.
Diana hesitated.
The sensible part of her mind immediately began listing all the reasons she ought to decline. It was late. They were alone. And the memory of their conversation beside the hedges earlier that afternoon was still far too vivid in her thoughts.
Yet at the same time, she could not deny the curiosity stirring beneath her caution.
Alexander lifted the bottle slightly. “I promise I come bearing only wine and chocolate.”
That made her blink again. “Chocolate?”
“An indulgence,” he said lightly. “I was informed earlier today that life without sweetness is not worth living.”
Diana could not help it. She laughed softly.
Lady Salford’s words.
The sound seemed to satisfy him.
His gaze softened just slightly as he watched her, the faint warmth in his eyes making her suddenly aware of the quiet intimacy of the moment. The corridor behind him was dimly lit, the rest of the household silent and asleep, leaving the two of them standing in the doorway like conspirators.
“You may refuse, of course,” he added.
Diana studied him and, no matter how hard she tried to find a reason to reject him, she was unable to. She stepped aside.
“Very well,” she said. “But only for a moment.”
Alexander’s smile deepened. “Of course.”
He entered the room, and the door closed quietly behind him.
Diana moved toward the hearth, suddenly aware of the heat of the fire against her bare arms and the lightness of the nightgown she wore. The soft fabric brushed against her legs as she sat in the chair near the flames, drawing her knees slightly together in an unconscious attempt to maintain some semblance of dignity.
Alexander set the tray on the small table between the chairs before pouring the wine. The deep red liquid caught the firelight as it filled the glasses.
He handed one to her.
“Thank you.” Diana accepted the glass he offered her, her fingers brushing briefly against his hand as she took it. The wine caught the firelight in deep ruby flashes as she lifted it slightly. “You truly came prepared.”
“I did,” Alexander replied easily.
He settled into the chair opposite hers with the relaxed confidence of someone entirely comfortable in the space, stretching one arm along the side of the chair. The firelight flickered across the room, tracing the quiet lines of his face and catching briefly in his hair before sliding downward along the open collar of his nightshirt.
Diana became suddenly aware of how different he looked without the formal armor of his usual attire.
There was something far more intimate about him like this. She found her gaze lingering before she could stop herself. Her eyes drifted briefly from the quiet steadiness of his expression to the loose fall of fabric at his throat, then to the way the firelight brushed the strong line of his shoulders.
She forced herself to look back down at her wine. For a short while, neither of them spoke. The silence carried a strange warmth that seemed to hum quietly beneath the surface.
Diana lifted the glass to her lips.
The wine was warm and rich, and as she took a small sip she felt the lingering tension in her shoulders ease slightly, the soft heat of it spreading through her chest. The day had been long, filled with laughter and conversation and far too many moments in which she had found herself acutely aware of Alexander’s presence.
She had not expected him to appear at her door tonight.
Across from her, Alexander raised his own glass and took a measured sip, though his gaze never quite left her face. He watched her over the rim with quiet interest, his expression thoughtful in a way that made her increasingly conscious of how closely he seemed to be observing her.
When he lowered the glass again, the faintest hint of a smile touched his mouth. “You played quite aggressively today.”
