“The devil you say,” joked Jackson. He’d always been good at puns.
“But hosting a party defeats the whole purpose. I will not reveal myself.”
Aaron leaned back in his seat. “You shall be the mystery that gets everyone to attend. They’ll figure out quick enough that Sayres is Satyr, and I am Ares. If we’re to get the right people to come, I’ll have to tell them who we are.”
Jackson nodded. “The smart ones will figure it out.”
“And we’ll invite your family—”
“You will not!”
“Your brother then. Nathan always loved you.”
It was true. His younger brother had adored him almost as much as Lucas had cherished his tag-a-long sibling. Nathan was the one family member he missed.
“You must tell him you’re alive,” Aaron pressed.
“I will,” he said. “In my own way, and on my own time.”
“On the night of the masquerade.”
Lucas shook his head. “If I’m the big mystery, then everyone will try to expose me. I won’t be able to talk with Diana at all.”
Jackson shook his head. “You’ll have a better chance speaking with her as the host of the party than as some random bloke wearing black. We’ll each pick a lady for the opening dance. You can select her.”
“It’s the only way I’ll agree,” Aaron said.
Lucas blew out a breath. “You’re just trying to expose me to theton. You think that someone, somehow, will figure out who I am.”
Aaron grinned. “You always enjoyed a challenge. Surely this will make for exciting sport.”
“I didn’t intend it to be sport for me. Just for Diana.”
Jackson clapped his hands. “Now, it’ll be sport for you both!”
Chapter Six
Diana settled intothe boat that would take them to Vauxhall. She kept her expression serene, but inside, her heart was pounding with excitement. It was ridiculous, really. It was just a masquerade party, but she was here with her siblings, and it felt like a treat that had been so long denied. Even Gwen’s grumbling as she maneuvered to her seat gave Diana a happy glow.
“I don’t see why you need me here tonight,” Gwen said as she adjusted the dark brown of her dress. “I have a new botany book that is waiting for me at the house. If I took a hackney now, I could be happily reading within a half-hour.” Gwen was dressed as a dog tonight, complete with a canine mask. Diana was sure that her sister had a very specific breed in mind for the animal—with some heavy symbolism attached—but she didn’t dare ask about it. The answer would devolve into a lecture on the poor lot of women in this world. Since Diana already agreed with the statement, she had no wish to revisit the litany of abuses set upon the fairer sex.
“Because no outing would be complete without you,” Diana answered, carefully avoiding the topic of her sister’s choice in costume.
“Yes,” agreed Lilah as she settled down beside Gwen. “So stop talking about leaving. If you go, then as your companion, I shall have to leave as well. And I have been so looking forward to this treat.”
Lilah was dressed simply but to great effect as a lilac fairy. Her dress was green, she was just now tying on her lavender mask, and sprigs of lilac adorned her hair and bodice. On anyone else, it would have looked silly, but Lilah carried herself with such quiet elegance that she never looked ridiculous, ever. It was a quality Diana envied.
Last into the boat came her brother, Elliott, and his new wife, Amber. She wore a simple domino and mask of bright red, but the feathers in her hair suggested she was some sort of bird. And Elliott, Diana was happy to see, was not in all black as was his usual custom. His mask sported red feathers, and he pulled at them irritably.
“Stop fussing with them,” Amber instructed her husband. “They look quite fetching.”
“I do not wear feathers,” he groused, but the smile he bestowed on his wife was tender and indulgent.
“I am, as always, grateful for your attempts to expand your attire.” The words could have been cutting, but they were said with such love and humor that Diana felt a twinge of envy. Especially as Elliott caressed his bride’s face.
“Will you reward me for suffering these damnable feathers?”
Amber’s expression grew mischievous. “I shall indeed.”
