Page 20 of A Highland Lass for the English Duke

Lissie somehow limped to the end of the ball. Pushing away the remnants of civet or hare and draining her goblet of wine, she felt quite queasy.

It was the final course, and many fine wines were flowing. This had added to the conviviality immensely, and now even buttoned-up Annice seemed to be relaxing.

Music was playing, the small quartet of minstrels in the center of the room being accompanied by more, as well as a choir of women singers. And now people were beginning the dancing.

To Lissie's surprise, it was uptight cousin Annice who seemed to be leading the charge into the dancing. Lord de Lacy, the ball's host, had commenced the revelries, and Annice was immediately requisitioned.

Watching her go, Lissie gazed blankly upon the proceedings; it was easy to feel overwhelmed by them. Every eligible man this side of London must be here, chased by a bevy of sophisticated ladies, none of who were nursing bruises from tripping over their chopines.

Rubbing her throbbing limb, Lissie wondered how on Earth she was even going to get across this room, much less dance in these dratted things. Perhaps she was too deep in thought because she did not even notice there was anybody near to her.

So when a hand tapped her shoulder, she nearly leaped in fear.

"Hoo there!"

Lissie turned around to see a slight young man with mousy hair and a soup-stained lip smile hopefully at her.

He did not look like a lord. Turning her head swiftly, Lissie hoped to avoid him, but he was nothing if not persistent.

"Hoo there," he cried, tugging her elbow. Finally, it was impossible to pretend she had not noticed him. Reluctantly, Lissie turned to greet the lad.

"Guid day to ye too," she said politely. But really, she was looking almost anywhere but at the lad.

Instead, something else had piqued her interest. A ripple ran through the crowd as more guests got to their feet and took part in the dance. There, through the hall, she noticed a clump of ladies, their flowing robes and enhanced headdresses marking them out as the most eligible women in the room.

Lissie could not help but gaze at the figure in the center of them, a tall and well-built man with dark hair.

If Lissie had to pick one word to describe him, it was trapped.

Even from halfway across the room, she could see it in his deep-set eyes. Staring, she drilled in deeper. His eyes were striking and blue.

She jolted. There was something about this man she recognized.

"Miss?"

The lad beside her cleared his throat. For the first time, Lissie scrutinized him properly. He was about twenty, if that, with the leftover remnants of adolescent acne, not to mention a few pockmarks for good measure. Lissie looked at him and thought his skin resembled a well-nibbled piece of cheese.

"Aye," said Lissie, before remembering her accent. Instead, she just nodded.

"Miss, may you do me the honor of this dance?" asked the lad, his pale watery eyes almost on stalks as Lissie gazed in horror.

His teeth!

Lissie found herself quite entranced. The lad's two front teeth were completely missing, and the rest almost completely rotten. Added to the remnants of the civet caked over them and Lissie had to stop herself from recoiling in horror.

"Och, um…" She coughed into her handkerchief. She did not know how else to get out of this. Coughing hard, she hoped she had dissuaded the lad, who watched her in worry.

"Dinnae fash, it is nothing!" muttered Lissie, her eyes still pinned on the small crowd drawing across the room.

She coughed once more. With no warning, the lad thumped her on the back.

"Th-Thank ye kindly, sir," she murmured, smiling weakly. This seemed to have the desired result. Finally, the toothless lad backed off, but not before a few more hopefuls took his place.

Hovering closely, their pale eyes stuck to her like hooks. To her surprise, there were a fair few curious to meet the new sensation on the London scene.

But not as many as there were waiting for the tall, dark stranger that day. No, there was quite the swarm encircling the tall, dark man across the hall.

And finally, Lissie realized why she was so intrigued by him. Not only was he easily the most striking man in the room, but she actually recognized him.