Alex’s shoulders sagged in relief. “Good.”
“Which is why I think I’m falling in love with him.”
“What?” Alex shot to her feet.
“Well, maybe notin love,” she hastily amended. “But I dolikehim. Very much—”
“Freddie,” Alex warned, but her sister wasn’t listening.
“—he’s so handsome. And interesting. Did you know he had his own supper club in Paris?”
“Yes.”
Freddie looked surprised. “Oh. Well, it’s quite a brilliant idea, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Alex nodded. “But you aren’t in love with him, Freddie. You—you just aren’t.”
“You don’t know what Ifeel,” Freddie protested and dramatically flopped back onto the bed.
“Perhaps… perhaps you should take a nap,” Alex said as she moved toward the door.
Freddie scoffed. “As if I could sleep after that waltz!” Then she sat up on her elbows and tilted her head. “Where are you going?”
Before her sister could catch on, Alex scurried out of the room and closed the door behind her. Then she pulled out the skeleton key she always wore around her neck and locked the door. Freddie let out a muffled cry and began to pound on the door.
“I’m sorry!” Alex called out. “Get some rest!” she added, though there was no chance of that happening.
Freddie shouted something in response. It was too muffled for Alex to understand, but she guessed it wasn’t particularly flattering. “You’ll thank me later!”
Then Alex picked up her skirts and hurried down the hall. She would pay dearly for this, so she had better make it worth it.
As she returned to the ballroom, she spotted Will near the terrace.
“I locked Freddie in her room,” she murmured when she reached his side. “Please don’t let her out for another ten minutes. Anddon’tlet her near the summer house.”
“What?” Will whirled around. “Alex, wait!”
But then she slipped out onto the terrace and headed toward her destination.
It was time to make Lucien Taylor’s wildest dreams come true.
Five
She was late.
Lucien shoved his hands in his trouser pockets and began to pace. He had been lurking in the back of the summer house for more than fifteen minutes now. Well past the time Freddie had whispered in his ear just before she slipped away.
A creeping sensation ran through him. Perhaps he had misunderstood her. Or perhaps his fevered imagination had invented the entire scene. After all, the evening thus far had been the stuff of countless boyhood fantasies: attending one of the Atkinsons’ parties, dancing with Freddie, and holding her full attention. But even his most vivid fantasy was nothing but a pale imitation of the real thing. She had looked absolutely breathtaking in a lush, pink gown that brought out the natural blush in her cheeks. And while Lucien had certainly enjoyed waltzing with her, it went beyond the physical. Freddie was witty and charming and just so verylively.
He gave his arm a hard, desperate pinch and let out a yelp.
Definitely awake, then.
Besides, he would never have imagined the glowers Alex had not so subtly been casting at them from across the room. If Freddie noticed, she said nothing. She simply laughed louder and smiled wider. So much so that, if Lucien was being very honest withhimself, there were moments when it almost felt like she wore a mask. That the entire scene was part of a performance. One that had been tailored for someone other than Lucien…
No.
He shook his head and forced the thought from his mind. He had wanted this woman for half his life, if not longer. He would not ruin this evening with useless nitpicking. At least, not prematurely, anyway.
