Those blotches of color deepened in his skin, making me warm inside again, and I had to force my face to remain neutral. “She’s brilliant as you said. Charming. Amiable. Pleasant to look at.”
“Pleasant,that’s it?” I prodded before I could stop myself.
His entire face flamed as he tugged on his cravat. “Fine, she’s the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen!” he admitted. “Which I’m sure is strange since you two could practically be twins. And I truly hope to see her again, if she would welcome it.”
I wasn’t sure what would emerge from my mouth—a scream of joy or a sigh of delight—so I kept my lips sealed against theexcitement bubbling up into my throat. He thought I wasbeautiful! And brilliant. I wanted to bask in the sensations flooding me like a balmy river on a summer’s day, but it was all I could do to keep my face inscrutably blank.
“Is that going to be a problem?” he asked quietly, peering at my stone-faced expression with his worried one. “I don’t want to risk our friendship, if it will.”
I shook my head quickly. “Rosalin has her own life. If it’s my approval you need to make your intentions known, you have it.”
I was aware that my reply was more than a little self-serving, but I’m sure the real Ansel would have said the same, along with something on the lines of,Hurt a hair on her head and I’ll make you regret it.As much as he teased me and pretended to loathe dancing with me, my cousin was deeply protective.
But even as I parted my lips to say something similar to Tarik, I knew there was a far greater chance of me hurtinghimirreparably. I also couldn’t bring myself to shut down his affections or warn him off and say that my father would most likely be marrying me to a peer at the end of the season. Secretly, I wanted him to court me…even if it couldn’t go anywhere.
I just wanted to know what true courtship would be like.Feellike.
“Although, hurt one hair on her head, and you’ll find yourself in a world of trouble,” I added sternly, with a narrow-eyed stare for good measure.
“I give you my word,” Tarik said solemnly, making my stupid heart flutter. “I promise to be the perfect gentleman.”
“I’m sure you will see a lot of each other during the next fewweeks,” I said. “And besides, we need her help to make sure you meet the right people in our circles, especially when I’m called away by my uncle for my other duties.”
While my baby brother, Bowen, was my father’s heir apparent, since he was still in leading strings, it was important for Ansel to understand what was required as duke, not that anything was going to happen to my father, but he liked to be prepared. I would also have to be Alter Ego Ansel sparingly in London, as anyone who did know my cousin, like Ela or Zia, or Keston and Rafi, would see right through the subterfuge. Thus, Lady Rosalin would have to do most of the work at balls and events.
For once, however, I was looking forward to the season.
Chapter Twelve
I shall not mingle conjectures with certainties.
—Isaac Newton
The large ballroom of Ela’s house in Grosvenor Square was packed to the brim, and still more people were entering at the top of the stairs. She and Keston had gone all out for this masquerade ball, with the lavish décor of golden columns and wreaths of flowers and ribbons stretching across the tops of the walls in between them. No expense had been spared. The floors had been polished, the chandeliers sparkled with hundreds of lights, and an orchestra played at one end while dancers in beautiful gowns spun with their intricate masks and costumes.
After three full seasons, I should have been used to the extravagances of theton,but I was strangely nervous, mostly due to the presence of the gentleman at my side. I hadn’t been able to take a full breath since Tarik had arrived. He wasn’t staying with us, of course. That would have been impossible to explain to my parents, not to mention the gossip it would have caused…andnotthe good kind. People in thetonloved to speculate.
So, while Ansel wasn’t in town, Tarik would avail himself of my cousin’s pied-à-terre at The Albany in Piccadilly, which was exclusively for bachelors. Like other gentlemen his age, Ansel kept the set of apartments for prestige and privacy, as well as proximity to the gentlemen’s clubs of St. James’s and Pall Mall. He was a young man who needed his own space, after all. Though the place was rented annually and his to command, it was currently vacant, and I was certain my cousin would not mind.
Once more surreptitiously using my father’s stationery and his seal, I was able to write a letter to the management at The Albany to let them know about Ansel’s guest—Mr. Tarik St. Clair, by way of Paris—who would be staying for a fortnight, possibly more, in his apartments. I was turning into a regular forger, but I promised myself that this would be the last time.
I’d been to The Albany once. Women weren’t allowed and could visit only by strict invitation. But as far as I could remember, the accommodations were luxurious and included a bedroom, dressing and drawing rooms, and a study. Tarik would also have shared access to a butler, cook, and valet, and all his new clothes from the Marchands had been delivered there.
“Is it always such a crush like this, Lady Rosalin?” Tarik asked, his voice deep and sonorous in my ear.
I turned to him, breathless at how debonair he looked in a set of raven-black formal wear with a dark silver waistcoat, snowy-white shirt, and cravat. Beneath his tailored evening coat, fitted black breeches hugged his long legs, and his new dress shoes shone. A black domino covered the upper half of his face, leaving that square jaw and those lips on display.With his eyes currently shaded by the mask, I realized I had never noticed how finely shaped and plush his lips were, and now I wished I could go back in time so I wouldn’t fixate on yet another perfect feature of his. Or how they might feel against mine…
Stop it.
“Usually for some of the more popular people in theton,” I replied in a hoarse voice. “Everyone always hopes to get an invitation, but this is certainly the most crowded it has ever been. Last year, the prince regent attended, and the newssheets went wild. Though I suppose Prinny’s the king now.”
He sucked in a gasp upon hearing the prince regent’s well-known nickname. “Will he be here tonight?”
“One never knows when it comes to him, though it’s a quieter season with the death of his father. I doubt he will leave the palace.” I let out a small laugh at Tarik’s wondrous expression. “I’m sorry that Ansel couldn’t be here to greet you, though he said he might show up at some point during the evening.”
Tarik’s lips pursed. “And I’m sorry that the introductions have fallen to you yet again, my lady. I do not wish to be a burden or to keep you from enjoying the evening as you undoubtedly would be without me like a millstone at your side.”
“I don’t mind,” I said. “Usually, I’m quite bored at these things.”
