Page 24 of The Duke’s Wager

“You’re right…” She admitted it hesitantly, not entirely trusting her voice. “The season can be rather… exhausting.” This was all she was willing to say, as words escaped her. “So what is it you would like to talk about, my lord?”

She was still too painfully shy to use his first name, though hers rolled off his tongue rather easily.

Edward shrugged at her question, a far-off look in his eyes. “I want to talk about… Lord Byron’s poetry, or Sir Shakespeare’s plays. About the newest sculptures and portraits… about things that matter.”

It was a rather enlightened point of view he had – and not something she had expected from him. She sat in silence, unable to find the words. Edward laughed to himself and turned to look at her.

“I must ask, my lady… is your dance card full?”

She could feel herself blushing furiously at the question. Of course, her dance card was nowhere near full – he had to know this. He had to know that most men were far too intimidated by her to ask her to dance.

She stared at him silently, afraid to assume that he wanted to dance with her – that he had not asked out of morbid curiosity. For a while, neither of them spoke – though she had expected him to follow up on his question. When he merely looked at her, she shook her head slowly.

“No, my lord. My dance card… is not yet full.”

He held his hand out wordlessly, and she handed the card to him – ashamed of the single name scribbled at the top.

Edward ignored the empty spaces, quickly filling his name in the last spot – a waltz.

“I may have missed the first dance, my lady, but I would be honored to have the last.”

She could only stare at him. “You… you want to dance with me?”

Edward nodded – as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Indeed. I believe the music will begin shortly. Would you accompany me inside, Lady Lucy?”

Once again, she was lost for words. She allowed him to gently pull her arm through his and lead her into the banquet hall.

While everyone in the garden had ignored her when she stepped outside, they could not ignore this. She could hear the feverish whispers and feel the eyes following them.

“Is that Edward Lockhart with the Ice Queen?”

Lucy blinked when she heard the not-so-subtle question, and Edward placed a gentle hand on top of hers. He was tall, muscular, and for some reason that she could not understand… he made her feel safe.

“Don’t mind them, Lucy. It’s just a dance.”

He said nothing else. Perhaps he too, did not have the proper words. She silently repeated the only words he had spoken as they walked in to herself.

Don’t mind them. It’s just a dance.

CHAPTER NINE

There were surprisingly few couples on the dance floor as they entered. Perhaps, she thought with a mischievous smirk, they had found far better things to do. She wondered briefly where Odette was, but the start of the music evaporated all thoughts from her mind.

His strange green eyes remained trained on hers as the glided effortlessly over the dance floor. Edward was a fantastic dancer – and she could not deny that she felt rather good in his strong arms. His broad chest made her feel safe – and protected.

Her heart was beating wildly in her chest. It was the first time that a man’s presence had this strange effect on her.

For the life of her, she could not tell why. Neither of them spoke as they moved across the floor, and yet, something in his eyes told her that he too felt the effect of their closeness.

Was it her imagination, or was he holding her a little closer than would be considered appropriate? Her heart was beating wildly in her chest – so wildly, that she feared he might feel it.

Her mouth was impossibly dry, and she licked over her lips anxiously. Was he ever going to say something, or were they simply going to dance in silence? Would they leave one another after finishing the waltz, never to speak again?

For some reason, this thought did not sit well. She blinked nervously before making up her mind.

“I must say, my lord… I was rather… rather surprised when you approached me.”