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Her theatrical gasps pulled a laugh from him. “Reach me a fork from the cabinet—”
Lucien blinked to see four forks suddenly thrust into his face. Scowling, he glanced up to see his siblings grinning at him. That Edmond even took part in their frivolity was astonishing.
“You have the first bite, Luc,” Vi generously said.
“How generous of you to offer me the first bite from my cake,” he said drily.
Lucien used the fork to cut a generous piece and ate it. Only because his sister was present, he did not moan his pleasure at the rich, decadent taste.
“Oh, your expression says it all,” Ollie said, leaning down to dip in his fork into the lush chocolate cake.
“Who said you could go next?” Vi said, elbowing her brother aside.
Lucien found himself laughing as they consumed Elle’s cake with delight. He glanced at the note once more, smiling as a determination flowing in his heart to never let her go.
Over the next week,Eleanor attended four more balls to her grandaunt’s pleasure. At each ball, she chatted and danced with Mr. Hayford, and then she would sneak away to meet Lucien for a secret rendezvous. Only last night, she had intimately sat on his muscular thigh in Lady Ballinger’s library and chatted for an hour, sipping on pilfered brandy. They spoke about their respective families, books, chess games, and even pets that they had grown up with. When he had gently eased her from him and urged her to return to the ball, Ellie had not wanted to go. How she had tugged him to her and kissed him over and over until they were both breathless with hunger. Only then did she smile and walk away.
Tonight, they were deep in the darkened gardens of Lady Clemson’s ball, swaying together under the few stars that peeked from the sky. Held securely in his embrace, they danced the waltz much more scandalously than they should, for their bodies were intimately pressed together. The sound of his heartbeat was hers, and every now and then, Lucien would pause to kiss her, sometimes playful nips, other times ravishing kisses that left her mouth feeling bruised. He did not seduce her for more, and the sexual tension between them brewed like a storm, the force of it palpable in the air whenever they met.
“It will soon be time for me to return inside,” she said softly.
“Stay with me,” he murmured. “Ten more minutes.”
He spread his jacket on the thick, carpeted grass and assisted her down. Even knowing there might be an evident grass stain on her emerald evening gown, she reposed beside him, staring up at the night sky.
“I miss the countryside,” she said softly. “We see the sky brighter there. Now I can barely see the stars. Where do you live when you are not in town, Lucien?”
He entwined his hand with hers, and Ellie could feel the heat of him through her glove.
“Since the opening of the gambling den, we have spent most of our time in London. I recently made a purchase of a country manor in Derbyshire. A few minor repairs are underway. I am hoping to spend a few months there in the coming years.”
A country manor in Derbyshire. It sounded wonderful. “I miss Penporth,” she said with a sigh. “Compared to town life, it is very slow there. The gossiping was even more ridiculous, and we attended church every Sunday and suffered the glare of some members who thought us Fairbanks siblings were just too wicked to hear a sermon. But there was a charm to it all.”
“I am curious about this wickedness.”
Eleanor smiled. “That I am here with you in the dark, stargazing, should inform you of some of it. Some claim we are very scandalous.”
“You do not agree?”
“I think it is very hard to live one’s life based on the guidelines of others.” She lowered her voice conspiratorially. “I heard Lady Cantrell admonish a lady for being obvious in her flirtations. The viscountess referred to the lady as crass and owning little moral fortitude. That same night I saw her kissing a man that is not her husband!”
Lucien chuckled. “I gather most people in high society do not feel themselves free to enjoy their experiences how they want to, for fear of being judged.”
Someone must have opened a terrace door close to the gardens for sudden laughter and music filtered on the air.
“Yes. I…I do not like that there are these great expectations of me from people who are not practicing what they preach. Why must we live to please others?”
“You sound sad, Elle.”
A knifelike pain went through her heart. She had no words to reply. There was a sadness and heaviness upon her heart to know that she was falling in love with him but must marry another. Her family would never agree to her being with a man who owned a gambling den and whose background and connections were dubious.
“I…my family is anticipating an offer of marriage for me soon. They are very excited about the prospect.”
His fingers tightened on hers, and she felt the tension that invaded his frame. “Every ball you attend, Mr. Hayford requests a dance or two. Is he the man your family has approved for marriage?”
Eleanor swallowed, hating the nerves attacking her belly. “Yes.”
“Now you sound worried.”
