Desperate and Daring 02 - Belle of the Ball (5 page)

“We will bring you one then,” Hazel offered.

Once alone, Anabelle didn’t know what to say. She looked over the garden and hoped Lord Marcus would lead the way.

“Are your slippers hurting you?”

She smiled and turned to him. “No, I just didn’t want to return just yet. It is too stuffy in there, even for ices.”

“I agree. The crowd is bothersome.”

Anabelle looked down and bit her lip. “It’s even crowded out here.”

He was silent for a moment. “There is something I would like to show you,” he suggested. “It’s just around the corner, but we would be alone.”

Anabelle’s breath caught in the excitement. She turned to him. “What is it you want to show me?”

“A fountain.”

“Then show me this fountain.”

They slipped around the corner and were out of sight in the shadows of the house. They followed a pathway along the house until they reached a gate. It creaked only a little as he lifted the latch and pushed it open. He was holding her hand now. It was the most intimate contact they had ever had outside of dancing.

They were in a small walled courtyard. A set of French doors was opposite the gate. It was dark beyond the doors signaling that the room was not in use. A low hedge bordered the wall broken by small benches for two. Beside the French doors was a padded bench covered by overhanging roses.

But that was not what held Anabelle’s attention. In the center of the courtyard was a fountain with a mermaid at its center sitting in repose upon a rock. A small spot of water erupted from her mouth. She was topless with the details of her nipples apparent even in the dark. Anabelle swallowed. This was the moment. Her dragon was a silent presence beside her, but he led her forward and around the fountain slowly.

She let him lead her, curious to how much further he would take her. Did she trust him? There was only one way to find out. He led her to the padded bench and she sat. He followed her and they both stared at the mermaid in silence. Perhaps he was testing her? To see if she was easily shocked? She tried to relax her hands and shoulders.

“Are you cold?” he asked as his arm moved behind her.

“Actually, no. The evening is rather warm.”

“You look lovely in the moonlight. You are a moon Goddess.”

Anabelle smiled and looked up at him. “You look rather scary, I will admit.”

He chuckled. “I suppose dragons are not what one wishes to come across in a moonlit garden.”

“As opposed to a moon Goddess?”

“Or a mermaid.” He smiled at her.

That smile made her feel warm, and she mentally tucked that way as another point in his favor. He was different tonight. He was making her feel exactly what she wanted. She wanted to move closer, to feel the hardness of his chest, and to smell the man that he truly was.

Somehow, he must have known, because he brought his hand to her cheek and turned into her.

“May I kiss you, Anabelle?” he said huskily.

Anabelle’s heartbeat tripped over itself. He had never used her given name before, and now he was sweetly asking her permission for a kiss.

“Please,” she said. She couldn’t wait any longer.

His lips slowly descended to hers, their mouths fitting neatly together under his mask. Anabelle tried to remain reticent. After all, she didn’t want him to know that she had been kissed before. But it was hard. She was hungry for the intimacy, eager to feel the excitement she had felt before, and this time for someone who cared for her, who would have every intention of marrying her. He kissed her eagerly and she turned into him, relishing the feel of his strong arms coming around her. At the prodding of his lips, she opened her mouth and his tongue surged in.

That’s when everything changed. She became hyperaware of everything, his taste, his smell, the way he angled his head as he kissed her deeply. It was all too familiar. Funny how something she had only experienced one time could be so recognizable, but it was.

She pushed against his chest and broke the kiss. “Take it off,” she hissed.

He straightened stiffly and did as she asked without a word. He pulled the hood of his domino back and untied the mask slowly revealing his identity.

Anabelle wasted no time. She slapped him with all the force she could muster sitting as she was beside him.

He hardly blinked.

“You said you were done playing games with me. You said you would leave me alone and now you’ve done far more damage than you could possibly know.” Anabelle stood angrily.

“Don’t be so dramatic.” Draven stood setting his mask on the bench. “It was one dance and one kiss.”

“You tricked me. I haven’t seen hide nor hair of you for two weeks, and then suddenly you appear and think not to reveal your identity.”

“You seemed to already know me.”

“I thought you were Lord Marcus. It was him I wanted to dance with, him I wanted to kiss. Not you,” she said with derision.

Draven wanted to act hurt, but even though he felt the sting thoroughly, he knew he had royally screwed up tonight. He had taken advantage of her, and he was man enough to admit it. “You’re right,” he admitted.

“Excuse me?” She whirled towards him.

“I should have been up front about my identity.”

“And now you’ve ruined my potential engagement,” she fumed.

“I wouldn’t go that far.”

“How so?”

“Like I said, it was one dance and one kiss, the later only witnessed by us. You can return to the ballroom and find your—whatever he is to you. However, keep in mind that he hasn’t yet sought you out even though you are irresistible tonight in that costume.”

“Only because you were there. He must think I’m not interested in him now. You’ve ruined my chances.” Anabelle turned away again and began to pace around the fountain. “I had such hopes and you’ve crushed them all. Why, Draven? It was clear you didn’t even enjoy our first kiss.”

Draven’s conscience was beating at him. “I can’t rightly explain it, and I did enjoy kissing you, a bit too much. Even though I avoided you for two whole weeks, when I saw you tonight, I couldn’t resist you. You acted as if you were open to it.”

“Because I thought you were someone else!” she cried.

“I’m very aware of that now.”

“I don’t understand, Draven. I don’t understand how you can be so careless and heartless. This is my future and you don’t care. You are at the mercy of your baser self and you don’t care who you hurt in the pursuit of that.”

Ouch
. “I said I was sorry, but can you really stand there and act like you don’t enjoy what we share?”

Anabelle refused to answer that. If she admitted she liked his kisses, it would only encourage him. She wanted what she felt in his arms to be with someone else, someone who was far kinder and considerate than he could ever be.

“Leave me alone, Draven.” She strode away from him and left the courtyard. He didn’t say a word, but he did follow, but not closely. He had disappeared before she turned the corner into the light and view of the other guests. She climbed the steps and surprisingly, her sister and Lucy were only just returning with the ices.

“What happened to Lord Marcus?” Hazel asked.

“It wasn’t Lord Marcus,” Anabelle murmured.

Lucy’s eyes widened. “Who was it?”

Anabelle shrugged. For whatever reason she didn’t wish to tell them, not unless she absolutely had to. And there was still the matter of Lord Marcus and his failure to appear tonight. She was angry enough to cross him off her list right now, but as it stood, she only had five more names on her list and almost half the season was over. She would give him one chance to redeem himself and then move on if she had to. She felt more discouraged than ever now and twice as confused. How could she be so affected by Draven? His mere presence set her nerves alight, even when she didn’t know it was he. He did something to her, made her body feel things and yearn for things. She couldn’t deny that she liked it, but she wanted it to be with someone else.

She refused to believe she couldn’t have those feelings with someone else.

She finished her ice and a footman took their empty glasses. They decided to return to the ballroom and Anabelle resumed her search for Lord Marcus. It was impossible how there seemed to be even more people squished into the ballroom now that the dancing had started. The trio clung to the walls until they found a gap in the crowd to inch closer. Anabelle tried to see beyond the guests immediately around her, but it proved impossible with the dramatic costumes and masks. She sighed in defeat. Even if Lord Marcus were here, they might never find each other in the crush.

“Lady Anabelle, I have searched far and wide for your radiant presence. At last, I have found you.”

Anabelle turned in astonishment. Her prayer had been answered and Lord Marcus bowed before her. “Lord Marcus, I had begun to give up hope that I might see you this evening.”

“A Phoenix?” Anabelle admired the shimmery orange and red feathers of his mask.

“Yes, exactly.” He smiled in delight. “Have you been here for some time?”

“Since the dancing began yes, but we’ve been enjoying the cooler climate of the terrace.”

Lord Marcus looked towards the open doors. “Ah, yes. How thoughtful of our hosts. Would you care to dance?”

“I’d love to.” Anabelle smiled warmly. The set just finished and a new set was forming. He took her hand and Anabelle assessed her feelings. There was no spark like when Draven touched her, no tense energy of anticipation mixed with excitement.

Perhaps that was because, unlike Draven, Lord Marcus was not devouring her with his eyes. Lord Marcus was his usual patient and reserved self. But he had looked for her, she reminded herself. He had explicitly sought out her company. That had to mean something. Anabelle did her best to enjoy the dance. There was very little time for speaking as they moved through the steps. When it was over, she let him escort her to the refreshment table and took an appreciative sip of lemonade. Hazel was there with a gentleman dressed as a ram. Lord Marcus was in discussion with a horse headed man and talking eagerly of a race soon to occur.

“How nice that Lord Marcus finally found you,” Hazel remarked quietly.

“Yes, now I can enjoy the rest of the evening in his company.”

“I must confess…” Hazel hesitated.

Anabelle turned to her sister with a frown. “What is it?”

“I saw Lord Marcus in the drawing room when we were getting ices.”

“Then why did you ask about his whereabouts on the terrace?”

“I didn’t know if you would want Lucy to know. Did you know it wasn’t him?”

“Not until it was too late,” Anabelle said quietly.

“I knew from the beginning,” Hazel admitted sheepishly.

Anabelle turned wide eyes to her sister. “What didn’t you say anything?”

“You seemed quite enamored of the mysterious dragon. Who am I to deny you that sort of fun?”

Anabelle felt a hollowness in her stomach. “Only because I thought it was Lord Marcus and the dragon now knows that.”

“Who is the dragon, Anabelle?” Hazel whispered.

“You don’t know?” Anabelle laughed bitterly.

“I suspect I do,” Hazel finished and turned away to set her glass down.

“Lady Hazel, Lady Anabelle,” Lord Marcus turned to introduce the gentleman he had been conversing with, “May I present Lord Daniels. He and I attended university together.”

Anabelle and Hazel smiled and nodded. Another set was forming, and Lord Daniels requested Hazel’s hand. They departed and Anabelle waited awkwardly beside Lord Marcus. A second dance would indicate a definite intention on his part, and suddenly, Anabelle was not ready to take that step. She needed to know if she could feel more than just a liking for him, and that wasn’t going to happen on a crowded dance floor.

“Have you seen the lanterns in the garden, my lord?”

“I have not had the pleasure,” he answered.

“Then it is my duty to show you. The topiaries are not to be missed.”

He presented his arm and together they made their way towards the terrace doors. It was slow going, but eventually, they made it to the cooler air. Anabelle was extremely nervous. If they kissed and she felt nothing, how was she going to respond?

They stepped down into the gardens and followed the path around the topiaries. They paused and viewed each one until they were almost at the very end. Anabelle was losing her nerve. It had been Draven who directed their course from here. A rake always knew the places to find privacy at ton events. It was clear Lord Marcus was no rake.

They paused at the last shrub that was shaped like an octopus. Anabelle pretended to admire it half-heartedly.

“What a splendid little gate. I wonder where it leads.” Lord Marcus tugged her in the shadow of the octopus and there was indeed a gate hidden in a cascade of ivy.

“I never would have seen it. What excellent vision you have,” Anabelle said in astonishment.

Lord Marcus looked about quickly as he pushed it open and ushered her through.

Anabelle was perplexed by the sudden change of events but remained calm. This was the opportunity she had been waiting for, and she was glad that Lord Marcus was taking the initiative finally. It was much darker on the other side of the wall and the surrounding foliage, not as tamed. Anabelle lifted her skirts to keep them from dragging in the dirt. She stepped away from the gate and stopped. Lord Marcus seemed apprehensive.

“Anabelle… May I call you Anabelle?”

Anabelle nodded.

“It would please me to hear you use mine privately, though I suppose until now, we have never been private. I hope I have not offended you.”

“It’s quite all right, Thomas.” Anabelle hoped her hesitation wasn’t evident in her voice. Things were going exactly as she wished them to, but something was lacking and she knew exactly what it was. She was nervous, but not in that excited, heat of the moment way. It was like tasting a dish one wasn’t certain they were going to enjoy.