Sir Ralph was heard to mumble that he had no intention of letting Miss Arabella down.
“Ah, but you see,” said Sarah, warming to her task, “what she needs is to be taken out of herself. Some excitement that would divert her from the present round of balls and parties and let her forget her past hurts in her enjoyment of a new love.”
Sir Ralph, quite carried away by her eloquence, muttered that yes, he could quite see the point in that
“So you see, Sir Ralph, it’s imperative that she be swept off her feet. She’s very romantically inclined, you know.”
Sir Ralph, obediently responding to his cue, declared he was only too ready to do whatever was necessary to ensure Arabella’s happiness.
Sarah smiled warmly, “In that case, I can tell you exactly what you must do.”
———
It took Sarah nearly half an hour to conclude her instructions to Sir Ralph. Initially, he had been more than a little reluctant even to discuss such an enterprise. But, by dwelling on the depth of Arabella’s need, appealing quite brazenly to poor Sir Ralph’s chivalrous instincts, she had finally wrung from him his sworn agreement to the entire plan.
In a mood of definite self-congratulation, she led the way back to the music-room and, stepping over the door sill, all but walked into Darcy Hamilton. His hand at her elbow steadied her, but, stung by his touch, she abruptly pulled away. Sir Ralph, who had not previously met Lord Darcy, stopped in bewilderment, his eyes going from Sarah’s burning face to his lordship’s pale one. Then, Darcy Hamilton became aware of his presence. “I’ll return Miss Twinning to her seat.”
Responding to the commanding tone, Sir Ralph bowed and departed.
Sarah drew a deep breath. “How dare you?” she uttered furiously as she made to follow Sir Ralph.
But Darcy’s hand on her arm detained her. “What’s that…country bumpkin to you?” The insulting drawl in his voice drew a blaze of fire from Sarah’s eyes.
But before she could wither him where she stood, several heads turned their way. “Sssh!”
Without a word, Darcy turned her and propelled her back out of the door.
“Disgraceful!” said Lady Mailing to Mrs. Benn, nodding by her side.
On the balcony, Sarah stood very still, quivering with rage and a number of other more interesting emotions, directly attributable to the fact that Darcy was standing immediately behind her.
“Perhaps you’d like to explain what you were doing with that gentleman on the balcony for half an hour and more?”
Sarah almost turned, then remembered how close he was. She lifted her chin and kept her temper with an effort. “That’s hardly any affair of yours, my lord.”
Darcy frowned. “As a friend of your guardian—”
At that Sarah did turn, uncaring of the consequences, her eyes flashing, her voice taut. “As a friend of my guardian, you’ve been trying to seduce me ever since you first set eyes on me!”
“True,” countered Darcy, his face like granite. “But not even Max has blamed me for that. Besides,it’s what you Twinning girls expect, isn’t it? Tell me, my dear, how many other lovesick puppies have you had at your feet since I left?”
It was on the tip of Sarah’s tongue to retort that she had had no lack of suitors since his lordship had quit the scene. But, just in time, she saw the crevasse yawning at her feet. In desperation, she willed herself to calm, and coolly met his blue eyes, her own perfectly candid. “Actually, I find the entertainments of the ton have palled. Since you ask, I’ve formed the intention of entering a convent. There’s a particularly suitable one, the Ursulines, not far from our old home.”
For undoubtedly the first time in his adult life, Darcy Hamilton was completely nonplussed. A whole range of totally unutterable responses sprang to his lips. He swallowed them all and said, “You wouldn’t be such a fool.”
Sarah’s brows rose coldly. For a moment she held his gaze, then turned haughtily to move past him.
“Sarah!” The word was wrung from him and then she was in his arms, her lips crushed under his, her head spinning as he gathered her more fully to him.
For Sarah, it was a repeat of their interlude in the shrubbery. As the kiss deepened, then deepened again, she allowed herself a few minutes’ grace, to savour the paradise of being once more in his arms.
Then, she gathered her strength and tore herself from his hold. For an instant, they remained frozen, silently staring at each other, their breathing tumultuous, their eyes liquid fire. Abruptly, Sarah turned and walked quickly back into the music-room.
With a long-drawn-out sigh, Darcy Hamilton leaned upon the balustrade, gazing unseeingly at the well-manicured lawns.
———
His Grace of Twyford carefully scrutinized Sarah Twinning’s face as she returned to the music-room and joined her younger sisters in time to applaud the singer’s operatic feats. Caroline, seated beside him, had not noticed her sister’s departure from the room, nor her short-lived return. As his gaze slid gently over Caroline’s face and noted the real pleasure the music had brought her, he decided that he had no intention of informing her of her sister’s strange behaviour. That there was something behind the younger Twinnings’s interest in Sir Ralph Keighly he did not doubt. But whatever it was, he would much prefer that Caroline was not caught up in it. He was becoming accustomed to having her complete attention and found himself reluctant to share it with anyone.
He kept a watchful eye on the door to the balcony and, some minutes later, when the singer was once more in full flight, saw Darcy Hamilton enter and, unobtrusively, leave the room. His eyes turning once more to the bowed dark head of Sarah Twinning, Max sighed. Darcy Hamilton had been one of the coolest hands in the business. But in the case of Sarah Twinning his touch seemed to have deserted him entirely. His friend’s disintegration was painful to watch. He had not yet had time to do more than nod a greeting to Darcy when he had seen him enter the room. Max wondered what conclusions he had derived from his sojourn in Ireland. Whatever they were, he wryly suspected that Darcy would be seeking him out soon enough.
Which, of course, was likely to put a time limit on his own affair. His gaze returned to Caroline and, as if in response, she turned to smile up at him, her eyes unconsciously warm, her lips curving invitingly. Regretfully dismissing the appealing notion of creating a riot by kissing her in the midst of the cream of the ton, Max merely returned the smile and watched as she once more directed her attention to the singer. No, he did not need to worry. She would be his long before her sisters’ affairs became pressing.
———
The masked ball given by Lady Penbright was set to be one of the highlights of an already glittering Season. Her ladyship had spared no expense. Her ballroom was draped in white satin and the terraces and trellised walks with which Penbright House was lavishly endowed were lit by thousands of Greek lanterns. The music of a small orchestra drifted down from the minstrels’ gallery, the notes falling like petals on the gloriously covered heads of the ton. By decree, all the guests wore long dominos, concealing their evening dress, hoods secured over the ladies’ curls to remove even that hint of identity. Fixed masks concealing the upper face were the order, far harder to penetrate than the smaller and often more bizarre hand-held masks, still popular in certain circles for flirtation. By eleven, the Penbright ball had been accorded the ultimate accolade of being declared a sad crush and her ladyship retired from her position by the door to join in the revels with her guests.
Max, wary of the occasion and having yet to divine the younger Twinnings’ secret aim, had taken special note of his wards’ dresses when he arrived at Twyford House to escort them to the ball. Caroline he would have no difficulty in detecting; even if her domino in a subtle shade of aqua had not been virtually unique, the effect her presence had on him, he had long ago noticed, would be sufficient to enable him to unerringly find her in a crowded room blindfold. Sarah, looking slightly peaked but carrying herself with the grace he expect
ed of a Twinning, had flicked a moss-green domino over her satin dress which was in a paler shade of the same colour. Arabella had been struggling to settle the hood of a delicate rose-pink domino over her bright curls while Lizzie’s huge grey eyes had watched from the depths of her lavender hood. Satisfied he had fixed the particular tints in his mind, Max had ushered them forth.
On entering the Penbright ballroom, the three younger Twinnings melted into the crowd but Caroline remained beside Max, anchored by his hand under her elbow. To her confusion, she found that one of the major purposes of a masked ball seemed to be to allow those couples who wished to spend an entire evening together without creating a scandal to do so. Certainly, her guardian appeared to have no intention of quitting her side.
While the musicians were tuning up, she was approached in a purposeful manner by a grey domino, under which she had no difficulty in recognizing the slight frame of Mr. Willoughby. The poor man was not entirely sure of her identity and Caroline gave him no hint. He glared at the tall figure by her side, which resulted in a slow, infuriating grin spreading across that gentleman’s face. Then, as Mr. Willoughby cleared his throat preparatory to asking the lady in the aqua domino for the pleasure of the first waltz, Max got in before him.
After her second waltz with her guardian, who was otherwise behaving impeccably, Caroline consented to a stroll about the rooms. The main ballroom was full and salons on either side took up the overflow. A series of interconnecting rooms made Caroline’s head spin. Then, Max embarked on a long and involved anecdote which focused her attention on his masked face and his wickedly dancing eyes.
She should, of course, have been on her guard, but Caroline’s defences against her dangerous guardian had long since fallen. Only when she had passed through the door he held open for her, and discovered it led into a bedroom, clearly set aside for the use of any guests overcome by the revels downstairs, did the penny drop. As she turned to him, she heard the click of the lock falling into its setting. And then Max stood before her, his eyes alight with an emotion she dared not define. That slow grin of his, which by itself turned her bones to jelly, showed in the shifting light from the open windows.
She put her hands on his shoulders, intending to hold him off, yet there was no strength behind the gesture and instead, as he drew her against him, her arms of their own accord slipped around his neck. She yielded in that first instant, as his lips touched hers, and Max knew it. But he saw no reason for undue haste. Savouring the feel of her, the taste of her, he spun out their time, giving her the opportunity to learn of each pleasure as it came, gently guiding her to the chaise by the windows, never letting her leave his arms or that state of helpless surrender she was in.
———
Caroline Twinning was heady stuff, but Max remembered he had a question for her. He drew back to gaze at her as she lay, reclining against the colourful cushions, her eyes unfocused as his long fingers caressed the satin smoothness of her breasts as they had once before in the carriage on the way back from the Richardsons’ ball, with Miriam Alford snoring quietly in the corner. “Caro?”
Caroline struggled to make sense of his voice through the haze of sensation clouding her mind. “Mmm?”
“Sweet Caro,” he murmured wickedly, watching her efforts. “If you recall, I once asked you if, were I not your guardian, you would permit me to be alone with you. Do you still think, if that was the case, you’d resist?”
To Caroline, the question was so ridiculous that it broke through to her consciousness, submerged beneath layers of pleasurable sensation. A slight frown came to her eyes as she wondered why on earth he kept asking such a hypothetical question. But his hands had stilled so it clearly behoved her to answer it. “I’ve always resisted you,” she declared. “It’s just that I’ve never succeeded in impressing that fact upon you. Even if you weren’t my guardian, I’d still try to resist you.” Her eyes closed and she gave up the attempt at conversation as his hands resumed where they had left off. But all too soon they stilled again.
“What do you mean, even if I weren’t your guardian?”
Caroline groaned. “Max!” But his face clearly showed that he wanted her answer, so she explained with what patience she could muster. “This, you and me, together, would be scandalous enough if you weren’t my guardian, but you are, so it’s ten times worse.” She closed her eyes again. “You must know that.”
Max did, but it had never occurred to him that she would have readily accepted his advances even had he not had her guardianship to tie her to him. His slow smile appeared. He should have known. Twinnings and rakes, after all. Caroline, her eyes still closed, all senses focused on the movement of his hands upon her breasts, did not see the smile, nor the glint in her guardian’s very blue eyes that went with it. But her eyes flew wide open when Max bent his head and took one rosy nipple into his mouth.
“Oh!” She tensed and Max lifted his head to grin wolfishly at her. He cocked one eyebrow at her but she was incapable of speech. Then, deliberately, his eyes holding hers, he lowered his head to her other breast, feeling her tense in his arms against the anticipated shock. Gradually, she relaxed, accepting that sensation too. Slowly, he pushed her further, knowing he would meet no resistance. She responded freely, so much so that he was constantly drawing back, trying to keep a firm hold on his much tried control. Experienced as he was, Caroline Twinning was something quite outside his previous knowledge.
Soon, they had reached that subtle point beyond which there would be no turning back. He knew it, though he doubted she did. And, to his amazement, he paused, then gently disengaged, drawing her around to lean against his chest so that he could place kisses in the warm hollow of her neck and fondle her breasts, ensuring she would stay blissfully unaware while he did some rapid thinking.
The pros were clear enough, but she would obviously come to him whenever he wished, now or at any time in the future. Such as tomorrow. The cons were rather more substantial. Chief among these was that tonight they would have to return to the ball afterwards, usually a blessing if one merely wanted to bed a woman, not spend the entire night with her. But, if given the choice, he would prefer to spend at least twenty-four hours in bed with Caroline, a reasonable compensation for his forbearance to date. Then, too, there was the very real problem of her sisters. Despite the preoccupation of his hands, he knew that a part of his mind was taken up with the question of what they were doing while he and his love were otherwise engaged. He would infinitely prefer to be able to devote his entire attention to the luscious person in his arms. He sighed. His body did not like what his mind was telling it Before he could change his decision, he pulled Caroline closer and bent to whisper in her ear. “Caro?”
She murmured his name and put her hand up to his face. Max smiled. “Sweetheart, much as I’d like to complete your education here and now, I have a dreadful premonition of what hideous scandals your sisters might be concocting with both of us absent from the ballroom.”
He knew it was the right excuse to offer, for her mind immediately reasserted itself. “Oh, dear,” she sighed, disappointment ringing clearly in her tone, deepening Max’s smile. “I suspect you’re right”
“I know I’m right,” he said, straightening and sitting her upright. “Come, let’s get you respectable again.”
———
As soon as she felt sufficiently camouflaged from her guardian’s eye by the gorgeously coloured throng, Lizzie Twinning made her way to the ballroom window further from the door. It was the meeting place Sarah had stipulated where Sir Ralph was to await further instructions. He was there, in a dark green domino and a black mask.
Lizzie gave him her hand. “Good!” The hand holding hers trembled. She peered into the black mask. “You’re not going to let Arabella down, are you?”
To her relief, Sir Ralph swallowed and shook his head. “No. Of course not. I’ve got my carriage waiting, as Miss Sarah suggested. I wouldn’t dream of deserting Miss Arabella.”
Despite the weakness in his voice, Lizzie was satisfied. “It’s all right,” she assured him. “Arabella is wearing a rose-pink domino. It’s her favourite colour so you should recognise it. We’ll bring her to you, as we said we would. Don’t worry,” she said, giving his hand a squeeze, “it’ll all work out for the best, you’ll see.” She patted his hand and, returning it to him, left him. As she moved down the ballroom, she scanned the crowd and picked out Caroline in her aqua domino waltzing with a black domino who could only be their guardian. She grinned to herself and the next instant, walked smack into a dark blue domino directly in her path.
“Oh!” She fell back and put up a hand to her mask, which had slipped.
“Lizzie,” said the blue domino in perfectly recognizable accents, “what were you doing talking to Keighly?”
“Martin! What a start you gave me. My mask nearly fell. Wh…what do you mean?”
“I mean, Miss Innocence,” said Martin sternly, taking her arm and compelling her to walk beside him on to the terrace, “that I saw you come into the ballroom and then, as soon as you were out of Max’s sight, make a beeline for Keighly. Now, out with it! What’s going on?”
Lizzie was in shock. What was she to do? Not for a moment did she imagine that Martin would agree to turn a blind eye to their scheme. But she was not a very good liar. Still, she would have to try. Luckily, the mask hid most of her face and her shock had kept her immobile, gazing silently up at him in what could be taken for her usual innocent manner. “But I don’t know what you mean, Martin. I know I talked to Sir Ralph, but that was because he was the only one I recognized.”