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Had it all been a lie?

She suddenly felt alone and very naïve The ballroo and devoted, and so to her, but she felt as if she were an island in a vast sea

"Are you unwell?" Ware whispered

Shaking her head, she tried to look away from the man in the whitefor Montoya If she had not, she could have kept the fantasy of his interest alive within her Now that it was gone, she felt its loss keenly

"Should we stroll?" Ware suggested He bent over her in a highly intientle ht a s at the corner of her lips She turned her gaze from the masked man atched her so closely and met Ware’s concerned blue eyes "I should like that, an to lead her away As often happened when he sheltered her, her heart swelled with gratitude She prayed that the feeling would grow into love and thought perhaps after they consuht turn into that He would have a care for her in that regard, too, she knew

She glanced at hi I do for you, sweet Amelia, is for the occasionalnow"

Blushing, she looked away and watched thethe roo himself directly opposite her

"Would you excuse

"Only a uest walked past theth of Ware’s tall frame

"You provocative devil, you," Amelia teased

He winked, stepped back, and kissed her gloved hand "Only for you"

She rolled her eyes at the blatant lie, thentoward the hallway that led to the retiring roo certain it would be easy to follow her, then slipped down the hall There were plenty of guestsabout Music swelled froht flickered in sconces along the wall She felt safe

Taking a deep breath, she pivoted on her heel and faced him

He stood several feet back Aestured him closer He smiled and approached, but stopped a discreet distance away

"Y-your an

"His mask," he corrected with a definite French accent

"Why? Does he want me, or St John?"

"I do not knoho St John is"

A the wisdom of her actions; then she reached into her pocket She withdrehat she hid there and held it out to him

The Frenchman’s head tilted to the side as he considered her He took what she offered and sketched a gallant bow "Mademoiselle"

"Give hi her chin, she walked past him and returned to Ware’s side

Chapter 5

"For God’s sake! Why did you go?"

Colin paced back and forth before the fire in his study and growled low in his throat

"Because," Jacques said easily

"Because? Because!" Colin glanced down at the object in his hand, a miniature of Amelia as only a lover should see her En dishabille, one shoulder provocatively bare al, her lips red and slightly parted As if she’d been fucked long and well

Who was this made for? Not for hio

"She looked beautiful,before the fire, Colin leaned heavily against it, wishing he could have seen her "What color was she wearing?"

"Yellow"

"She approached you?"

"In a fashion" Jacques sat on the settee and tossed one arm over the back, at ease Which was completely opposite of Colin’s own turmoil "I admire her"

Colin released his breath in a rush "Damn it I wanted to keep my distance"

"Why? To keep her safe? She is heavily guarded" The Frenchainst the wooden lip which framed the back of the settee "Why is that?"

"Her sister and her sister’s husband are both notorious criainst therate, Colin sank heavily into his seat behind his desk

"I thought her father was a man of some consequence"

"A viscount, yes" At Jacques’s raised brows, he continued "His avarice was exceeded only by his cruelty He could see nothing beyond his oants and desires He hter, Amelia’s sister He sent Maria to the finest schools, then sold her into e to men he eventually killed to obtain their ’s settleers stilled "Why did she not flee?"

"Lord Welton had Aain Maria’s cooperation"

The Frenchman’s face hardened "I hope he has s in this life that I find ainst one’s faed In the course of her efforts to free her sister, Maria ether, they were able to e a rescue and implicate Welton in the murders of Maria’s two husbands"

Colin ran a hand through his hair "The tale is far more complicated than that, but suffice it to say that St John and his wife are two people with a e’s past and present circumstances, it is even more curious that she would approach me as she did"

"Aaze returned to the miniature in his hand It was an irresistible enticenore

"What did she give you?"