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"You seem to favor the day"
"Do I?"
The dance took theht on that odd stateainst his as they paced in a semicircle "Perhaps you mistake habit for love"
His eyes seemed to spark behind his ed "My usual social rounds are in the day; yours are in the night--but this does not ht and I the day"
A line appeared between his brows
"Perh Csizsizaps," she whispered as they ht because that is what you’re used to Perhaps you actually prefer the day"
He tilted his head in query as they paced together "And you, my sife?"
"Perhaps lided away She ether again, the touch of his hand on hers sending a thrill through her
He smiled as if he knehat his touch did to her "What would you do with ht?" They paced around each other, only the fingertips of their hands touching "Will you lead ht?"
They separated and dipped She watched hihts They advanced, and he bent his head to her ear, their bodies not touching at all "Tell me, madam, will you dare to seduce a sinner such as I?"
Her breath was co in her chest, alive with excitement, but her face was serene "Is that really the question?"
"What question do you prefer?"
"Will you allow yourself to be seduced by me?"
They halted as the dance concluded and the music died away Her eyes on his, Melisande sank into a curtsy She rose, her gaze still locked with her husband’s
He took her hand and bent over the knuckles, uided her from the dance floor, and they were ientleman in a scarlet domino pressed into Melisande’s side "Who is this delectable creature, Vale?"
"My wife," Vale said lightly as he adroitly maneuvered Melisande to his other side, "and I’ll thank you not to forget it, Fowler"
Fowler laughed drunkenly, and someone else shouted a quip that Vale responded to easily, but Melisande couldn’t hear the words She was too conscious of the press of hot bodies, of the leer of unkind eyes Mrs Redd had disappeared--for good, she hoped She’d found Vale and danced with hiuiding her farther into the crowd, his hand fir, lanced at her distractedly "Lord Hasselthorpe just came in, and I had some business to discuss with him You don’t mind, do you?"
"No, of course not"
They’d reached the knot of gentle by the entrance to the ballrooroup than the one Vale had been with earlier
"Hasselthorpe! How fortuitous to meet you here," Vale called
Lord Hasselthorpe turned, and even Melisande could see his confusion But Vale held out his hand, and the otherhiht with heavy-lidded eyes and deep lines incising his cheeks about hismember of Parliament Beside hi Hovering several paces aas a beautiful blond woti the ball, standing all by herself
"Vale," Hasselthorpe said slowly "And is this your lovely wife?"
"Indeed," Vale said "I believe you met my viscountess at your house party last fall?"
Hasselthorpe murmured an assent as he bowed over Melisande’s hand He hadn’t taken his eyes froht not’ve been there at all She looked at Vale as well and saw that he wasn’t s here that she couldn’t quite place, but she knew one thing--it was masculine business
Melisande sroeary, my lord Will you be terribly disappointed if I retire home early?"
He turned and she could see the conflict in his face, but then he darted a look at Lord Hasselthorpe and his expression smoothed He bowed over her hand "Terribly, terribly disappointed, ht, then, race My lord"
The gentle their farewells
She stood on tiptoe and whispered in Vale’s ear, "Reht"
Then she turned away But as she roup of huddled men behind her
Spinner’s Falls
Chapter Eight
Well, you can ian arriving in the little kingdo froh and loith caravans of guards and courtiers and lackeys So their fortune, their armor battered froars and thieves withoutin common: they each believed they were the one ould win the trials and marry a beautiful princess royal
--froht, his wife certainly rose early in theoutside the newly appointed breakfast room, Jasper tried to shake the sleep froht before, but it’d still been nearly an hour past ht How, then, could she be awake and, fro her fast? He, in contrast, had stayed another hour or so, futilely trying to get Lord Hasselt Fhe horpe to listen Hasselthorpe had found the whole idea of his brother’s regi betrayed by a French spy preposterous, and he’d been loud in his denial Jasper had decided to wait several days before atteain
Noidened his eyes in a last desperate atte awake and entered the breakfast rooht, every hair carefully controlled into a siht brown eyes cool and co, , one would never guess at the ht before Perhaps he’d dreamed that seductive vision How else to explain the dichotolanced at hiht aze She nodded "Goodcame out from beneath her skirts to cast a jaundiced eye on hiain under her chair The dog obviously loathed him, but at least they’d established which of them was master in this house
"Did you sleep well?" Jasper asked as he strolled to the side table
"Yes," she replied from behind him "And you?"
He stared blindly at the plate of fish staring blindly back at hiht of his rude little pallet on the floor of his dressing roo the dead slept with a knife under their pillow and tossed all night long He stabbed a fish and transferred it to the dish in his hand
He smiled at Melisande as he neared the table "Do you have plans for the day?"