How to Turn a Frog into a Prince - Bree Wolf Page 0,29

sound of her name for it sent a jolt of recognition through his being. It sounded familiar, so very familiar. He had heard it before…recently. Again, the sound of music drifted to his ears, mingling with children’s laughter as they had chased one another across green lawns.

And then, at last, the penny dropped!

Jerking back, Nathanial stared at her wide-eyed, cursing himself for being the greatest fool the world had ever seen. “You!” he gasped. “It is you!” How had he not seen it before? How had he not been able to put two and two together? Her black hair, those dark, soulful eyes, her…her accent? “You deceived me,” he snarled as a sharp pain pierced his heart in a most familiar way. “You knew, did you not? You knew who I was.”

Her eyes met his. “I’m sorry. I…”

Nathanial’s jaw clenched, and he shook his head, taking a step away from her. “Don’t. I don’t want to hear it.”

Dimly, he noticed Lord Markham looking back and forth between two of them. “I’m afraid we need to leave. There is a pressing matter requiring my attention. Caswell, if you wish to remain—”

“No,” Nathanial grumbled. “I’ve had enough.” Then he turned his back on yet another woman who had lied to him and strode back inside, unable to look at her a moment longer.

Oh, what an utter fool he had been!

Chapter Fourteen

A Precious Moment

Never would Charlaine forget the hurt that had stood in Nathanial’s eyes when he had realized that she had intentionally concealed her identity, that she had lied to him. The realization had wounded him in a way Charlaine had not expected.

She ought to have known better.

“You seem distracted,” Charlaine remarked as she walked into the Hawthorne ball on Pierce’s arm the following night. Lights sparkled everywhere, and the ton danced and laughed as it was wont to do, glaring at her on the quiet…as they were also wont to do.

Ignoring them, Charlaine focused her attention on Pierce. His face looked tense as he kept looking about, no doubt hoping that Caroline would make an appearance at tonight’s ball. What had happened at the masquerade?

When they had ridden home in the carriage the night before, Caroline had blushed in a most telling way when Charlaine had inquired after her night. Had they finally confessed their love to one another? Charlaine could only hope it was so for they simply belonged together. A shared life would bring them both happiness…if only they dared reach for it.

“Now you look worried,” Charlaine observed as she handed him a glass of lemonade. “I do believe it wise you keep a clear head tonight.”

Pierce frowned at the glass, then took a careful sip and grimace at the sweet taste. “What makes you say that?”

“I cannot help but wonder if…” Her words trailed off, however, the smile that tugged on her lips told Pierce all he needed to know. “Will you finally ask her to marry you?” she pressed when he failed to answer.

Pierce laughed. “I assume you would not object to such an endeavor?”

Smiling, Charlaine squeezed his hand. “I want to see you happy, and she is perfect for you.” Indeed, Pierce and Caroline reminded her of Amancia and Peter; a most heartwarming thought.

“How would you know?” Pierce demanded. “You hardly know her.” Still, the look on his face suggested that he agreed with her assessment.

“I’m a good judge of character, or have you forgotten?” Sighing, Charlaine glanced over her shoulder, only to spot a familiar frown glaring back at her.

Fortunately for her, Nathanial had agreed to attend the Hawthorne ball upon Pierce’s urgings earlier in the week and was not the kind of man to go back on his word. Thus, he was in attendance, no matter how much he would have preferred to stay away. Indeed, the dark look in his eyes told her that, at present, she was his least favorite person in the world.

“He looks furious,” Pierce commented, concern in his dark gaze. “I assume you did not introduce yourself last night.” As though he didn’t know!

“Of course not, it was a masquerade.” Still, she ought to have, especially knowing how Nathanial had been hurt before. In the moment, though, Charlaine, too, had felt liberated of the shackles of her past. She had lived and breathed with ease, enjoying the first tentative moments of meeting another who had the potential of becoming very dear to her.

And she wanted him as…her friend, a companion with whom to share life’s challenges. Someone she could