as he stared at the outstretched fingers. “Here? On the terrace?”
“If you truly fear your skills being judged, then the terrace seems the best place to test them. No one is looking. That is a rare enough thing in this place.” She flexed her fingers toward him. “I am not accustomed to being refused, Captain Crawford.”
He took her hand, barely holding back a shiver when her fingers tangled with his, even though they were both wearing gloves. “No one could ever refuse you, Your Highness.”
He drew her closer, catching a whiff of the lilac fragrance of her hair as he pressed one hand into her hip and they began to turn. She smiled up at him after he had maneuvered her in time to the music for a moment. “You are not so bad a dancer as you advertised, sir.”
He found himself chuckling. “Underselling is always best, I’ve found. Then I can only impress later.”
She broke into a wide grin that was unlike any other he’d ever seen grace her expression. It made him realize just how false those other smiles had likely been these last few weeks. This one was very real and it lit her up like a dozen candles. It made him want so very desperately to know what those ruby lips tasted like.
She must have sensed that desire, for the smile faded and her gaze locked with his for far too long. They slowed their movements, out of time to the music now, only dancing to their own rhythm. She turned her face toward his a touch more, lifting her lips as if offering them.
He might have done something foolish like draw her closer, like duck his head and kiss her, but the door to the terrace opened and she tugged away, spinning toward the terrace edge, her cheeks bright with color. It was her father who came upon them, and the king did not look particularly pleased as he moved toward them.
“Ilaria, you cannot neglect your guests,” he said sharply.
She tossed Jonah a quick look before she smiled at her father, another of those very false expressions. “I am not, for as you see, Captain Crawford is here. I came out to get some air and was very pleased to chat with him a moment.”
The king inclined his head toward Jonah. “Well, I think the good captain has been blessed with enough of your time. Go back inside, now, and find out who your mother has put on your dance card.”
Ilaria gave Jonah another brief look and then nodded. “Of course. Good night, Captain.”
“Good night, Your Highness.”
She slipped away, back toward the ballroom doors, and Jonah expected the king to follow her. But he didn’t, at least not immediately. He simply stood where he was, staring at Jonah. And then, he slowly shook his head. He said nothing, but the message was entirely clear as the king pivoted on his heel and stalked after his daughter, leaving Jonah with no doubt as to his place.
And it was not kissing a princess on a terrace.
1817
The Donville Masquerade, London
Jonah hadn’t meant to let things go so far. When he realized Ilaria’s carriage had stopped at the Donville Masquerade, he had thought to try to stop her before she entered the hall. But a cart had blocked his way so he could not stop her from entering, and when he reached the entrance, the doorman had kept him from following her, as was the custom, to protect each member’s identity.
But when he got into the hall, there was no mistaking her reaction. Her full lips were parted, her dark eyes darting from one delight to the next. The way she squirmed ever so slightly, the way her hands shook. He knew she was intrigued by what she saw. Aroused.
And it drove him to the edge of madness. But he’d also seen something else: the way the eyes of the entire hall had shifted to her. He didn’t think anyone recognized her thanks to the plain gown she was wearing and the mask covering the top half of her face, but that didn’t mean she was safe.
The men and women in this room were hunters. They wanted to play, to catch, to devour. How in the world could Ilaria react to such a thing? How could her innocence about the world not be changed by seeing what she was seeing…or even seduced into doing some of what she saw?
If he had been charged to protect her, he was damned