Dangerous Masquerade (Regency Masquerade)

As he got nearer, he was stunned to discover it was his black domino—the one she’d stolen from the masquerade. She had kept it all this time. Not just kept it, but was using it and seemed to treasure it.

Not wanting to disturb her, he went back outside. There were no servants in sight, so he led his horse to the small stable near the house. He quickly unsaddled him and rubbed him down, then gave him hay and water.

Luc returned to the kitchen with his valise. On the journey here, he had spared little thought to how Ria would react when she saw him. Now, as he sat in a chair and watched her sleep, he began to think about it.

He had assumed her coming here meant she had given up on him. Was it because he wouldn’t listen, or had he killed any feeling she had for him?

But there was the domino. The way she was clutching it gave him hope. So did the innate knowledge that the woman he had grown to know over these last weeks was compassionate and forgiving.

When he found out she was his mystery lady, the initial violent surge of anger and betrayal had clouded his reason. He had become ice cold, his love for her and awareness of her character locked in the ice. All he’d been aware of was deep despair that he had fallen in love with someone like his mother. But of course she wasn’t. She was nothing like Beatrice.

Even before he read the documents explaining her actions, the ice had begun to thaw. Discovering the reason for her actions shattered the ice into a million pieces.

She wasn’t like Beatrice. But he was.

Was he good enough for her?

He swallowed hard. That question terrified him. Then and there he vowed that he’d commit the rest of his life to being so.

As he watched, she slowly began to stir. Her lashes fluttered. Gradually, they opened to reveal her gorgeous, expressive blue eyes, still cloudy with sleep. When they first saw him, they showed pleasure, but with the return of consciousness, that soon changed to puzzlement, hurt, and something else. He drew in his breath as he realized it was dismay. Bracing himself, he waited for her reaction.

When Ria first saw him while sleepy, warm, and relaxed, she felt a surge of happiness. Then awareness dawned. “What are you doing here?”

Next came panic. She didn’t care why. He didn’t belong here. He was invading her refuge. Sitting up straight, she told him, “It doesn’t matter. I want you to leave.”

“No.”

At his bald refusal, she felt breathless, her muscles tightening. He must go. Taking a deep breath, she fought for calm.

The thought that he had forgiven her fleetingly crossed her mind, but she dismissed it. The hard, cold man she met last time would not yield so easily, and there was nothing in his expression to indicate any sign of love or tenderness.

Once again she asked, “What are you doing here?” She then stared at him, waiting for him to answer her. What could possibly bring him all the way here? Her heart leapt in her chest. “There isn’t anything wrong at the manor, is there?”

He shook his head. “No, everything is fine. You need not worry.”

Ria released the breath she had been holding. Still he didn’t answer her question. She had asked twice. She wasn’t going to ask again.

Looking at the clock on the mantle, she got up from the chaise longue, pushing the domino so it fell to the floor on the side nearest the wall. She hoped he hadn’t recognized it.

Clearly, he wasn’t going to leave. Equally clearly, she could not force him.

Not knowing what else to do, Ria walked over to the table and announced, “I’m making the evening meal. If you won’t leave, you can help. Peel and chop these for me—small pieces, please.” She pushed potatoes, carrots, and turnips toward him, along with a small knife.

She couldn’t help feeling a little smug as she watched Luc ineptly cutting up the vegetables. At last she’d found something he wasn’t perfect at.

In silence she browned the onions, added them and the rest of the vegetables to the meat already simmering over the fire, then she kneaded the bread that she’d left to rise earlier.

A number of times she caught Luc watching her, appearing surprised at what she was doing. After she’d kneaded the bread dough, she threw a thick, clean cloth over the bowl and put it back onto a ledge at the end of the hearth.

At his look of enquiry, and forgetting she wasn’t speaking to him, she said, “That’s a nice, warm place. I need to let the bread rise again.”

“I didn’t know you could cook.”

Not willing to admit these were the only things she could make, she merely said, “There are a lot of things about me you don’t know.” Then remembering she wasn’t talking to him, she proceeded to make a pot of tea in silence.

As she sat down at the table, Ria felt her tense muscles relax slightly. It had been hard to concentrate on what she was doing with Luc closely watching her. She had only done this a few times and was anxious that nothing should go wrong with the ragout, but everything had worked well

Earlier, as she had watched the heat of the fire melt the dripping that she’d browned the onions in, she had worried that where Luc was concerned she was like that. She could feel her resolve slowly softening with his proximity.