He grimaced as Minnie reached for his hand and pulled him from the shadow. Lady Abernath was the actual last person he really wanted to talk to. If he were smart, he’d likely stay here with Minnie all night. Until…what? Until they were discovered and forced to marry?
He shook his head. He’d come here to find out why Cristina was still tormenting him after all this time and he’d puzzle it out one way or the other. His feelings about Minnie were tomorrow’s problem. Tonight, he needed to face a specter from his past.
Chapter Twelve
Minnie lowered her free hand to cover her stomach as they slipped back into the party and continued their circle about the room.
She should return to her family and leave Tag to face his own problems. But somehow, she was unable to deny him when he asked for help. This wasn’t new for Minnie. She did the same for her family, but it wasn’t normal for her to feel so compelled to help friends. Though Tag was more than just a casual acquaintance.
Besides, helping him might get her answers about Emily. At least that’s what she was repeating to herself.
She thought back to Ada’s comment. How deep did her feelings run? She tucked her nose into his shoulder, drawing in his spicy male scent of sandalwood and pine. Her insides danced with excitement and pleasure.
Did she love him? Her eyes drifted closed for a moment as he continued to lead her around the room. Dear God, she did. The idea settled over her like a blanket. Warm and so satisfyingly heavy. Like she was tucked securely in her feelings. Never had she experienced anything like this.
Odd considering her first response to him had been passion, scorching in its heat. The attraction was still there, and somehow it only fueled her feeling of deep affection.
Funny, she’d thought she’d been secure with Lord Charleston. That had been a shadow of the emotion Tag brought out.
“What are you thinking?” he rumbled, the sound coming from deep in his chest and reverberating through her.
She held his arm tighter, her mind searching for an acceptable answer. “I was wondering how we arrived here. I don’t mean at this ball. But the first night I met you, we didn’t get along at all and now…”
He drew in a sharp breath and held it in his chest. She could feel his expansion and her own body contracted to accommodate him. “Now what, Minnie? What are we now?”
She opened her eyes again, meeting his in a long stare. “You still want me to tell you?”
He let out his breath, the rush of air, somehow changing their shape. “No, I know what’s happening between us. I need to decide what to do about it.”
Her own brow crinkled. She knew what was happening to her. But she was less certain about him. “When I was with Lord Charleston, I thought I understood perfectly. I was wrong.”
He stopped then, leaning closer, his nose near touching hers. “You’ve your own insecurities to face.” They’d reached the hallway back to the grand stair. It was quieter here, most people having now moved into the throng of the party. Tag pulled her off to the side. They were still visible to the crowd but their quiet voices were insulated by the noise around them.
“I do,” she replied. “But today, we’re addressing your past, aren’t we?”
“Oh my,” a female voice purred. “Digging up old skeletons, are we?”
Minnie looked to her right and there stood the countess, the picture of cold beauty with her blonde hair and her pale blue eyes. Eyes that creased in the corners in a way they hadn’t the last time she and Minnie and met. “I hope not,” Minnie answered softly. Tag had gone still next to her.
“What part of his past, specifically?” The other woman moved closer. “Has he shared our history with you?” Lady Abernath scanned them both, Minnie’s hand still tucked in his arm. Tag tucked her partially behind his body.
Minnie didn’t respond. While he had told her a bit, she knew there must be more to the story.
“I don’t want to discuss the past,” Tag rumbled. “I want to know why you sent Lady Emily to find Jack that night.”
Minnie gasped in a breath but closed her mouth quickly to cover it. She’d thought Tag had been fibbing when he’d said he’d come to find answers about Lady Emily and Jack. That had been an excuse to convince her to attend. But clearly, he’d meant what he’d said.
“How is the happy couple?” She smiled, her lips curling in an almost cruel curve. “Jack was so desperate for love. I’m not surprised he chose a simpering debutante. But not to worry. I’m sure they’ll both find other candidates. At least, Lady Emily will.”
Minnie’s insides itched with irritation and she straightened. The countess clearly did not know everything. She was unaware that Jack and Emily had eloped. Minnie would just as soon keep that information to herself. “Emily is far from simpering.”
The countess pierced her with an assessing glare, her eyes travelling up and down Minnie, but Minnie refused to shrink under the scrutiny. “Well, you’re no weakling, are you?” The countess moved closer. “Tag did always like a strong woman.”
The use of Tag’s given name was like a hit to the stomach and she bent a bit. Minnie had grown accustomed to the name and she considered it hers. “Some things never change. Then again, I don’t go around attempting to hurt innocent people, so perhaps strength is where our similarities end.”
The countess’s mouth pressed into a thin line. “They don’t end there, I can assure you. Soon you’ll be another woman that the Duke of Daring leaves in the dust. Just like he did me.” Her face had grown hard, her cheek bones even more prominent as her mouth pressed into a thin line. “Did he tell you the part where he left me alone to fend for myself or the part where he left me with a child in my belly to raise?”
She felt Tag stiffen. “That isn’t the story and you know it.”