Devil's Bride (Bar Cynstar 01) by Stephanie Laurens

Author:Stephanie Laurens
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2011-09-23T00:26:45+00:00

* * *

Chapter 14

As the evening wore on, the gaiety increased. Supper was served at one o'clock. Seated beside Devil at one of the larger tables, Honoria laughed and chatted. Smiling serenely, she studied Devil's cousins and their supper partners and knew what those ladies were feeling. The same expectation tightened her nerves, heightened her senses. Laughing at one of Gabriel's sallies, she met Devil's eye—and understood precisely why ladies of the ton deliberately played with fire.

The musicians summoned them back to the ballroom. The others all rose; Honoria fussed with her shawl, then untangled the ribbons of her fan. She'd intended informing Devil of her decision while sharing their first waltz; denied that opportunity, she was sure that, if she quietly suggested she had something to tell him, he would create another.

She looked up—Devil stood beside her, patient boredom in his face. She held out a hand; smoothly, he drew her to her feet. She glanced around; the supper room was empty. She turned to Devil—only to have him turn her still further, away from the ballroom. Startled, she looked up at him.

He smiled, all wolf. "Trust me."

He led her to a wall—and opened a door concealed within the paneling. The door gave onto a minor corridor, presently deserted. Devil handed her through, then followed. Blinking, Honoria looked around; the corridor ran parallel to the ballroom, leading toward its end. "Where…?"

"Come with me." Taking her hand, Devil strode down the corridor.

As usual, she had to hurry to keep up; before she could think of a sufficiently pointed comment, they reached a set of stairs. Somewhat to her surprise, he took the downward flight. "Where are we going?" Why she was whispering she didn't know.

"You'll see in a minute," he whispered back.

The stairs debouched into another corridor, parallel to the one above; Devil halted before a door near its end. Opening it, he looked in, then stepped back and handed her over the threshold.

Pausing just inside, Honoria blinked. Behind her, the lock clicked, then Devil led her down three shallow stone steps and onto a flagged floor.

Eyes wide and widening, Honoria gazed about. Huge panes of glass formed half the roof, all of one wall and half of each sidewall. Moonlight, crystal white, poured in, illuminating neatly trimmed orange trees in clay pots, set in two semicircles about the room's center. Slipping her hand from Devil's, she entered the grove. In the moonlight, the glossy leaves gleamed; she touched them—their citrus scent clung to her fingers. In the grove's center stood a wrought-iron daybed piled with silk cushions. Beside it on the flags sat a wickerwork basket overflowing with embroideries and lace.

Glancing back, she saw Devil, a silvered shadow prowling in her wake. "It's an orangery."

She saw his lips twitch. "One of my aunt's fancies."

The tenor of his voice made her wonder what his fancy was. An expectant thrill shot through her—a violin rent the peace. Startled, she looked up. "We're under the ballroom?"

Devil's teeth flashed as he reached for her.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.