For the Earl's Pleasure by Anne Mallory

Author:Anne Mallory
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Historical
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2009-09-30T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Abigail wound through the dense ballroom crowd with a heightened sense of purpose to her movements. Valerian prowled behind like a large pet cat impatiently waiting for her to fill his dish.

She smiled at the image. She might be uncomfortably turning into one of the young women who groveled for a word from Valerian and preened with confidence when in his good graces, but he was equally cursed at the moment.

“Feeling good tonight, Smart?” His fingers pulled down the exposed skin of her arm, then continued and curved beneath the shoulder of her dress to pull her against him. She tried to cover the fact that she had awkwardly moved an inch forward from no apparent cause, but her heart was beating too quickly and her breath gusting too fast.

He hadn’t been able to touch or talk to anyone else in the room, so he seemed to have concentrated all of his ability to do so on her once again.

There was an ironic aspect that their conversations were still private—even though they took place in the belly of the ton.

He leaned forward and whispered in her ear. “I could do all manners of things to you here in the ballroom, and no one would notice.”

Heat, searing and forceful, burned her.

“Miss Smart, might I remark that you are looking quite lovely tonight.”

She jerked away from Valerian and turned to see Aidan Campbell standing before her, the look that he had been sporting whenever their eyes met during the last week was deeper and more urgent.

“Thank you, Mr. Campbell,” she said politely, carefully looking around to make sure there were others near. “It is a pleasant evening, is it not? I find myself succumbing to the pleasure of the teasing weather that states summer is nearing.”

He smiled. “How lovely, Miss Smart. I too find summer to be most pleasurable.” A dance struck up—a waltz. He bowed to her. “I wonder if you would do me the honor?”

“Don’t do it, Abigail,” Valerian said darkly, his eyes narrowed slits as he looked at his friend.

She looked into the crowd to see shocked or unreadable expressions on the faces of most of Rainewood’s group.

“He’s up to something,” Valerian said more insistently, but there was a tinge of something else in his voice. She almost dropped her fan in shock when she recognized the emotion.

She smiled widely at Campbell, fanning the green flames. “Of course, Mr. Campbell, it would be my pleasure.”

She was on the lookout for oddities in behavior, and Campbell’s definitely qualified as such. Nothing could happen in the middle of the dance floor though—besides threats. And in that case they would be one step closer to the truth. One step closer to finding Valerian’s body.

To her losing him again.

She shut down that train of thought and accepted Campbell’s extended arm as he escorted her onto the floor.

The violins struck their opening measures and Campbell competently began the three-beat rhythm. He was a good partner. Confident and practiced.

“You are a very good dancer, Mr.

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