Harlequin Historical October 2018, Box Set 1 of 2 by Sophia James

Author:Sophia James
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2018-11-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER NINE

It was still dark when they left the ridotto, though dawn was not far-off. Becky felt as if she was floating, as if she had drunk a magnum of Prosecco. She couldn’t stop smiling. She jumped down into the gondola, making it rock wildly. ‘We did it.’

Luca was unfastening his mask, casting it with his tricorn hat on to the other bench and running his fingers through his flattened hair. ‘You did it.’

‘We did it.’ Becky threw herself on to the bench, making the heavy purse containing her winnings clunk against her thigh. ‘You selected the opponents, the Queen of Coins vanquished them one by one.’

Luca cast off and began to turn the gondola. ‘Though there were moments when it seemed to me that the Queen of Coins was the one about to lose.’

Becky chuckled. ‘Oh, that is all part of the act. You have to give your adversary hope. You have to lead him to believe that he can beat you, else he will not be tempted to play on.’ Her face fell. ‘That sounds very callous.’

‘I think you were fair, in the circumstances. You did not permit the stakes to go anywhere near as high as some of the more reckless gamblers wished.’

‘That is true,’ she said, brightening. ‘Do you think the Queen of Coins is being talked about already?’

‘From the minute she walked into the room she was a sensation, and I believe I played my part in stirring up interest. By the end of the night, I had the pleasure of several of my stories regarding the identity of the mysterious Queen of Coins being quoted back to me along with various other speculations not of my devising. The runaway Bulgarian princess was my personal favourite.’

Becky let out a peal of laughter, which echoed around the narrow canal. ‘I know we must repeat our success several times over before Carnival starts properly, but we did make an excellent start, didn’t we?’

‘A dream start.’

‘All of this feels like a dream.’ She lay back on the bench, watching starry-eyed as Luca rowed the gondola back to the palazzo, the sky lightening just enough for her to see his handsome countenance.

He was smiling as he tied the boat up, carefully securing the oar before helping her out and lighting the lamp. ‘Are you tired?’

Becky shook her head. ‘I feel like I’ll never sleep again, though I will be very relieved to take off this mask.’ She followed him back up the steps to the door of the secret room, pulling the pins that secured her hood and untying her mask with a happy sigh as Luca locked the door behind them, placing his hat and mask on to the table. ‘A nightcap to celebrate, I think,’ he said. ‘Wait there.’

Becky pulled the purse containing her winnings from the secret pocket inside her overdress and put it beside the masks. After the cold outside, the room felt warm. She untied the sash and slipped out of the outer dress

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