Page 37 of Her Wicked Duke
Soon, their dance was over. Anne was nowhere to be seen, and his heart stuttered with worry.
“You do know where our residence is, Your Grace?” Eleanor asked, an indirect way of saying that she wished he would call on her the following day.
“Of course,” he said, but that was all. He bowed his head. “Enjoy the rest of your evening, Miss Lexington.”
“And you, Your Grace.”
He swiftly left, but before he could get far, the Baroness’s granddaughter approached him. Their introduction was swift, and despite her chattering away, her eyes strayed to the Danish prince.
At the end of their dance, Alexander clasped her hands and bowed. “I hope the prince pays you a visit and expresses his interest,” he said sincerely.
For a moment, she looked affronted, glancing around as if checking nobody had heard him. But then, her face lit up, and she wandered off once more, in search of the prince.
As soon as he was finally free of women vying for his attention, Alexander set his sights on finding Anne. He lingered near the back of the ballroom, where he had been before.
Where could she have gone?
He surveyed the room, trying to picture faces who’d been there before and no longer were now. But there were many. Plenty went outside to the gardens to smoke or simply left early. Others might have snuck outside for a secret rendezvous.
But then, he watched as two familiar faces entered the ballroom from the terrace. And then, he continued watching as Anne and the Earl of Satton stepped further into the ballroom and easily glided onto the dancefloor for the next dance.
Fury sparked within Alexander, hot and uncontrollable. How could she be so foolish to have gone outside with him? For all she knew, the Earl was her stalker! She had asked for Alexander’s protection, and the minute his attention was turned elsewhere, she’d disappeared with another man.
And if her intentions had been anything like the ones at her mother’s ball…
Alexander stormed over to her before the music could start. “A word, Lady Anne,” he demanded, wrapping his fingers around the crook of her elbow and tugging her free from the Earl’s grip.
Before either could protest, he dragged her away, much to the Earl’s protests, but he silenced him with a glare over his shoulder.
“What is your issue, Alexander?” Anne snapped, once they were away from prying ears.
“Anne, you ask for my protection, and then you disappear with a man who does not haveanyhonor?—”
“And you do?” Anne hissed. “You shame me by rejecting my offer to dance, and then I find you dancing with two other women! This push-and-pull game is quite exhausting, Alexander.”
“Perhaps you should stop playing it, then, and so shall I.”
“Are you jealous of the men who seek my affection?” she asked softly, false innocence making her voice melodious.
“No,” he lied. “But I have more reasons to be here than simply watching over you.”
“And what are those, Alexander?” It sounded like a taunt, a challenge.
Alexander pulled her down the hallway, his body burning with fury and desire and jealousy, a whole array of emotions he couldn’t tamp down. He needed her—he needed to show her, to stop toying with their desires.
She washisto protect. He pushed her into a nearby alcove that engulfed them in shadows to protect them from prying eyes.
Anne’s demure smile teased him, made him desire her even more. “Here you are again, only ever getting close to me in private.”
“Secretly, Anne, I think you love it,” he whispered, lowering his face to hers, feeling a shiver run through her when his lips brushed her exposed neck.
He could barely hold himself back, but he found that, after kissing her in the orchard on his estate, he didn’t want to hold back any longer.
Chapter Twelve
“And why would I love it?” Anne whispered. Truthfully, she wished to tease Alexander, but within seconds, he had broken down all of her defenses against his handsome allure. “A woman wants to be seen in public as well as in the shadows.”
“I promised you pleasure and discretion, did I not? You wished for that with the Earl, did you not?” His voice was low, a deep baritone in her ear.
