Page 36 of His Forbidden Duchess
“Do you have a particular gentleman in mind for me?” she asked, head tilted to one side.
Felix breathed her in and pulled her waist closer still. Their noses were almost touching, their breath mingling. “I think you already know the answer to that, Eloise.”
As they stared into one another’s eyes, their dance paused while the other couples moved seamlessly around them as though they didn’t exist.
“Be careful, Your Grace,” Eloise whispered. “I want to win this bet.”
“As do I.” He would win the bet all right, and then he would enjoy the satisfaction of taking what a man needed.
They remained still for a moment longer before they began to sway to the music once more, moving in time with the other couples, the spell paused but not entirely broken.
“Speaking of the bet,” he said, “we discussed what would take place if we lost but not what would happen when we win.”
“Ifyouwin, I will not tell Jeremy what you have been doing with his little sister,” Eloise teased.
Felix snorted. “I think it is fair to say neither of us will say a word to Jeremy either way. Neither of us are that stupid.”
Eloise cocked her head in agreement. “Fair point. But I do not think I want a prize as such when I win. The triumph will be enough.”
“Ifyou win, not when,” he corrected. He pursed his lips in thought. “However, I would like to win something in addition to the triumph.”
“Oh?” she replied. “And what would that be? A bag full of sugarplums?”
He smirked at her again. “No. I would like another private dance lesson with you. So, be careful, darling, because Ialwayswin. And you’ll be my prize—every delicious inch of you.”
Eloise opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, the music ended, and Felix stepped politely away from her, bowing as any gentleman would.
With a suggestive sparkle in his eyes, he spun on his heels and walked away, his shoulders held high with a level of confidence Eloise had never encountered before. Mesmerized, she watched with her mouth hanging open as he walked away, not quite comprehending what was happening between them.
“Come away from the dance floor, dear,” she heard her mother call out.
Eloise turned slowly, trying to stop herself from shaking, and saw her mother beckoning dramatically.
“The next set is about to start, and you do not have a partner for this one,” Lady Danridge said.
Snapping into action, Eloise dashed over to the carpeted area where her mother stood. Lady Danridge slipped her arm into her daughter’s, and the pair wandered toward the refreshment room. Eloise knew there was little her mother appreciated at these events more than a decent snack.
“How truly delightful it is, Eloise,” her mother said.
Eloise patted her arm as if she were an elderly lady. “What is?”
“Oh!” Lady Danridge giggled. “Why, my own daughter having the attention of not one buttwolords!”
Eloise flushed, horrified that her mother had noticed the spark between her and Felix.
“It is in such contrast to how the previous seasons have gone. Whatever are you doing differently, Eloise?”
“I… do not know,” Eloise lied, wishing she could die of embarrassment. “I suppose I am just more open to the idea this year.”
“Yes, perhaps that is it,” Lady Danridge said. “Oh, how proud your father would have been if he could see you now. Your dear, beloved father. Do you miss him as dreadfully as I do?”
Eloise darkened at the mention of her father. She had, thus far, successfully put him out of her mind for weeks as she had gone about setting right his wrongs.
“You are forgetting that Father is the one who put us into the mess we now find ourselves in.”
Lady Danridge tutted loudly and abruptly stopped walking. Eloise turned back to look at her, idly wondering what dramatics her mother would perform next.
“Do not say such disgraceful things, young lady. Your father was a good, honorable man.”
