Page 4 of Escaping the Earl
Once she was ready to leave, Louisa kept watch in the corridor so that Sabrina could escape to the front door of the cottage and leave. It would be a long walk to the Germain estate, but if she left early enough she should reach the grand manor house just in time for the ball to start.
2
Peregrine Ashby was incredibly grateful for the protection of his domino as he watched the crowds flow across the ballroom in Lady Germain’s grand manor house. The mask allowed him to move through the well-dressed people with more anonymity than he’d had in the last few weeks.
As the new Earl of Rutland, he’d risen from a somewhat obscure gentleman to a man with far too much popularity, in his opinion. Most of it had to do with the Lady Society column posted in theQuizzing Glass Gazette. She’d told the unmarried ladies of London far too much about him, despite her attempt not to name him directly.
After his great-uncle Frederick had died, the earldom had passed to him. It was entirely unexpected. There had been at least three other gentlemen ahead of him, yet all of those men had also died in the last year. All three of them had been together on a small cutter ship that had sunk off the coast of Egypt, and all lives were lost.
Now at thirty years of age, Peregrine had opportunities in abundance. He had moved out of his cramped bachelor residence in a rough part of London and into his great-uncle’s townhouse in Grosvenor Square. He’d also inherited the family estate, Ashbridge Heath, in the Cotswolds, and though he had not visited it yet, he’d been corresponding with the butler and housekeeper there. He hoped to see it in a few weeks’ time, but until then, he was enjoying himself here as much as he could.
“Ashby? That you?” a familiar voice greeted him. He saw a tall blond-haired man wearing a dark-blue domino striding toward him through the crowd. Despite the mask, Peregrine recognized his friend. Those bright-blue eyes were unmistakable, along with that wicked smirk that promised trouble.
“Lennox, keep your voice down,” Peregrine said as Rafe Lennox joined him at the back of the crowded ballroom.
“What? Afraid someone will recognize you?” Rafe asked.
“Yes, exactly,” Peregrine grumbled. For the last three weeks, it seemed he had dodged every young female and scheming mother in London and the surrounding boroughs. That was not an easy thing to do, but he was determined to avoid marriage, at least for the time being. He was in no hurry to get leg-shackled. He’d only just been given a new life, and if he was burdened with a wife, he feared he would be obliged to stay at home, or at the least feel duty-bound to stay home. He was also wary of English society for the moment. He’d been at the bottom of society for many years and had been treated poorly. Now he was out of his depth in his new position, and he needed to take the time to sort out the good from the bad in the upper echelons of theton.
When he did eventually have to marry, he wanted to marry someone he could tolerate. Until then, he just wanted his freedom, and marriage was the opposite of that. At least, it had been for his parents. Neither of them had liked each other, and they’d lived much of their lives as far apart as possible, even while under the same roof. And given how little money his father had had to support them, this had been most of the time.
It became easier when his mother died, because his father’s temperament had softened a little. But he had died not long thereafter, leaving Peregrine entirely alone.
Rafe jovially put an arm around Peregrine’s shoulder and hollered at the people nearby. “We’ve got Lord Rutland here.” He pointed at a gaggle of girls. “You lot, line up and be ready to dance with him.”
Peregrine rammed an elbow none too gently into Rafe’s stomach.
Rafe doubled over, his breath escaping in a rush. “Bloody hell, man. I was only teasing.”
“Yes, well, now you’ve outed me, and those ladies look ready to hunt me down and mount my head on their mantels.”
The young women Rafe had so recklessly shouted at were now huddled together, their fans flapping and their heads bent as they whispered to each other. Occasionally one girl would glance at Peregrine over her shoulder.
“Christ, they do look rather serious, don’t they?” Rafe smoothed his waistcoat out as he now eyed the ladies in return with no small amount of trepidation.
“I think, given how you’re raising that adorable little ward of yours, thatyoushould be the one to get married, Lennox.”
“What? The devil take you, man. Marriage is not for me. The world is full of women in need of a proper kiss, and it is my solemn duty to provide myself to them. Besides,” Rafe chuckled, “Isla would never be content to share her new papa with any woman.”
It never ceased to amaze Peregrine that Rafe, a man known for his devil-may-care attitude, had returned from visiting Scotland with a small child in tow. More surprising was the fact that she was not his by blood, but he’d taken her in as his daughter all the same. Fatherhood had wrought many positive changes in the notorious rogue, but he would always be a brave and irresponsible troublemaker as well as a damned loyal friend.
“Well, given that you caused this mess, I believe you ought to do the honorable thing and throw yourself upon the sword for me.” Peregrine pushed Rafe into the crowd of young ladies who had broken up their little war council and were headed toward him.
Rafe wobbled comically as he stumbled through the pack of husband hunters, giving Peregrine a moment to duck out of sight. He used the tall marble pillars in the ballroom to hide and moved far enough away that the pack could not find him so easily. He reached the orchestra at the back of the ballroom near the doors, where a servant was announcing the newly arriving guests.
This glittering world of silks and gold-tinged laughter was still so new to him. He hadn’t grown up with the luxuries one expected an earl to have. His great-uncle had held out hope for another heir, any one of his sons or their children, but none had survived. It was only him, the son of a lesser son in their noble line. Peregrine had never even met his great-uncle Frederick. Yet he was prepared to do his duty and fit into this world. He knew all the dances, the modes for proper address, and table manners, but that didn’t make him feel suitable as a peer of the realm. That was all the young women here tonight saw: his lands, his title, and his fortune. Not him.
I wish for one night to be seen as just a man—as myself.
A few more guests entered the ballroom, each of them announced, all except the last one, a young woman. She waved the servant away with a polite smile when he inquired her name. It was a bold move, one that caught Peregrine’s attention. Fascinated, he studied the woman. Her gown was a silver silk creation that seemed to glow beneath the lamplight. Hundreds of pearls covered her bodice, capped sleeves, and the silver outer skirts of her gown. Her hair was piled atop her head in delicate curls, with silver ribbon running through the strands.
She tilted her head to one side and he saw that her mask was a soft gold and silver. He could only guess at her features above her lips, but the rest of her was regal and yet almost dreamlike. She seemed like a fae queen destined to marry a handsome fae prince. She was incomparable to the mere mortals around her, so much so that as she walked deeper into the room, the crowd parted around her. Ladies bowed their heads, and men did the same.
Whowasshe?
Peregrine moved into the shadows, keeping pace with her slow progress into the room. Just as the music ended, he moved toward her. He was barely aware of his feet until the moment he reached her. Where other men dared not tread, he now boldly stepped forward. He had come here to dance, after all, and one dance did not mean he would have to marry this mysterious beauty, whoever she was.
“A dance, my lady?” he asked, then bowed before straightening and holding out a hand to her. She hesitated, her dark-brown eyes fathomless, her lips parted as she drew in a quick breath before she responded.
