Page 47 of Enemies with an Earl
Goodness, she was perceptive for an imp. “Do as I say, not as I do?” He winked at her, and they both chuckled as they slowed to a stop.
He stepped back, bowing over her hand. “A pleasure, my lady. You were the epitome of grace.” He arched his brow. “Unlike myself.”
“Thank you, Felix.” She beamed up at him, her hands gripping her skirts as she flounced back and forth. “You made it so much easier for me to feel comfortable. I wonder if I should just ask all my dance partners to trip at the start of each dance. I would feelso muchbetter if all my dances began that way.”
Felix chuckled. He could imagine this young woman doing just that when she had her come out. “I have full faith in you, Pandora. You won’t even need to request a stumble to feel at ease; I don’t doubt it for a second.”
“And you don’t need to be afraid to make mistakes. I’ll always be your friend. I’ll probably be falling right alongside you.”
Felix’s throat grew thick. Well, bloody hell. The girl was so pure. If only it was that easy to change. If life were that simple.
“I need hand pies,” Pandora said.
Felix blinked at the abrupt change in topic, and the girl skipped toward the doorway of the great hall.
She turned back to him. “Thank you again for dancing with me, Felix.” She spun to face the pianoforte. “And thank you, Mr. Thorne!” Then she disappeared into the hall.
Well, then.
He slowly turned toward the pianoforte. And now Felix and Thorne were left alone. Just like that, the grandiose room felt much too small. Felix’s feet moved toward the pianoforte. He tried to stop them. He really did.
Being anywhere near this man, being alone with this man, was a disaster waiting to happen. They were oil and flame. A powder keg and a match. Felix had admitted to Lady Pandora he feared making mistakes. Felix’s traitorous feet halted at the pianoforte, and Thorne watched him, dark eyes guarded.
Thorne seemed to be a mistake Felix couldn’t stop making.
“You play well,” Felix said dumbly.
The man did more than play well. He was incredible. There was no sheet music on the piano. Which meant the man either had committed the piece to memory or had crafted it on the spot to suit the waltz’s rhythm. Felix had never wanted to be a pianoforte before. But bloody hell, those talented fingers…Felix would love to let that man tickle his ivories.Urgh. What in the blazes did that even mean?
“Is that supposed to be an apology?” Thorne arched a black brow.
Bloody hell. Could the man fit his surname any better? He was so god-damned prickly.
“I had thought about possibly extending one, but now I’m thinking better of it,” Felix muttered. He inwardly groaned.Very mature of you, Felix. Are you an earl, or are you twelve?
Apparently, Thorne liked Felix’s petulance, because his lips twitched, and his eyes brightened slightly. He flipped his hand over and swept it over the keys, the rippling notes of the glissando breaking the silence.
“Do you duet?”
Felix hesitated, glanced around the room, and found it empty. Would it be so odd to find two men playing a duet? It was, in the very least, explainable. Felix slid onto the bench to Thorne’s right, leaving a healthy amount of space between him and Thorne.
“Any requests?” Thorne hovered his hands over the piano and glanced at Felix.
“Greensleeves?”
“Unsurprising choice,” Thorne murmured, and Felix rolled his eyes at the cheeky bastard. “Now, try to keep up.”
The bass notes ofGreensleevesfilled the hall as Thorne took up the piece on the lower register. Felix hurried to join in, stumbling over the first few notes as he tried to catch up to Thorne and match the man’s rhythm. But soon the two were in harmony and some of the tension melted from Felix as he let the English folk song’s tune sink over him.
Felix wasn’t especially talented when it came to piano, but he was adept enough to follow Thorne’s lead. He could tell Thorne was testing him, changing his tempo, jumping up or down an octave so that Felix needed to adjust so their sounds were still in tune. The small challenge sent a rush through Felix, a hint of joy bubbling up inside him.
Father had loved playing duets with them all. They’d always ended up completely absurd, starting off with something by Hadyn or Mozart and then somehow ending up on theHarmonious Blacksmith. That had been one of Father’s favorites. It was fun, lively, just as he had been. It had been a favorite pastime to see who could play the notes the fastest, usually with whoever wasn’t playing, dancing frantically in an attempt to keep up with the music. Felix’s lips curled into a smile, even as his heart gave a sharp pang.
Thorne’s notes trailed off, and they both eased up on the keys. Grey eyes clashed with Felix’s, lingering, then flicking to Felix’s smiling mouth and back up. They were much closer than before, the duet drawing them in until their thighs nearly touched. Felix could see each variation of grey bursting in those midnight eyes. And there was something in that night sky, something that had Felix shifting in his seat.
“You weren’t as terrible as I expected.”
For once, Felix was grateful for the man’s cheek. A sharp tongue was safer than eyes that saw too much. The last thing he needed was to become sentimental and choked up in front of the man he’d just… What would one even call last night? A brawl? A collision of tempers and checked desires that had ended with Felix boneless and thoroughly put in his place?
