Page 31 of A Duke in Pursuit of Passion
With a roll of her eyes, Lady McGilligan wrapped an arm around Ella’s shoulder and began to guide her away down the hall towards the staircase. “Not to worry. I can lend you something, I am sure, and at worst, we have tomorrow to go into town to pick something up last minute.”
They had gone no further than a couple of steps when a sudden rushing of footsteps came towards them from the other end of the hall.
“My Ladies! My Lord! I have news!”
Mr. Murphy’s voice stopped Ella dead in her tracks, and she whipped around to find him hurrying towards them. Lord Rolfe was immediately at Ella’s side, awaiting his man.
“Well, don’t keep us all here waiting! What have you got, man?” Lord Rolfe insisted when Mr. Murphy stopped before them, practically doubled over to try and catch his breath.
“I … I have news of a ring of men, some kind of black-market scheme between some foolish indebted gentlemen and noble folk who have taken it upon themselves to kidnap the daughters of wealthy folk and hold them at ransom,” Mr Murphy explained, every word coming out as little more than a gasp until he finally seemed to manage to catch his breath. “They … they say it has happened several times here and back in England.”
Ella’s heart sank deep into her gut, and she felt like the world was spinning around her. “Why would … why would anyone ever do such a thing?”
Lord Rolfe was suddenly beside her, his hands gripping hold of her forearm to hold her up. When she lifted her gaze to meet his, her breath caught in her throat. “Desperate men will often do desperate things.”
Though it almost sounded as those he was sympathising with the men, Ella could see from the glare in his eyes that he thought it a horrific thing.
“There is one good thing to come from this information,” Lady McGilligan announced, and when they all looked around at her, she added, “What better place to look for targets than a society event?”
Chapter 19
Though Nathaniel hated the thought that his aunt was right, he found himself sitting in the carriage the next evening opposite her and Lady Ella as they made their way to the masquerade ball he had at first been dead set against going to. After all that had happened over the last few weeks, including his emotional reunion with Lady Ella, he was in no mood for making merry.
One thing he could not do while in the carriage was to take his eyes off Lady Ella. She was regally beautiful even with her face hidden behind a peacock feather blue and green mask. Her hair was all a tumble about her face, cascading down over her shoulders, and the golden blonde was such a contrast against her silken blue-green dress that it showed even in the carriage's low light.
Though he could feel his aunt watching him, Nathaniel still could not take his eyes off Lady Ella. She captivated him so much that he found he could not even swallow the breath caught in his throat.
And no matter how many times he tried to catch her gaze, she seemed not to notice him, looking utterly lost in thought. The way her violet eyes caught the moonlight that filtered through the window she was looking out of made Nathaniel’s heart race further.
And by the time they made it to the ball's venue, all he wanted to do was turn the carriage around and take Lady Ella right back home. The last thing he wanted to do was share her beauty with anybody else.
Instead, he was forced from the carriage by the smile of his aunt, who insisted he be the first to exit to help Lady Ella down. And so he did, offering her his hand, which she for once took without any complaint whatsoever.
“Are you ready for this?” he whispered as she stepped onto the ground beside him.
“As ready as I shall ever be,” she admitted, and when she finally looked him in the eye, Nathaniel saw something there that he hadn’t seen before. He saw how she looked at him as though she was truly seeing him for the first time since they had been reunited, not the boy he had been so long ago. He watched as an adult facade slipped into place over her, and she forced a smile, asking, “Do you promise to dance with me this evening to save me from the wolves?”
Nathaniel could not stop laughing at her comment. He nodded and assured her, “I would not dream of letting them anywhere near you.”
And so they went about their business, forced to interact with most everyone at the ball to try and find out what little they could of this so-called ring scheme that Mack had learned about. As promised, and to the benefit of their charade, he danced twice with Lady Ella, for once feeling as though they were not at each other’s throats, almost as though they were simply two adults who had been drawn together entirely by circumstance.
And though the stress of Louisa’s situation was still very much at the forefront of his mind, Nathaniel actually found himself having a little fun. Though it made him feel more than a little guilty to admit, he enjoyed Lady Ella’s presence when she wasn’t treating him like he were some kind of common criminal.
It was as though an unspoken truce had been placed between them, and for the first time since arriving back in Scotland, Nathaniel felt as though he could actually breathe.
Having been forced to concede her hand to another gentleman wishing to dance with her, Nathaniel watched from the edge of the ballroom, never taking his eyes off her even when he saw the two of them separating. Nor did he take his eyes off her when he saw her retiring to the far edge of the room, towards the doors that led out to the gardens beyond, and against his better judgement, he found himself following.
Upon finding her alone on the patio, just outside the illumination of the lantern light, he silently sidled up to join her. Though she continued to gaze out over the gardens, it was clear from how she stiffened a little that she had noticed his presence, which was more than she had done while they were in the carriage.
Yet, she still looked deep in thought. Even beneath her mask that only covered the top half of her face, Nathaniel could see her rose bud lips were pursed.
Unable to take the silence for much longer, he whispered gently, “Try not to worry. We will find Louisa.”
The way she turned to look at him with pursed lips and sadness in her eyes, he entirely expected her to snap something at him about wishing to be left alone. And he was prepared to do so if that was what she wished, but more than anything, he wished to comfort her.
Instead of snapping, she smiled sadly. "I find my hope is waning."
Nathaniel's heart clenched at her words, and a little hesitantly, he placed his hand upon her shoulder. "I will not rest until we have found her."
