On the other hand, the more she socialized, the more she risked someone seeing through her disguise. It was vital that she not be discovered. If anyone found out who she was while the party was still going on, Eleanor knew she would be reported to her parents, who would come and find her and drag her out of the party. She didn’t want them to know what she’d done until they were all back at home. She didn’t want her enjoyment of the night to be cut short.
But before she could give too much thought to what she hoped for, the decision was removed from her hands. A gentleman approached her with a smile. “Good evening,” he said. “I would introduce myself, but…well.” He gestured to the mask he wore.”
“Indeed,” Eleanor said with a smile. “We aren’t meant to know one another’s identities.”
“But I wonder if you might favor me with a dance,” the gentleman said. “You’re the loveliest lady I’ve seen all evening.”
Eleanor had to laugh. “That’s very bold,” she said. “You haven’t even seen my face.”
“No,” he agreed. “I haven’t. But you have a beautiful way of carrying yourself. You have wonderfully pretty auburn hair, I can see that. Your gown flatters you splendidly.”
“You don’t need to say all these things,” Eleanor said. “I’d be happy to share a dance.”
“I only say them because they’re true,” he said. “A gentleman ought to speak the truth.”
“Perhaps that’s so.” She took the arm he held out to her and allowed him to lead her out onto the dance floor.
Once there, she was pleasantly surprised—he was a very good dancer, and she was able to lose herself in the easy rhythm of the music. It was possible to forget about the fact that her parents stood somewhere nearby, that they might be looking at her even now. In the moment, it felt as if there was nothing to worry about, no way that she could be found out and have her evening snatched away from her. Her parents had the ability to control her life, and they would be the ones to decide what direction it took. But for now, at least, the moment belonged to Eleanor. She had managed to take control, even if that would only last for one night.
The music drew to a close and the gentleman offered a bow. “Thank you,” he said. “This has been a marvelous time. I hopeI might find you again for one more dance before the evening draws to a close.”
“We shall see,” Eleanor said mysteriously. She knew her parents would have been pleased with that. They would have thought it was pleasingly flirtatious and charming. The fact that she had done something they’d be happy with very nearly made her wish that she hadn’t—but after all, there was no cost to her here. This gentleman wasn’t going to expect to marry her because she had charmed him tonight. He didn’t even know who she was. Once she took off her mask, she would be utterly unrecognizable to him, which was just the way she liked it.
No sooner had the gentleman walked off than another approached her and claimed her for the next dance, and he was followed by yet another. Eleanor moved from one to the next feeling as if she was a leaf borne on the wind, drifting through the sky and never settling in one place for too long. It was a lovely feeling, and before she knew it, she had danced with five different gentlemen.
And that was when she spotted her mother and father.
They were standing to one side watching the proceedings. Marina wasn’t with them—Eleanor supposed she was off dancing with someone—but the two of them were talking closely, their heads bent together. Was her mother looking at her? Eleanor couldn’t be sure. Of course, there was nothing necessarily worrying about her parents noticing her, but if they had recognized the gown she wore…
Eleanor decided it would be best to get out of the ballroom. That would force her parents to focus on something else for a little while. And if they hadn’t figured out who she was yet, that would be a good thing. It would stop them from thinking about her at all and would likely allow her to keep her identity a secret.
Maybe I should just leave, she thought.Maybe I’m taking too many chances here and it would be best for me to simply get out while I still can.
Maybe…but that didn’t make sense to her. If her parents caught her, they would force her to leave. There wasn’t anything else they could do to her, since they had already threatened to force her to marry the person of their choice. It wasn’t as if they could punish her by forbidding her from attending the next ball—Eleanor felt confident they already didn’t mean to let her go.
She hurried toward the doors at the rear of the ballroom that would let her out into the garden. A bit of time to herself would allow her to clear her mind, and when she came back in, she would feel ready to face the crowds again, knowing that her parents were among them.
CHAPTER THREE
Nicholas was perfectly aware of the identity of the lady in the butterfly mask. He knew that it was Lady Hannah, daughter of the Marquess of Codfield, and he knew why she was following him around. The marquess had been a friend of Nicholas’ late father. The two men had planned that their children would marry. But Nicholas had no interest in Lady Hannah, and he knew perfectly well that she—and her father—were only interested in him because he was now the Duke of Nightingale. He was wise enough to know that many young ladies and their families would take an interest in him for that reason, and he didn’t like it. He had told his father, before his death, that he didn’t wish to marry Lady Hannah. That should have been the end of it.
“Come inside,” Lady Hannah suggested. “It’s cold out here in the garden.”
“You can go in if you’re cold,” Nicholas told her.
“But I want you to dance with me,” she said. “Come, Your Grace, this is your party. You can’t possibly spend the whole time out in the garden.”
Nicholas had no idea how she had figured out it was him behind the simple black mask he wore. He could only assume that she was watching him more closely than he liked. It made him feel uncomfortable. “I’m going to stay out for a while,” he said. “You really ought to go in. Perhaps you and I will find one another later for a dance.”
“Do you promise?”
Nicholas sighed, knowing that it might be the only way to gain even a moment’s peace from her tonight. “I’ll look for you,” he told her, knowing as he said it that he wouldn’t be looking very hard.
“All right, then,” Lady Hannah said happily. “I’ll be waiting for you inside!”
She turned and hurried off, and Nicholas breathed a sigh of relief. He did feel a bit guilty—he knew he had misled her, making her feel as if he was committing to a dance with her later when in fact he meant to try to avoid that. But he couldn’t bring himself to feeltooguilty. After all, he had tried being honest, hadn’t he? He had told her, he had told both of their fathers, that he wasn’t interested in pursuing this relationship. They had chosen not to listen. He was perfectly aware that the marquess had instructed Lady Hannah to continue trying to winhis interest—it was obvious from her behavior toward him that neither of them had given up on the possibility of a marriage.
At least he had a few minutes to himself now. He strode deeper into the garden, anxious to find a quiet spot where Lady Hannah wouldn’t easily find him in case she decided to come back.
