Valeria blinked. “A secret?”
“I think it a fair exchange, if we are to be acquainted,” he replied, recovering from his laughing fit.
Rubbing the back of her neck in the hopes of conjuring a secret into her mind, she faltered. Of course, there were big secrets shecould tell, but they were not things she wanted Duncan to hear. As for smaller secrets, she did not know where to begin.
“I… Well, I… nibble the sides off jam tarts before I eat the rest,” she blurted out, deciding once and for all that she loathed this exercise. How was any of this supposed to help her?
Duncan feigned a gasp. “So do I!” He smiled slyly at her. “As a fellow nibbler of jam tarts, it is my pleasure to make your acquaintance, my lord.” He put out his hand. “I am Miss Valeria Armchair.”
The laugh was out of her mouth before she could stop it, jumping into the space between them like her tart secret. His eyebrow lifted, a different kind of smile curving his mouth. A surprised smile.
“This is… so very silly,” she murmured, thrown by his disarming grin.
He shook his head. “Not at all. You did well. And if you can smile and laugh like that at the next ball you attend, you will be married just in time.”
“In time for what?”
He stood up and took her by the hands, pausing there for a flustering moment. “To avoid summer parties and picnics. One cannot concentrate on attracting a spouse when one is being bitten by ants and harassed by flies and wasps.”
He moved her like they were in the midst of a dance, pulling her gently, guiding her into the chair he had just vacated. “Although, Iamintrigued to see you eat a jam tart.” He released her. “Now, let us try again.”
Valeria folded her hands into her lap, somewhat breathless. She could not understand how someone possessed such casual authority, Duncan entirely in command of the situation without making it feel like he was commandingher. Nor could she understand why she did not want to leave and end the embarrassment there and then.
Because he is joining me in my discomfort,she realized with no small degree of shock.He is embarrassing himself to alleviate mine.
As she watched him approach, her heart thudded strangely; imagining, for a fleeting moment, what it would feel like if heactuallyapproached her at a ball.
I think I would be in a great deal of trouble…
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Valeria had not realized what thirsty work an education in flirtation and courtship rituals could be. They had graduated from the armchair, now situated at the far end of the drawing room, by the French doors that led out onto the terrace.
Duncan had opened the doors to allow a breath of cool night air in, and Valeria let the refreshing breeze wash over her face as she gulped a mouthful of crisp water.
“Apologies for the intrusion, miss, but do I know you?” Duncan asked, arms folded behind his back, highlighting the muscle of his broad chest. He had not dressed up for the occasion, his waistcoat open, his shirt unbuttoned at the collar, his tailcoat and cravat nowhere to be seen.
Valeria swallowed the mouthful of water. “I do not believe we have been acquainted,” she said, forcing softness into her voice. “Though, I daresay I have noticed you.”
“As I have noticed you,” he replied, smiling. “Might I put a name to the face I have admired from afar?”
She took a breath, remembering all she had learned thus far. Throughout the past couple of hours that she had been there with him, he had taught her that gaining a man’s attention was rather like forging a chain. The first link was to keep pleasantries interesting. The second link was holding that interest. The third was gaining an invitation to dance or converse in greater depth. The fourth was where she could allow her personality to come out more, gauging the man’s response and deciding if it was worth her time. The fifth link was about acquiring confirmation that the gentleman would call upon her.
“If you like him, do not let him leave your side without that confirmation,” Duncan had insisted. “Do not be forceful, of course, but demand a second encounter if you enjoyed the first. You will find that conversation and being confident in revealing who you are is far easier in a less fraught situation. Over tea, you can truly be yourself.”
“Perhaps, that is why I have been so disappointed in the men I have met,” she had replied wryly. “I have never made it to that second meeting.”
“Oh, but I should hate to ruin the mystery for you,” she said, lowering her gaze. “If I were to ask you to guess my name, it might make you linger here a while longer.”
Duncan chuckled softly. “Diana? Aphrodite? Venus? I know I must be close, for a goddess like you could only possess a divine name.”
“I fear my mother and father did not dare to tempt fate,” she replied, relaxing into the flow of the conversation. “If one is named for beauty, one is guaranteed to be plain. It is a truth, well-known.”
He tilted his head to one side. “So, you think yourself beautiful?”
“I think you saw something in me that brought you over here, but what that was, I could not say. I would not put words in your mouth,” she said, blushing a little. “Indeed, I would much rather it was my wit and charm that compelled you to speak to me.”
Duncan’s eyes gleamed in the low light. “I confess, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”
