Chapter 1
It was a confirmed fact that when a lady did not court trouble, trouble had a way of courting a lady. At least that was the case for Lady Belle Middleton.
And now that her two best friends, Lady Josephine and Lady Evelyn, were blissfully married—and she remained gloriously unattached—things were just as they should be. For this precise reason, Lady Belle believed quite earnestly that trouble would soon come barreling her way—and not the good kind, she reflected dubiously.
The realization hit her the moment her foot hovered over the threshold of Lord and Lady Chesterton’s annual masked ball. She could not say where the awareness came from, but the force of it was enough to halt her step and make her consider heading for the nearest carriage instead. But Lady Belle was nothing if not brave. And curious.
Her interest sparked.
Always too inquisitive for her own good, especially as a child, she’d always driven her brothers mad. Countless times they had been forced to chase her when she decided to inspect unknown places on their country estate. Not even the servant’s quarters had been off limits.
And it was that same curiosity that prompted her to proceed through the front entrance into whatever trouble awaited her on this particular night. Because who is to say that trouble hadherin its sight? What exactly was this trouble? Would it be good or bad trouble? Her ever-curious mind could not resist the call that beckoned her to find out.
Boisterous laughter and simpering whimpers reached her as she entered the ballroom. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary. In fact, by all accounts, it promised to be quite a marvelous evening. Dancers twirled, enjoying the music, while other ladies and gentlemen flirted outrageously with one another on the sidelines, believing they were safe under the guise of their masks.
Out of habit, Belle felt for her own weapon of concealment, making certain her mask was in place as she waded through the throng of peers.
She spotted a few of Madam De La Frey’s scandalous gowns amongst the crowd, successfully exposing their wearer’s ample charms. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Her own gown was of an equally improper design and exposed much of her skin. Midnight blue silk clung to her corset in a wickedly sensational manner. The material of her mask matched the dark hue of her gown, the intricate silver pattern bringing out the vivid blue of her eyes. Her blond hair was pinned loosely to the side of her head, setting her apart from the rest of the ladies in attendance. She did not fancy the proper styled-to-perfection look that most ladies preferred.
She did, however, delight in evenings such as these where intrigue was almost a certainty and enticing flirtations were as rampant as the smiles of gentlemen. Of course, the evening was only improved by the fact that everything was accompanied with a dash of inappropriate behavior. It was, after all, why any hostess would host such an event.
She smiled coyly at a young lord as she passed him, letting her gaze travel over his horrendous orange jacket in interest before she winked at him.
At the same time, and with no warning whatsoever, unease rippled from the root of her head down to her delicate toes.
She stilled.
At first, her trepidation appeared to be nothing more than the tightening of muscles, but allat onceher breath quickened and her heart started to hammer in her chest. Her body’s reaction to the unseen force should have warned her of the impending distress, but Belle was wholly unprepared for the apprehension that hit her like a reticule filled with stones.
Quite bothersome, the sensation. For she could no more put a finger to its origin than she could place a finger on air. What could it possibly be? The trouble she’d sensed earlier? Unless, perhaps, she was coming down with some sort of ailment?
And just like that, the intrigue of the evening withered to nothing but an uncomfortable turn around the room. In light of this disturbing change, Belle decided to glide over to the nearest potted plant to lurk there until the feeling passed. The plant turned out to be not so near after all. She cared little, hoping to escape the hold of whatever caused her sudden apprehension.
A breath of relief parted from her lips when she finally reached her destination. From her vantage point beside the fern, she had a view of most of the ballroom and could signal for Evelyn and Josephine once they sauntered into view.
Another shiver of awareness caused more uneasiness to tingle down her spine. Her leg twitched and she shifted in an attempt to rid herself of the continued feeling. It felt as if someone was watching her.
“What silliness,” she muttered.
It was a masked ball after all. Everyone would be watching everyone, trying to determine their identities. But still, instinct warned her to remain vigilant.
And that was when it truly hit her.
The impact of her recognition forced the breath from her lungs and a dull roaring filled her mind. If not for one tiny thing, she may have attributed the burning sensation of being watched to the fact that it was a masked ball. She may have shaken off the apprehension.
She might have, if not for that smell.
A woody fragrance of earth and musk combined with a dash of sweetness wafted up to her nose, gently disturbing the air around her. While she hadn’t noticed the smell before now, her body had recognized it the moment she advanced over the threshold. Her senses had warned her of some impending danger, but, as she so often did, she’d ignored the warning.
And even though the fragrance was common enough, it was the sweetness mixed with the spiciness that she’d only inhaled once before. More to the point, she had only ever smelled on one man in particular.
Bile rose in the back of her throat.
He’d returned.
“No,” she whispered meekly, her eyes darting between the men in her near vicinity.
But Belle knew better and did not bother to continue to search for him in the crowd. He’d be wearing a mask, rendering him invisible to her eye—if he did not wish for his presence to be known, it would not be. So instead, she took a step closer to the fern.
