Her mask was askew and she could barely see, and so when she went to back away, she tripped on her own skirts and very nearly fell.
Again.
And once again, hands steadied her.
Drat! She was not a clumsy lady. Not at all.
Not normally, at least.
As she straightened the mask, the voice continued. “Are you all right?”
She didn’t immediately answer. She’d shocked herself by sneaking out, and was beginning to very much doubt her sanity in attending a masquerade alone.
Well, relatively alone. Sally was no help right now.
“Too much to drink?” The man’s tone was laced with cynical amusement.
“What?” Her voice was a squawk of disbelief as she straightened her mask.
“Go on and find your chaperone, love,” that patronizing voice continued.
But now she’d finally managed to get her mask on straight, and she couldn’t have responded to save her life, because…
“It’s you,” she breathed.
Itwas.
It washim. The boy she’d been looking for. But also…the boy before her was no boy at all. He was a man.
Which she’d expected.
Sort of.
Except the sight of the boy who’d become a man left her feeling oddly winded.
Luke dipped his head slightly to get a better view of her. “Are you all right, miss?”
Her mind went quite blank.
Embarrassingly so. It was him. It was Luke. But also…it wasn’t.
He had the same golden hair and the same bright blue eyes, but he’d grown into his sharp features so now they just looked….
Handsome.
His features were regal, yes, but also so very manly. His jaw was square and chiseled, his lips full and firm, and his gaze sharp and hawkish. His thick brows furrowed as his blue eyes narrowed as he stared down at her.
He had to lookwaydown, she realized. And she had to tilt her head all the way back just to make eye contact, and…goodness, when had he gotten so large?
The breadth of his shoulders and chest made her feel like she was hiding behind a brick wall.
“Luke.” His name was all she was capable of saying, and it came out on a sigh that made her inwardly wince.
Goodness, she’d sounded like a dimwitted ninny.
“It’s you,” she said again.
That…didn’t sound any better. She hurriedly untied her mask and pulled it away.
