Redeeming the Deception of Grace (10 page)

With a blush
,
she answered
,
"
I
'
m afraid all that has been injured is my pride, but yes, I
'
d like some assistance in rising.
"
H
er voice was sweet
,
and Ewan found he liked her instantly
.
There was no simpering, w
h
ining, or threats
;
nor did she flirt or try to use her position to blackmail him
.
H
e grasped her hand, noticing how small it was, and lifted her
gently till she stood.

"
Thank you.
"
She smoothed her skirts, casting a quick glance at Ewan.

"
Apologies again
,
Miss…
"
Ewan
waited
for her to supply her name.

"
Jacobsen
…
Miss Rachel Jacobsen.
"
She spoke with practiced
g
race
,
but her eyes gave her a hint of mischief
.
If he
w
ere
n
'
t
already so attached to
Grace
, he could see himself finding Miss Jacobsen far more than just interesting.

"
Ah, a pleasure
,
Miss Jacobsen. Ewan Emmett
,
Duke of Greys
,
at your service
.
"
He bowed crisply over her hand and offered her a rakish grin
—
he couldn
'
t help himself.

"
Ah, so
you
'
re
the Duke of Greys
,
"
s
he replied with a tilt of her lips.

"
I see my reputation precedes me
,
"
h
e teased back, but with only friendly intent.

"
Yes, it does
,
"
s
he replied with
a
grin that wasn
'
t
so
much flirtatious as it was humorous.

"
Your grace?
"
c
ame
Grace
'
s voice as she approached from behind.

"
Lady
Grace
?
"
Ewan turned and absorbed every detail
.
Although he had watched her since arriving, this was the first time he had been able to see her this closely
.

Her hair was gently pulled back into a twist
,
with ringlets cascading down the front of her hairline
.
The cinnamon and honey
colored tresses reflected the candlelight and shone brightly, making Ewan forcibly swallow
.
Never had he had such a strong reaction to a woman
'
s hair
!

Her green eyes were questioning him as he unabashedly raked his eyes over her beautiful gown and the way it complimented her lovely shape.

"
Did you fall? I saw you disappear…
"
She noticed Miss Rachel standing just
be
side Ewan.
"
Oh…
I didn
'
t mean to
…
"
She began to excuse herself
,
but Ewan wasn
'
t willing to let her believe he had been doing anything more than assisting Miss Jacobsen
.
If he were to win her heart, she needed to first trust his
.

"
It seems I
'
ve not outgrown my clumsiness from my youth
,
and I nearly ran over Miss Jacobsen here.
"
He offered with a smile to
Grace
as he gently took her arm and pulled her closer, effectively preventing her from leaving.

"
Oh, are you al
l
right?
"
Grace
asked, her words were sincere
,
but Ewan thought he saw a hint of relief in her expression.

"
Yes, as I told
the duke
, the only injury is to my pride
.
"

Ewan began to make introductions but was interrupted.

"
Lady Grace
?
"
c
ame the unwelcome voice of Lord Shiply as he
entered
the circle of people now encompassing the offending bush that had caused the dilemma.

"
Ah, Shiply
,
"
c
ame Ewan
'
s dry welcome, he looked at
Grace
and saw her watching him with amusement. Perhaps she wasn
'
t as unaware of his affections as he had originally thought,
or
at least of his dislike of Shiply
.

Ewan
glanced
over to Miss Jacobsen, intending to introduce them when he saw
her
face
was
flushed and she began to fan herself with wild motions.
Her
gaze
w
as trained on
Shiply, studying him with loving care and Ewan recognized her expression. He
made the grand assumption
that Miss Jacobsen knew Shiply, and knew him well enough to be
in love with him.

Now, if only Shiply saw Rachel the same way.

"
Shiply
,
allow me to introduce…
"
Ewan began.

"
Rachel! Er, Miss Rachel
,
"
s
he interrupted, extending her dainty hand toward Shiply as he smiled and took it, kissing the air above it
.
Ewan noticed Rachel
'
s slight shiver of delight as he did so
.
He was curious as to why she didn
'
t tell
Shiply
her last name
.

"
A pleasure
,
Miss Rachel
,
"
Shiply replied graciously, but without the warmth and recognition that Ewan as hoping for
.
Before the opportunity passed him by, Ewan decided to do h
im
and Miss Rachel a favor.

"
Lady Grace
, it seems they
'
ve started a waltz, I believe it belongs to me?
"
He spoke the words as a question but didn
'
t wait for her response
.
H
e took her arm gently and led her to the dance floor. With a quick glance behind him
,
he noticed Miss Rachel hadn
'
t taken her eyes off Shiply
,
but Shiply hadn
'
t taken his eyes from
Grace
'
s retreating form
.

"
A gentleman always asks, rather than demands
,
you know
,
"
Grace
scold
ed
him, but he noticed she didn
'
t pull her arm away or make a scene
.
Perhaps there was hope.

"
I did ask.
"
He pulled her into a tight embrace and beg
a
n the dance.

"
No
,
you
demanded
in the form of a question, but that doesn
'
t make it a request any more than wearing a cravat makes you a gentleman.
"
Grace
responded with a wry grin
.

"
Ahh, insulting me again
,
Grace
?
"
Ewan asked as he looked down into her eyes, taking a deep breath to fortify him in his endeavor to win her affection
.

"
Always
,
"
s
he quipped, but it wasn
'
t as sharp as she usually spoke, rather she looked a little lost, confused as she searched his eyes
.
Her grip on his shoulder tightened slightly
,
and she parted her lips as she took in a breath
,
causing Ewan to glance down at them
.

Unable to hide his desire
,
he licked his own and pulled her in closer, inhaling the scent of rose and citrus he associated with her, only her
.
Had he ever told her what a beauty she had become
?

****

What was he doing? The deep blue of his eyes seemed to capture
Grace
'
s focus, holding her captive and prisoner within their depths
.
Unable to look away
,
she felt panic begin in her chest as he caress
ed
her face with his gaze. The heat in his eyes made her skin feel flush
ed
,
and she tried not to tremble as his hand tightened on her waist
,
drawing her a fraction closer
.

"
You are beautiful
,
Grace
.
I don
'
t think I
'
ve ever told you.
"
His
muted tone rang with sincerity, but could it be true
?
Oh, he had implied it before, charmed her with his rakish looks and compliments
,
but he had never taken down the roguish veneer
, as
he had just done
.
He spoke
as if stating it was simply acknowledging a universal truth, incontestable
.
It made her feel beautiful to the tips of her toes and warm from the inside out
.
Never had someone so simply compliment
ed
her with such great authenticity.

"
Thank you.
"
It was
all she could manage as she struggled to keep herself from falling even more in love with Ewan
.
Shiply.
She had to think of Shiply
,
and then maybe she
'
d be able to erect the protective walls around her heart.

"
Are you enjoying your evening?
"
Ewan asked, searching her eyes for a response before her lips gave it.

"
Yes.
"

Never had she been so without words! But as she took in the strong jaw and full lips of Ewan
'
s face as he spoke
,
she couldn
'
t form any
more words in her hazy mind
.

What would it be like to kiss him?
s
he wondered. Surely it would be like heaven
.

As if reading her thoughts
,
he focused his gaze on her lips and licked his own, causing heat to swirl in
Grace
'
s belly. She bit her bottom lip to keep it from acting on its own accord
, to refrain from
reaching up to kiss Ewan in the middle of the crowed ballroom.

Ewan
'
s eyes
darkened with
a hungry desire she hadn
'
t seen before
, and h
is breathing
sounded
labored as they
t
wirled around the dance floor, unaware of anyone else
.
He pulled her closer still, his hands at her back sear
ed
her skin.