Redeeming the Deception of Grace (15 page)

As she wove around people, politely excusing herself
,
she willed the tears
to
stall until she was alone
.
Reaching the edge of the room
,
she threw open a door and walked into a lonely hallway
,
lit by only a few solitary candles
.
The tears began to fall once she was alone
.
At the sound of a door
opening
behind her
,
she walked faster down the hall,
furiously
wiping her tears
.
Ewan burst into the hallway searching for her, followed by Rachel.

"
Grace!
"
Ewan shouted
,
rushing up to her
.

Taking a deep breath
,
she
pulled together the fragments of the wall that remained around her heart.
"
Ewan
,
"
she said
coolly, earning a questioning look from him.

"
Grace, what is wrong
?
Y
ou
'
ve been crying
.
"
He reached up to wipe a tear
,
but she shied away, stepping back from his touch
.
His expression
betrayed his pain
as he took a step closer
, eliminating the space between them.

"
Grace…
"
h
e whispered, reaching for her hand
,
but she pulled it back too,
hiding
it behind her back
.
Ewan paused,
as if
unsure of what to do.

Grace took another
a deep breath
.
"
Let
me be the first to offer congratulations to the two of you
,
"
s
he
said dispassionately
, fighting hard to keep at least her pride intact.

"
Congratulations?
"
Rachel asked with a confused furrow in her brow.

"
Well, yes…
"
Grace trailed off, now uncertain.

"
For what? If I may ask?
"
Ewan questioned, clearly confused.

"
Well, aren
'
t you
…
I mean
,
I saw you speak with Rachel
'
s father…
"
Grace tried to form the word
'
betrothal
'
but couldn
'
t, it was too painful. Not Ewan, not Rachel
.
She felt her eyes sting with more tears.

"
You thought
I
was going to marry
the Duke of Greys!
"
Rachel asked, shocked.

"
Well, yes…
Y
ou
said you would have some amazing news
,
and then Ewan spoke with your father…
"
Grace saw the light
return
to
Ewan
'
s eyes
with
a teasing glint
.
He was always so merciless! But as much as it annoyed her, it was a beloved look and she felt more secure, more
sure
of herself
.

Ewan
'
s expression changed from confusion to triumph as he stepped closer to Grace, gazing into her eyes. She saw him prepare to tease her
.
But she also saw he wasn
'
t doing it to be mean, he was doing it to save her from her pain, her sorrow
,
however misplaced
. H
ow often he had done the same thing without her knowing
?
In teasing her, how often had he in fact saved her?
His eyes gleamed wickedly.

****

Ewan knew what he needed to do
.
Grace needed to feel herself again, without the pain, insecurity and doubt
.
The quickest way Ewan knew to accomplish that was to tease her and draw her out, as he had done many times without even realizing it; only now had he pieced it together. So, with the arrogant swagger he knew supremely annoyed
her
, he sauntered
around to where she stood
.

"
You
'
re jealous!
"
h
e whispered, overjoyed at the revelation.

"
I most certainly am not!
"
Grace whispered back, her eyes flashing.

"
Oh, but you are, that is why you
'
re here
,
my dear. If you weren
'
t jealous why did you leave the ballroom, almost knocking down the Dowager
Duchess
Darley
?
"

Ewan
kept his
eyebrows raised as he watched Grace sputter and clench her fists
.
The sight of her angry made him feel giddy. It was one of his true delights, but it also carried the overwhelming emotion of desire along with it.

"
I
…
did nothing of the sort!
"
H
er hesitation
impl
ied
a lie
.

Grace continue
d
to sputter
, and
he heard the arrival of yet another person in the darkened hall
.

Of course.

The party wouldn
'
t have been complete without the timely interruption of Shiply. He stumbled into the hall and took in the sight of a grinning Miss Jacobsen, a taunting
Greys
,
a
nd a furious
Lady Grace
.
Likely feeling the need to intervene
,
he stepped closer
.
Miss Rachel noticed him and brazenly placed her hand on his chest, promptly stopping his advance
.
Shiply looked down at her with curiosity before a flash of recognition played across his features
.

Ewan continued as if nothing had happened.
"
Yes you did, and yes, you were jealous
.
You can
'
t lie to me
,
Grace.
"
He
stepped closer so that they were only a few inches apart.

"
I
'
ll just be, er
…
"
Rachel stammered.

"
Yes, Miss Jacobsen. I trust Lord Shiply can escort you back to the party?
"
Ewan
'
s
gaze
didn
'
t
le
ave
Grace
'
s.

"
Oh, well…
Lady Grace
?
"
Shiply asked, completely unsure as to what action to take.

"
It
'
s quite al
l
right
.
Please see Miss Jacobsen to the party. I
'
ll be along shortly.
"
Grace spoke with a slight glance in Shiply
'
s direction
to
dismiss him
, then
once again focus
ed
on Ewan.

"
Lady Grace
…
"
Shiply hesitated,
then
reach
ed
toward her
,
stopped
,
and let his hand drop to his side. With a heavy breath
,
he looked at Ewan, then Grace, then back at Ewan again.

"
I see.
"
He spoke softly, disappointment evident in his tone.

"
Lord Shiply?
"
Miss
Rachel asked gently, laying her soft-gloved fingers on Shiply
'
s arm
.
He turned toward her and offered his arm
,
giving one last glance at Grace
.

As they left
,
Shiply
asked the question
Ewan knew Miss
Rachel had been hoping
to hear for quite some time
.
"
Miss
Rachel…
Jacobsen
?
"

He looked at her with acute interest as he studied her from the top of her head to her slippered feet
,
earning a blush from Miss Rachel.
"
Why, I thought there was something familiar about you! How have you been?
How is your family?
"
His voice faded into the background and Ewan couldn
'
t help but smile
.
Things had a way of working out, at least he hoped so
.
Either way, he was about to find out.

"
Grace?
"
Ewan whispered. His
gaze
roam
ed
over her face, taking in her smooth creamy skin and flashing green eyes that sent a bolt of desire through his entire body
.

With a slight blush
,
Grace looked away and took a step back.
"
Please, don
'
t
.
"

Her words weren
'
t harsh or scolding like usual
,
but more of a plea
.
The nature of the request pierced Ewan
'
s heart.

"
Grace
,
"
Ewan whispered again, taking another step toward her. His eyes never le
ft
her face, willing her to look up at him,
to
read the sincerity in his voice and displayed in his eyes.

"
Ewan…
"
As she said his name she looked up, tears glistening her eyes and spilling fat drops onto her cheeks. Ewan froze, Grace
'
s tears pierced him, stalling any rational thought but the intense desire to slay whatever caused them
.
He reached
into his suit coat
,
pulled out a handkerchief
,
and began to wipe them away, one by one
.
Grace lifted her hand to take the handkerchief.

"
Shhh
.
N
o
, no
.
L
et
me
,
"
h
e crooned as he gently wiped her tears away,
then
he
unthinkingly
leaned forward and kissed her cheek, still salty and slightly wet
.

****

Grace forgot how to breathe
.
Her heart threatened to beat out of her chest
,
yet the elation she felt at the same time made her want to soar
.
Ewan was kissing her
.
It
might
only have been
her
cheek
,
but his touch was powerful, thrilling her and causing her fingertips to tingle. His warm lips caressed the cool flesh of her cheek
,
while his nose brushed the edge of her face
.
His breath swirled as he inhaled and exhaled, mingling with her own labored breath
.

Unable to move
,
Grace stood frozen
,
except
for
the slight closing of her eyes as his head descended toward her own.