“You need not apologize, sir. I am happy to tell you that I am assisting Mrs. Lake and Mr. March in their investigations.”
That stopped him cold. If she had not witnessed his stunned expression, she would never have believed him capable of such a degree of astonishment. A tiny thrill of triumph shot through her.
“Assisting them?” he repeated blankly. “Bloody hell, Joan. What the devil are you talking about?”
She chuckled. “Calm yourself, my lord. It is merely a hobby of mine.” She was oddly pleased with having disconcerted him to such an extent. “But an amusing one, if I do say so.”
“I don’t understand.”
“It is really quite simple. I have connections in places they do not. When those connections might prove useful, I endeavor to take advantage of them.”
His mouth quirked humorlessly. “Am I one of those connections? Is that why you accepted my invitation to dance? So that you could pursue your investigations on behalf of March and Mrs. Lake?”
“Not at all, sir. I danced with you because you asked me and because it pleased me to do so.”
Irritation flashed in his eyes, but he bent politely over her hand. “I trust you enjoyed yourself, madam.”
“Oh, I did, indeed, sir, even though I am well aware that the only reason you are here tonight is because you are after the bracelet and you wanted to discover my role and the role of my friends in the affair. I trust you are satisfied with the results of your own inquiry.”
He straightened but he did not immediately release her hand. “A word of warning, Joan. This affair of the Medusa is a dangerous business.”
“I shall bear that in mind, sir.”
He looked less than pleased with that, but they both knew there was nothing he could do about her involvement in the situation.
“I will bid you good night, madam,” he said.
“Good night, my lord.” She gave him a demure curtsy. “I am honored that you chose to renew our acquaintance this evening, even though I know you had ulterior motives.”
He paused briefly in the act of turning away. “The honor was mine. Allow me to tell you that you are wrong on one point, however. I did not invite you to dance solely because I wanted to quiz you on the subject of the bracelet.”
“No?”
“I asked you,” he said deliberately, “because I very much wished to dance with you.”
He disappeared into the crowd before she could think of a response.
She stood there for a long time and thought about how much she had enjoyed her brief moment in Vale’s arms.
Tobias opened his eyes and studied the gleam of silver light on a nearby leaf. He was flat on his back on the padded bench, one booted foot on the floor. Lavinia was on top of him, her skirts tumbled across his thighs, her breasts pillowed against his chest. He looked up at the night on the other side of the conservatory windows and wished that he did not have to move.
He wondered if Lavinia found this business of conducting an affair as bloody uncomfortable at times as he did. What he would not give for a warm bed.
Lavinia stirred, started to snuggle, and then abruptly stiffened.
“Good heavens.” She flattened her palms on his chest and levered herself up to a sitting position. “It is very late. We must return to the ballroom. By now Joan or Anthony or Emeline will no doubt have noticed that we have disappeared. It would be extremely awkward if someone came in search of us and found us together like this.”
He sat up slowly, eyeing the position of the moon through the glass panes of the conservatory roof. “We have not been gone all that long. I doubt we’ve been missed.”
“Well, we certainly cannot dawdle here any longer.” She struggled with the bodice of her gown. “Is my hair badly mussed?”
He watched her put herself to rights. “Your hair looks fine.”
“Thank heavens.” She got the sleeves of the gown up over her shoulders, stood, and shook out her skirts. “I cannot imagine anything more embarrassing than walking back into Lady Stillwater’s elegant ballroom looking as if… as if-”
“As if we had been making love?” He got to his feet and shoved his shirttails back into his trousers. “Somehow, I do not think there are many who would be greatly surprised.”
“What?” She swung around, her voice rising, eyes widening. “Are you saying that everyone knows that we-” She broke off and waved one of her hands wildly.
“That we are lovers?” He grinned at her expression of horror. “I suspect so.”
“But how can that be? I have never told a single soul.” She glared at him. “Tobias, I vow, if you have discussed the details of our personal connection with anyone, I shall throttle you.”
“I take grave offense at that, madam.” He held up both hands, palms out. “I am a gentleman. I would not dream of disclosing such intimate details to anyone. But I must tell you that our friends and relatives would have to be uncommonly stupid not to have concluded that we are engaged in an affair.”
“Oh, dear.” She looked nonplussed. “Do you really think so?”
“Calm yourself, Lavinia. It is not as if we are two young, inexperienced people with reputations to consider. We have both been out in the world for some time and have acquired a certain immunity. Provided we are reasonably discreet, no one will so much as blink at what we choose to do in private.”
“But what of Emeline and Anthony? We really ought to set a proper example, don’t you think?”
“No,” he said flatly. He shrugged into his coat. “There is no call for us to set an example for them. The rules are different for people of our age and experience. Emeline and Anthony know that as well as we do.”
She hesitated. “Well, yes, I suppose what you say is true. Nevertheless, discretion is required, and in future we really must take more care when it comes to this sort of thing.”
“I will allow that your concerns on the subject of discretion are not entirely unfounded. In addition, I have noticed that this business of sneaking around has a few other drawbacks. One is forever searching for privacy. Indoor locations are hard to come by, and when they are not available, one is obliged to keep an eye on the weather.”
“True. But I have been thinking about the matter lately and I have concluded that there are some positive aspects.”
A chill of dread went through him. “Such as?”
“I do worry about being discovered and I still get a jolt of horror whenever there is a close call. And then there is the discretion issue. But when all is said and done, I must admit that it is quite thrilling at times.”
“Thrilling,” he repeated evenly.
“Indeed.” Her voice brightened with enthusiasm. “Odd as it seems, I have begun to wonder if perhaps the very risk of being discovered is responsible for a certain sense of excitement.”
“Excitement.”
“Yes. And I must say that the frequent change of location endows the business with a definite touch of novelty.”
“A touch of novelty.”
Good God, she had grown to enjoy the clandestine aspects and the uncomfortable venues. This was his own fault, he thought. Like Dr. Frankenstein in that new horrid novel he had been hearing about, he had created a monster.
“How many other people do you think will have made love in a conservatory?” she continued with what sounded like genuine scholarly interest.
“I have no notion.” He yanked open the door. “Nor do I care to discover the answer to that question.”
“Do you know,” she continued brightly, “some of our more daring trysts remind me of scenes from certain poems. Byron’s writings, especially, come to mind.”
“Bloody hell.” He stopped and turned around to confront her. “I don’t know about you, but I have no intention of spending the rest of my days hiring dirty hackneys and searching out secluded sections of the park whenever we wish to-”