Page 19 of The Scarred Duchess Deal
Even if she had been bold enough to ask a question of him, he would not have had an answer. Leo could not explain why he felt so obsessed with a single person. He was not willing to admit to himself, not yet, the depth of his interest in the woman who had started very pointedly to ignore him.
Leo had written to her – day after day – and had yet to get a response. He was absolutely certain that his letters were being delivered. For the last two days, he had even insisted that the letter boy personally hand deliver the letters to Tessa directly for fear that her cousin Sophie was stealing the letters or otherwise keeping things from her somehow.
But now he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she had received the letters and was choosing not to answer them. He naively wished to think that she was waiting for news of her brother before answering him. Perhaps, for the sake of their alleged courtship, she was hoping to appear alluring by creating distance between them. After all, it was often suggested that a lady should not appear too eager for a gentleman’s favor or attention… but then again, perhaps he ought to just show up and hope for the best.
The thing that stopped him from arriving at her family home, arms laden with gifts, was the fear that she would turn him away. He had not produced results yet; she would be within her rights as he was not upholding his end of the bargain. But he missed her.
That was the one phrase that he had not been able to put in his letters.
There was a sort of magic to her smile. Something more alluring and addictive than any drink that he had ever sampled – sweeter than anything he had ever tasted, and he could not get it out of his mind. He had not been lying that day when he had told her that no gentleman in his right mind would turn her away. Although, the things he thought about while lying awake at night, tossing and turning, were certainly not of a gentlemanly nature.
He had not been able to look at another woman since nearly kissing her. He had tried in the hopes that he might be able to distract himself from the constant loop of thoughts centered around Tessa – but not a single woman he had attempted to speak to even compared. Their smiles were not nearly bright enough. They did not have the same pull that Tessa did. Before spending time with Tessa, he had not noticed just how performative all of the conversations were that he had with other women. Routine, more or less. It was… boring.
He should have kissed her. He should have taken the risk so that there could be no misunderstanding between them. It would have changed the nature of their accord, but perhaps that might turn out to be for the best. Would it not? Was it so terrible to express his feelings for her?
He had to come clean and declare himself one way or another.
“Delvin?” Leo called to his steward. “I was given an invitation to tonight’s ball at the Cornelius residence, correct?”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Leo scrubbed his hand down his face and nodded. “Did I send intentions to attend?”
“I do not believe so, Your Grace,” Oscar answered.
“Ah – well, I suppose that they will not be too bothered if I grace their ball with my attendance. Come, we have a social engagement to get me ready for.” Leo nodded. It might be his only chance to speak with Tessa where she could not avoid him. That was worth the annoyance of attending a social function that he did not care for; it was worth enduring the obnoxious mothers and their daughters – so long as he got to speak with Tessa once more. On his end, he wished to speak with her for reasons more than what was required by their bargain. There was no more denying it.
* * *
Whispers greeted him the moment that he stepped inside the home. It was one of those instances where his title came in handy. It was to his benefit that nobody would reprimand a duke for not having sent word or accepting the invitation because simply having a duke at their ball elevated their status. It gave all of those who fed the hungry rumor mill something to feast on while they danced and drank their fill.
Even as he walked the edges of the dance floor, he could hear them whispering. He could feel their eyes on him. The music felt further away than it could possibly be and none of the faces of those he walked past really seemed to register. They were not the face that he was looking for; they did not belong to the one woman he yearned to see above all others.
Leo was going to feel very foolish if she was not actually in attendance. He felt fairly foolish already due to the fact that he was glancing over each and every face in turn, simultaneously hoping not to see her family while also hoping to have even a slight glimpse of her. If he made his intentions clear – bargain or not – and she rejected him, he would still be happy just to see her smile one more time.
A long time of nothing and then suddenly, there she was – standing at the far end of the room in a striking dress of rich violet trimmed with a yellow so soft it was nearly white. Sophie stood beside her, dressed in a paler lilac shade that complimented her fair hair and no doubt was intended to upstage her cousin and keep all focus on herself. It suited him fine, now, that there were no other eyes on Tessa – the very notion of it caused jealousy inside of him. Perhaps the very first time that he had ever truly experienced such an emotion.
The question became how to approach her. As she did not wish to write him, he could only imagine that she did not wish to speak with him either. He had tried to conjure a few witticisms that might entice her into banter… but she would see through his antics the moment that he attempted them.
With a charming smile, he walked up to her aunt and uncle who stood beside her, and outstretched his hand toward them. “Greetings! How lovely it is to see you here.”
The couple continued arguing for a long moment before choosing to acknowledge him. Lady Windrop did not alter her expression as she took a long drink from her wine glass, but her husband, Theodore, seemed to shift himself entirely. A smile broke open across his face and his wine-reddened cheeks dimpled happily. He did not offer a hand to shake but instead enthusiastically embraced Leo before he even knew it was happening.
“Your Grace! It is so lovely to see you again! I have been wondering about your absence,” Theodore said as he took a step back and clapped Leo on the shoulders happily.
“I apologize for my absence. I had some matters to take care of,” Leo explained without actually giving any explanation at all.
“I was worried that you had lost interest in my little muffin,” Theodore jested jovially, though the underlying accusation was not lost on him.
“Hardly. If anything, my affections have only grown in our brief time apart. In fact, I was hoping to apologize in person to Lady Tessa and perhaps make it up to her with a dance? If she will have me, of course.” Leo finally turned his gaze to Tessa.
Tessa seemed as if anything else in this place would be more interesting than looking at Leo. Slowly, the attention of her aunt and Sophie turned expectantly to Tessa. The silence stretched out, and Sophie capitalized on it.
“I would be happy to dance with you, Your Grace. Should you like that? I happen to have a space free,” Sophie said sweetly and held up the dance card dangling from her wrist.
That caught Tessa’s attention. She glanced at Leo, waiting to see if he was going to accept the invitation. It was obvious as Leo turned to look back at Tessa.
“I am afraid that I only have eyes for one dance partner this evening,” Leo said kindly, hoping that the rejection would be taken with grace. Given the public nature of their setting, it seemed rather unlikely that she was going to cause a scene. Though, from the little that he knew of Sophie, she could be a bit of a wild card. “What do you say, My Lady? Might I have this dance?”
