Page 168 of The Duke Who Saved Christmas
My stomach fluttered.
“She’s all yours, son.” He winked at him and stepped back, presumably to go find Nana so they could join in.
Thomas cleared his throat and held out his hand. “May I have this dance, Miss Harding?”
My lips twitched to the side, and I gently rested my fingers on top of his. “You may, Your Grace.”
With a smile, he pulled me onto the dancefloor and swept me into his arms. His eyes glimmered, even in the low light, and my skin thrummed with our closeness. We’d barely seen each other all day, let alone shared a word, but right now, it didn’t feel like we needed to.
So, we just danced.
And, oh, how we danced.
Song after song played, and we danced together and next to each other. We danced six feet apart and with barely a millimetre between us. I twirled with my sister and grooved with my grandparents only to end right back up in his arms.
Like a pull I couldn’t fight. A tug I couldn’t ignore.
No matter how much time passed, how many times we parted, I always, always ended up with Thomas’ breath fluttering across my cheek and our fingers intertwined.
“Come with me,” he whispered into my ear. He released my hand only to grab it again with the other, linking our fingers so he could pull me after him.
I squealed, almost stumbling in my heels, but all he did was flash me a knowing grin over his shoulder and keep walking.
This guy…
“Where are we—”
“Put this on.” He draped a coat around my shoulders.
“Where are we going?” I tried again, sliding my arms into the sleeves.
“Shh.” He shrugged on his own coat and zipped it up, then tied a scarf around my neck. “Hmm. A hat is probably one step too far in Hazel’s goodwill.”
“What are you—”
He pressed a finger to my lips and grabbed me once again, tugging me out through the door and onto the back patio. Fairy lights illuminated the entire area, hanging from the pergola beams above us. Miniature fir trees decorated the corners, and they were lit up with twinkling little lights that flickered to a silent beat. Snow fluttered dreamily out of the sky, a far cry from the torrent snowfall of the past few days.
Thomas stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around me, pressing his face into the side of my hair. Reaching up, I rested my hands on his forearm and leant back into him, closing my eyes.
The sound of music from the reception was the faintest rumble in the background. If not for that, it would be almost completely silent bar the ethereal whispers of the wind through the few evergreen trees in the garden before us.
Thomas sighed and pressed a kiss into my hair. “You pulled it off. Congratulations.”
I laughed. “Me? No. We pulled it off. I didn’t do this alone.”
“If not for your meticulous planning, there would have been no saving it.”
“And if not for your stroke of brilliance remembering that the license had been re-filed, my planning wouldn’t have mattered, meticulous or not.”
He stilled. “What do you mean? It was Mum’s idea.”
“Shall I pretend to believe you? Would that make you feel better?”
“Ah, fuck. When did you find out?”
“Almost right away. You’re a terrible liar, and so is your mother. Actually, she’s more of a guilty liar than a bad one.” I tilted my head to the side. “It was also quite obvious. Your mum hasn’t been involved in the running of the estate since before your dad passed, so…”
He huffed, resting his chin on my shoulder. “Fine, I admit it. I called her on the way back here after you fell asleep, and we figured it out from there.”
