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“Hardly. One of my chair’s legs was stuck behind my neighbor’s, and since that bounder of a man refused to move his chair, I wasn’t able to slip away.”

“Ah.” The major frowned. “I’ll speak to him about how to conduct himself as a proper gentleman if you’d like.”

What a sweet thing to offer. But she shook her head.

“I don’t think it would help. He’s the second son of an earl, and Mama is determined to shove him at either me or Debra, but frankly, he has a wandering eye.

” When she uttered a laugh, there was no mirth in it.

“Being matched to such a man would kill my soul. I’m not going through the whole ordeal of marrying someone only to have to share them—unwillingly— with a mistress. ”

“Well put, and neither should you need to. A man who can’t commit fully to his wife is a blackguard, and quite frankly deserves pox.”

An unexpected chuckle was pulled from her throat at that delightful image.

“Yes, well, I tend to agree, for the man on my other side at dinner had a wandering hand. Beneath the tablecloth, apparently, he thought I would welcome his advances, and no amount of giving his hand back to him would get through his thick skull.”

A soft growl emanated from the major. “What did you do?”

“What could I do? I was left with one choice. I pretended to drop my salad fork, but in reality, I stabbed his hand with it beneath the tablecloth. I’ll wager he won’t soon forget that sort of pain or the lesson.”

Major Kourier snorted. “Ah, so that was why the man jumped up and his chair crashed to the floor.” When he laughed, the deep, rich sound seemed to wrap around her. “Good show, but if your mother catches on, there will be hell to pay.”

“There probably will, but what should I have done? You have no idea how tired I’ve grown of defending myself against unwanted advances from less than attractive men.”

The grin that tugged at the corners of his mouth send stabs of need through her chest. “So, then, if an attractive man made an advance, you would welcome it?”

Oh, he was a clever one. “Cheeky.” She playfully rapped the spine of her fan on the knuckles of his gloved hand that rested on the head of his cane. “That largely depends on the man or the advance.”

“Touché.” He leaned on his cane, and she couldn’t help but admire how straight his back was and how his blond hair naturally parted on one side of his head without the help of pomade.

The scent of citrus, cedar, and leather teased her nose, and she gave in to a shiver.

“Shall we stroll, Miss Ives? We can go the long way and enter the house through the terrace doors at the ballroom.” He offered his crooked arm.

Oh, dear .

As her heartbeat accelerated, she nodded. “Remember, you have my permission to refer to me as Caroline,” she said as she slipped her hand into his elbow.

“I am aware of that, but since we are in public still, I need to observe some propriety.” Then he set them off, adjusting his gait for a slower pace. “How are you feeling after that unfortunate reaction after seeing the corpse earlier?”

“Oh.” Heat filled her cheeks, even more so when she felt the play of muscles beneath her fingertips. “There have been no further effects. It merely took me by surprise. That’s all.”

“On my first case, the murdered victim had been stabbed more than a few times. It was a bloody mess to be sure. Because that reaction was unexpected—and I had served in the military for years before that—I vomited all over the corpse. Needless to say, the inspector at Bow Street who was training me wasn’t best pleased. ”

“I can just imagine.” She lightly squeezed her fingers on his arm. “How long were you with Bow Street?”

When he shrugged, his shoulder brushed hers, and that accidental touch brought heated tingles with it.

“A good several years. After the military, and knowing that I’d survived, I wanted to do something that kept my mind occupied, wanted to spend my time giving back to my community as well as England.

” He turned his head and met her gaze. “Solving crimes was a salvation of sorts.”

“How so?” Everything he’d told her thus far had been fascinating. Despite herself, she was rather warming to the major.

“Well, I was a bit lost after resigning my commission. Serving in the war wasn’t as I’d expected it to be, but solving cases with Bow Street?

” When he grinned, flutters danced through her belly.

“Well, that was quite fulfilling, especially when I could be assured that justice was served, and a grieving family had answers. And sometimes, there is no death involved at all. Finishing those cases is even better.”

Sadly, they were fast approaching the terrace, which meant her candid time with him was coming to an end. “Why did you retire from such work if you loved it? I could easily have seen you there until you are much older than you are now.”

He snorted. “Well, I’m one and forty. That is old enough, and I probably would have been forced out of the field anyway for being too aged.”

As he remained quiet, she reeled at the age difference between them.

“Pish posh, Major. You are a bit over twelve years older than I am. I’d hardly say that’s ancient.

” True, there was something about him that spoke to maturity, but he didn’t act like an older man, and he certainly didn’t look it.

There might be strands of silver glimmering through his blond hair, yet it wasn’t excessive, and his face didn’t show that age.

“Thank you.” He nodded. “A couple of years ago, I was forced into retirement due to an injury sustained on a case.”

“Oh?” Was it too ill-bred to ask?

A long-suffering sigh seemed to come from his toes.

“I can feel your question… Caroline, so I shall tell you.” When he met her gaze, this time in the twilight she saw sadness and annoyance in the dark depths of his eyes.

At her or the situation he spoke of? “I took a ball to the kneecap. Because of that, I lost the lower half of my left leg.”

“What?” She brought him to a halt so she could better peer at him. “But you don’t look it, and when you were in the pond, you were walking correctly.” Perhaps it was bad form to bring that up, for heat sneaked into her cheeks.

“I have a prosthetic that fits to my leg by buckles and leather straps. Yes, I can walk if the distance is quite short, but most of the time, I must use the cane for balance and support. That will never change. And that is why I was unfit for continuing duty with Bow Street.”

“Oh.” More questions bubbled through her mind, but now was not the place to ask them, for they’d reached the terrace, and there were other people about.

“I’m sorry to hear that. However, if anyone can make such an injury seem a success, it’s you.

For what it’s worth, it doesn’t detract from the intimidating and dare I say delicious picture you make. ”

I probably shouldn’t have said that, or even admitted such a thing!

For long moments, he stood gawking at her with shock on his face as if he couldn’t believe her words.

Finally, he nodded and gave her a smile that was the most genuine she’d seen from him since meeting him.

“I appreciate that. Thank you.” Then he glanced at the French-paneled doors that comprised one side of the ballroom.

“We should probably go up to the drawing room now. Lord knows I don’t need a reason to antagonize your mother. ”

Caroline couldn’t help her giggle. “Amen to that.” She followed him to the first set of doors. “Thank you for sharing, Major. I feel I know you better now.”

And drat it all, he was even more intriguing.