Page 46 of Married to the Icy Duke (Duke Wars #3)

His breath misted up the glass at once, however, but not before he was able to glimpse, in the moonlight, what appeared to be a pointed tower rising out of the woodlands around the house.

It was a folly, designed to look older and more Gothic than it was, but he happened to know that the tower had been built a mere fifteen years ago.

The building consisted only of a narrow, spiral staircase inside, and a large room at the top, with a window with a broad ledge overlooking the surrounding woodland.

From inside the tower, one could imagine that one was lost in the wilds, part of a terrifying and thrilling fairytale, and not in a duke’s back garden at all.

Closing his eyes, he sucked in a breath and pulled himself away from the window.

Come on, sir. You have a goal to accomplish, haven’t you?

He forced himself back into the crowd, hating every instant of it. How awful, to be surrounded by strangers. All these idiotic, cackling fools, laughing at nothing, with no thought to their past or their future. How did they survive?

He had a tension headache, and the flurry of bright, clashing colors hurt his eyes. The man had chosen a simple, dark gray suit, with a black cloak to match his black domino. Nobody would look twice at him in such a suit, which of course was his intention.

He passed by an open set of French doors, and before he could consider the wisdom of it, he’d followed the delightful rush of cool air and stepped out onto a terrace.

Cold air brushed over him, and he let out a shuddering breath, closing his eyes.

What am I doing? This is foolish. I have no plan, nothing beyond doing something . I should take myself home and continue being as useless as I always have been.

There were other people on the terrace, but the night was young and the party was early, and nobody was eager to stay out for long.

Minutes ticked by, and one by one, the people sharing the terrace with him scuttled inside, talking of champagne and dancing and who was who under their masks.

One by one they went, until he was alone.

He lifted a shaking hand to his own domino mask, double-knotted at the back so as to avoid any accidental slips. Why shouldn’t he just tear it off now and stride off into the darkness? Why not …

“Tommy? Tommy! Oh, heavens, where has he gone?”

A young woman, dressed as a nursemaid, came scurrying out onto the terrace, pale with worry. No, she was a nursemaid. She stood in the elongated rectangle of light thrown across the terrace from the door and shielded her eyes, peering into the dark trees surrounding the terrace.

In his dark gray and black suit, the man was nearly invisible. The nursemaid didn’t notice him until he moved. When he did, she flinched, spinning to stare up at him with wide, panicked eyes.

“Oh, forgive me, sir, I did not see …” she paused, clearing her throat. “I’m looking for a little boy, the Duke’s nephew. His name is Tommy, and he didn’t want to go to bed. He gave me the slip quite nicely, but I really must find him. Have you seen him?”

He shook his head, and the nursemaid deflated a little.

“Oh, dear,” she mumbled, half to herself, and hurried back inside the crowded ballroom without another word.

A moment passed, and then a tiny figure stepped out onto the terrace. It was a child, a little boy, clearly overwhelmed by the crowds and the noise. He blinked around, pushing out his lower lip. In a moment, there would be tears, which would undoubtedly attract attention.

Matthew hurried over to the child and crouched down before him.

“You are little Master Tommy, aren’t you?” he asked, his voice low. The boy nodded, eyes wide with unshed tears. “I imagine you’re lost.”

Another nod, but the little boy’s tears did not yet fall. Perhaps he felt more at ease, having seen an adult he recognized.

“Your nursemaid is looking for you, little one,” Matthew added, keeping his voice gentle. “We ought to go and find her, shouldn’t we?”

There was a faint pause, then the boy slowly and nervously shook his head.

He tilted his head to one side. “No? You don’t want to find the nursemaid? Ah, I see … once you find your nurse, you’ll be off to bed, and you don’t want to go to bed yet, do you?”

Tommy gave a tentative smile and a hesitant nod.

“I understand. I was exactly like you at your age—I never wanted to go to bed when such exciting things were happening. Now, where would you like to go? Who would you like to see?”

The boy considered, then his face lit up.

“Char-Char—Lotte! Charlotte!” he proclaimed, his little round face flushing with pride.

I imagine that just about everybody else in that ballroom wants to see the new Duchess of Arkley, too. They’re calling her the Duchess of Devils already.

Matthew smiled. He glanced up, scanning the brightly lit windows and doors of the house before him. He did not think he was being watched. In general, people were simply so blind to anything but their own concerns.

“Very well. Then I shall take you to her, shall I?”

The little boy nodded eagerly. When he stood up, the boy lifted his arms to be picked up. Matthew picked him up, holding him tight. Then he turned, setting off at a brisk stride across the terrace, plunging into the woods.

Within a few seconds, there was no sign that the man and the boy had ever been there at all.