Page 29 of The Duke In My Bed (The Heirs’ Club of Scoundrels #1)

When Mr. Newman claimed Gwen for her first dance of the evening, Louisa had wanted to watch them, but that was impossible.

Mrs. Colthrust took hold of her wrist and dragged her through the crowd to be presented to the Earl of Bitterhaven.

As the introductions were made, Louisa was standing almost eye level with the earl.

He wasn’t a tall, regal, or dashingly handsome gentleman, but he wasn’t a poorly looking man either.

He was fit for his age, and his brown eyes seemed kind.

“Yes, yes, I knew your father, Miss Prim, and I know your uncle well, though I’m sorry to say I don’t remember ever meeting your brother. It was a shame what happened to him, and so young.”

“Yes, it was,” Louisa said softly, feeling a lump of sadness rise in her throat. Most everyone she’d met mentioned the duke. The earl was the first person to have remembered and mentioned her brother, and for that consideration, she took an instant liking to him. “Thank you for remembering him.”

“Where is your uncle these days? I haven’t seen the old chap at any of the clubs recently.”

“He’s on extended holiday,” she said, not wanting to tell the gentleman she had no idea where her uncle was.

“He and my sister wanted to get away and explore the world, so we don’t know from week to week where they might be,” Mrs. Colthrust added.

“I see, yes—well, of course they would enjoy such a journey. And this is your first Season, isn’t it, Miss Prim?”

“Yes.”

“In that case, if you don’t think the Duke of Drakestone will mind, I’d enjoy a dance with you. You don’t mind, do you, Mrs. Colthrust?”

“No, not at all.”

“Good.” He looked at Louisa. “I’m sure they’ll be announcing a waltz soon. When they do, I will meet you by the urn on the right side of the floor.”

The earl then said his good-byes and walked away.

“Tell me what you thought of him,” Mrs. Colthrust said almost as soon as the man’s back was turned.

“He seems a very kind man,” Louisa said truthfully.

“Is that all you can say?” Mrs. Colthrust complained. “That answer will not land you a husband.”

No, she could add that there were no quivers in her stomach, no catch in her breath.

Her heart didn’t race at the sight of him, and her breasts didn’t tingle when he looked at her and spoke to her.

And the shame of it was that the only man who made her feel all those wonderful things was a beast. But she couldn’t say any of that to Mrs. Colthrust.

Annoyed by Louisa’s less-than-satisfactory answer, Mrs. Colthrust excused herself to go to the retiring room.

Louisa took the opportunity to unobtrusively make her way over to the long line of dowagers, spinsters, and widows who were sitting against the wall near the dance floor.

She stood at one end of a line of about twenty ladies.

They were chatting, laughing, and fanning themselves.

They seemed to be having a delightful time.

Louisa listened to their chatter while she watched Gwen, who was now dancing with a gentleman other than Mr. Newman.

It certainly hadn’t taken her sister long to lose her shyness.

Gwen looked stunning, and she hadn’t missed a step since Louisa started watching her dance.

“He’s here, ladies, he’s here,” Louisa heard one of the women sitting in the line say. “Quiet now, quiet.”

Louisa looked in the direction they were all staring and saw none other than the handsome Duke of Drakestone.

Her stomach tumbled over itself. He stood at the entrance to the ballroom, looking like a magnificent Adonis.

She didn’t know if her heart skipped a beat, fluttered, or stopped altogether when she saw him.

She must have been introduced to more than twenty gentlemen, but so far, none of them came close to making her feel the way the duke made her feel when she looked at him.

There were more murmurings from the ladies lining the wall.

She stared at them in disbelief as they moistened their lips, touched their hair, and pinched their cheeks.

They all looked at him with adoring expressions.

Louisa smiled. She couldn’t blame them for mooning over him, but did they really think this arrogant man was going to notice them?

Not that they weren’t all lovely in their own way, but surely they knew the duke could command the attention of any of the beautiful young ladies in the room, except for Gwen.

He spoke to people as he passed but didn’t let any of them deter or stop him for long.

“Do you think he will favor us as he has in years past?” one of the ladies asked.

“I don’t see why not,” another answered.

“Of course he will,” another lady said.

Someone farther down the line said something Louisa couldn’t hear, and apparently the other women didn’t hear her either, because she said it again only louder, “He’s done it every year he’s attended a ball, as far, as I know.”

“He does it just to make the young ladies jealous that they are not chosen for his first dance.”

“He’s such a rake.”

“Isn’t he handsome tonight?”

“And the older he gets, the more handsome he becomes.”

“I do believe he’s wearing his hair a little longer this year.”

“Makes him look even more like a devilish rogue, doesn’t it?”

The ladies laughed, and Louisa moved closer to the lady in the chair beside her.

The room was so crowded, she didn’t think the woman would notice that she was listening to their conversation.

She was intrigued by what they said, and amazed she could even hear the ladies with the music and all the other loud chatter going on in the room.

“Hush, now, all of you.” Still another lady, farther down the line, said, “Of course he will favor us. He always has, and I’m certain he always will.”

“At least until he marries.”

“If he marries.”

“Of course he will. He’ll need an heir.”

“I heard he wasn’t going to marry that Miss Prim. Has anyone heard any more about that?”

Louisa stiffened. The ladies had no way of knowing who she was. She wasn’t even sure any of them had noticed her standing there.

“He would have married her long ago if he was going to.”

“My brother said the duke is waiting so long because he is hoping she will marry someone else.”

Several of the ladies laughed.

“I’ve heard she’s going to be here tonight. Has anyone seen her?”

Louisa remained as straight and stiff as if a rod were in her back. She would have no choice but to admit who she was if the lady she was standing next to turned to her and asked her name.

“Look. He’s coming this way. Quiet now, and smile. Here he comes.”

“See, I told you he would pay his respects to us before he asks any other lady to dance.”

“Which of us do you think he’ll pick?”

“I was the first one he danced with last year,” said a woman who looked as if she could be the oldest lady sitting in the line.

“It was I who was first the year before that.”

“I was picked first one year, too,” another lady said.

Louisa marveled that these ladies were bragging about who was the first of the Season to dance with the duke. Obviously, not many gentlemen treated them to a dance, or else the duke’s favor wouldn’t be so important to them.

Louisa watched as His Grace stopped and bowed before each lady, taking her hand and kissing it, saying a few words before straightening and moving on to the next one and doing exactly the same thing again.

He was getting closer to the end of the line, closer to her.

She should hurry away before he looked up and saw her.

He’d never know she’d been there, because he didn’t let his eyes wander around the room or sneak a peek at the next lady in line while he was talking to whoever was in front of him.

He wasn’t kissing air or looking as if he’d rather be anywhere else.

He gave whomever he was talking to his full attention and, as the lady had said, the respect they deserved for their age and their position be they widow, spinster, or dowager.

She kept thinking she needed to leave before he saw her, but she couldn’t make her feet move.

When he rose from talking to the last lady, he found himself standing before Louisa.

She thought she saw surprise in his eyes—but couldn’t be sure because he was too good at hiding all his emotions except annoyance. She’s seen that one more than once.

Louisa curtsied, looked into his beautiful green eyes, and whispered, “Your Grace.”

He bowed and said, “Miss Prim.”

He reached for her gloved hand, and the second his fingers closed around hers, she felt a blanket of warmth as if she were standing in front of a roaring fire. He kissed the back of her hand and then stepped between her and the row of ladies.

His gaze swept up her face, quickly down her body, and back up to her eyes. “You are very lovely tonight. I almost didn’t recognize you.”

“Well, I—I am all dressed for the ball tonight,” she said, thinking she must have looked absolutely wretched the few times he’d seen her at the Mayfair town house.

“If you’d had the decency to let me know that you were going to call on me, you wouldn’t have caught me in such a state of dishabille while playing with my sisters. ”

He smiled and—heaven help her—her legs turned to water.

“You looked quite fetching after playing with your sisters, your long sunset-colored tresses dancing across your shoulders, and your cheeks flushed from the exertion. I meant I didn’t recognize you without your four sisters standing watch behind you.”

“Oh, well, of course, you know they are too young to— Thank you,” she finally said, wanting to hide her sudden inability to get a sentence out correctly. If she weren’t so busy remembering his kisses and embrace, she wouldn’t be so tongue-tied.

“How are Miss Sybil, Miss Lillian, and Miss Bonnie?” he asked.

“Doing very well,” she answered getting control of her runaway feelings. “They are as loud and noisy as usual, running about the house.”