‘Don’t, Jack,’ Dulci cautioned him softly.
‘Don’t what, Dulci?’ Jack prodded with a whisper, knowing full well her thoughts had gone in the same direction as his, his body enjoying the feel of her far more than it should on a ballroom floor. ‘Don’t remember you in the orangery? Your hair coming down, your lips wet and red, your face tilted up in the candlelight waiting for my kiss? Your body pressed to mine as close as two bodies can be with their clothes on? How can I forget when I’ve seen you like that in my mind every night since?’ The moment had been unpredictably heady. For a man with his vast experience with women, his reaction had played havoc with his senses whenever he recalled it, which was far too often for his own good.
Nothing had proved its equal, although Jack had certainly tried in the ensuing months. Dulci was a woman who demanded all of a man and that was far too dangerous of a commitment for him to make, for her as well as himself. But he was flirting shamelessly now, seducing her with words, his body and mind firing at the thrill of the challenge she presented.
He saw the pulse in her neck race at his words, belying the protest on her lips. ‘Don’t remember, Jack. We both know it was a mistake and it will be a mistake again.’
‘I don’t make mistakes when it comes to seduction, Dulci.’
‘No, but afterwards you make plenty. Your seductus exitus needs work.’
‘That’s not a real Latin phrase.’
‘Exitus is and it doesn’t change the fact that yours needs work.’
‘Only practice makes perfect.’ Jack gave a heavy sigh of over-exaggerated disappointment. ‘Alas, I have so few chances to practise.’
‘That’s not what I hear.’
Jack had no desire to talk about those particular rumours—rumours that involved a certain actress, strawberries and a large grain of the truth. If he could get Dulci away from the crowds, away from the eyes that watched their every move, maybe they could just talk, maybe something more. He did want to talk. He wanted to find out what she knew about the Venezuelans. Then again, who was he fooling? He wanted to do more than talk. He wanted to see if the sensations were still there. Perhaps Christmas had been an anomaly. It was a risky proposition at best, especially if he was wrong, but tonight his better judgement was no match for Dulci in pomegranate silk and memories of hot kisses.
‘A walk in the garden then, Dulci,’ Jack breathed against her ear, inhaling the lavender rinse of her hair. He could feel her body giving in, no matter what arguments her mind made. He could feel it answering to his, fickle compatriots to the codes of decency and honour that demanded they take a different route.
‘All right, but just a walk,’ Dulci consented.
Jack murmured low at her ear, ‘I’m sure there’ll be something handy to throw at me if you need it.’ His hand tightened at her waist, ushering her towards the French doors that led outside. Ballrooms might be for business, but gardens…well, gardens were for pleasure.
The garden with Jack was a bad idea. Anything with Jack was a bad idea as she very well knew from gossip and brief personal experience. He had a reputation for a reason, actually several reasons. Dulci wasn’t regretting her consent to walk in the garden, but she was going to. She knew it and yet she allowed him to lead her down both the proverbial and literal garden path, because she’d been able to think of nothing else since Christmas and Jack was irresistible, flaws and all.
There were definitely plenty of flaws, which worked only to heighten her own curiosity regarding the man behind the rumours—where did he go when he disappeared from London for months on end? What service had he rendered King William that had catapulted a poor squire’s son into the ranks of the peerage with a hereditary title? How true was the tittle-tattle circulating behind ladies’ fans that Jack was a lover beyond compare? There was probably a reason curiosity killed the cat, Dulci thought. She’d do better to forget such sordid things and to hope that Jack didn’t read minds.
It was proving more difficult than expected to banish such thoughts at the moment. Jack drew her aside, slightly off the garden path, having arrived at his intended destination, a small alcove with a burbling fountain and a stone bench, the moon overhead and the paper lanterns that festively lined the garden paths giving off enough light to wander without fear of tripping.
It was a setting that showed Jack to great advantage. The moonlight cast a silvery hue to his winter-wheat hair, giving it the appearance of a smooth, sleek mane, every hair in place. The subtle detail work of his tailor emphasised the breadth of his shoulders, the trimness of his waist and the length of his legs, a reminder that while turned out in the guise of an immaculate, well-groomed gentleman, there was a raw, rough power beneath the clothes, signs of a man who’d led a life full of varied experiences.
Dulci often wondered if anyone else saw that quality in Jack. The longer she knew him, the more she didn’t know him. He was a master of illusion. One only saw what Jack wanted to show and she’d been as easily duped on occasion as the rest.
She no more knew what truly drove Jack than any other member of the ton. She’d like to know more. Since the night in the orangery she’d been thinking rather a lot about Jack, her attentions drawn to whatever rumour was circulating about him any given week. She’d heard since Christmas he’d been busy kissing Lady Scofield in her big gardens at Lambeth.
A delicious tremor shot through Dulci. Had he truly brought her out here, into this garden, to do the same? Would she, should she, let him? Those Christmas kisses had dominated too much of her mind. She couldn’t deny the truth; she wanted Jack to kiss her and perhaps do more than kiss her. Her body could not forget the heat Jack’s hands had invoked, the need for something more that his body had awakened in hers. She wanted to feel that way again, wanted him to wake her again.
She opted for a show of sophistication. She didn’t want Jack thinking she was overly eager if he actually had seduction on his mind. Nor did she want to be overeager if he didn’t; such a miscalculation would be embarrassing and only serve to stoke his already overinflated sense of self-importance.
‘What now, Jack?’ Dulci gave him a practised, coy smile. She moved into the alcove, surveying its furnishings with an assessing look. ‘The fountain is probably not an option, but perhaps the bench is a possibility.’
‘Did you consider I might not have asked you out here to seduce you? I seem to recall in the ballroom that you were rankly against such a venue.’ Jack leaned against a stone column at the alcove’s entrance, looking urbane and relaxed, very much at home with the situation. But Dulci could feel his eyes, hot and direct, following her movements. She could not fool him for long. He was experienced enough to know the game was afoot.
‘Since when has that ever stopped you, Jack? The greater the challenge, the harder you try.’ She trailed a hand in the fountain.
‘I have been known to rise to the occasion.’ Jack grinned wickedly and stepped towards her. ‘I have the firmest of resolves, or so I’ve been told.’
She recognised that cicisbeo smile of his all too well. It was his stock in trade in London ballrooms, the smile that said she was the centre of his attention, that every wish, every desire was about to be fulfilled and more. She’d seen many women believe it. It was easy to believe that smile. She believed in it now against better sense.
Dulci stepped backwards, striving to create more space between them. She had not come to the Fotheringay ball looking for this. Indeed, she had not expected to find Jack here at all. The Season was too young. She’d thought she’d have a few weeks to herself before Jack came to wreak havoc on her senses. She’d thought she’d heard he was out of town. ‘You’ve gathered all the other women to your banner tonight, Jack. You have no need of me as well.’
‘But you’re the only one I want.’ Jack was grinning broadly now. Drat him, he knew he had her on the run.