When the music stopped and he released her hand it was such a shock that she almost fell. For a moment her mind refused to come back from wherever it had been and she could neither speak nor move.
‘Are you faint?’ he asked, looking at her anxiously. ‘Perhaps some air?’
‘No, no thank you, I shall be fine in a moment. I must find Mama and go into supper.’
‘I have reserved a table. Let me take you there and your mama and my cousin will join us. I mentioned it earlier.’
‘Did you?’ Charlotte could not trust herself to say more. She felt the touch of his hand on her arm as he guided her through the press of people to a table near an open window. She could feel the coolness of the air calming her heated skin and with the coolness some semblance of normality returned. ‘Oh, that is pleasant. I think I must have become a little heated.’
‘It is very warm in here,’ Jack murmured close to her ear, his breath warm on her exposed skin. ‘I felt it, too.’
Charlotte shivered with what she could only think was sensual delight, though she had never experienced anything like it before. There was something in his tone and his look that made her feel special, as if she were the focus of his attention, of his world. The thought made her feel quite giddy with pleasure and she wished that she might be alone with him somewhere private, somewhere they might make love.
What was she thinking? Charlotte came to herself with a shock. She was allowing herself to be seduced by a man’s smile, by the caress in his voice and the stroking of those compelling eyes... She was reacting like a foolish girl of twelve, instead of a young woman of more than nineteen. Viscount Captain Delsey was a practised flirt and a rake; he thought nothing of breaking hearts and she had no intention of offering hers up as a sacrifice.
His eyes met hers with a quizzical look, as if he sensed her thoughts. ‘Please, make yourself comfortable, Miss Stevens. I see your mama making her way here with the others and I must speak to the waiter.’
Charlotte inclined her head, not quite trusting herself to speak. The viscount was undoubtedly a charming man, but also a heartless flirt, if the gossips were to be believed. She knew that he was regarded as one of the best catches on the matrimonial market, but he was unlikely to cast his hat in her direction. Indeed, most of the matchmaking mamas had given up hope of him. So if he seemed bent on capturing her interest it probably meant that he thought there might be a chance of seducing her into a clandestine flirtation...as he might well think if he’d seen her wearing her brother’s cast-off clothing.
It seemed likely that he’d recognised her as the urchin that he’d helped escape from unwelcome attention in the street—and a girl who would brave the streets at night dressed as a youth might be capable of anything. Indeed, she might so far forget herself as to be willing to indulge in something more than flirtation, might allow herself to be seduced. The thought sent waves of heat rushing through her once more and she struggled to compose herself. She must think of something else...a cool stream trickling through a sunset meadow...
Still feeling a little uncomfortable as her mama joined her, Charlotte decided that she must be careful in future. It would not do to become too intimate with the handsome viscount. Not only could he break her heart, he could ruin her reputation.
Yet when he returned with a trio of waiters, bringing a selection of all the choicest treats and two bottles of chilled champagne, Captain Delsey devoted himself to her mama and engaged her brother for a game of cards, before engaging his cousin for a drive to the park the next day. Since he paid Charlotte no more than polite attention, she was able to school her wayward thoughts, and, by the time he claimed his next dance, she had recovered her composure.
Try as she might, Charlotte could not hold back once he swept her away across the floor, her whole being given over to the joy of the music and the feeling of floating as she immersed herself in the dance. However, she did not let her thoughts drift to the desires that had formed during the first dance and was able to breathe easily and to thank her partner when the dance ended.
‘You dance like an angel,’ Delsey murmured in her ear. ‘I shall wait impatiently for the next time, Miss Charlotte.’
The sound of her name on his lips was like a caress. Such tactics were calculated to make foolish girls fall at his feet, but Charlotte was made of sterner stuff. She must and would resist the spells he wove—she had to for her family’s sake.
‘Thank you, sir. I must always be pleased to dance with such a delightful partner.’
She made him a deep curtsy and then walked away to join her mother, her back very straight, her head high, though every nerve in her body felt as if it were being torn apart by the loss of him. This was ridiculous! She hardly knew the man and she would be foolish beyond anything to let herself be drawn into his net, simply because when she was in his arms she was ready to cast aside the world for his sake. No, no, she would keep a guard between her and the charming viscount in future. She must remember who she was and what Mama expected of her rather than allowing herself to dream of passionate love in the arms of a man who fulfilled all her girlish hopes.
* * *
Three dances later the room began to thin of company and Lady Stevens told her daughter that they should be thinking of leaving.
‘I have promised that we shall take Miss Handley home for it is on our way, Charlotte. Julia is a very pleasant young lady and I have invited her and her mama to dine with us as soon as it may be arranged. She says she would like it if you would walk with her in the park tomorrow afternoon, and I thought you would so she will call for you at two.’
‘Oh...yes, of course, Mama,’ Charlotte agreed, though she seemed to recall that Delsey had made some sort of arrangement with his cousin for the following day. Yet she had not been paying attention and perhaps that had been for another day.
Because both young ladies had danced all evening they had had little time to become acquainted, but sitting in Mama’s comfortable carriage on the way home, Julia told Charlotte that she was looking forward to becoming better acquainted.
‘Mama has many friends in town,’ Julia confided, ‘but some of their daughters are so...well, to be kind, they are silly and have not a sensible thought in their heads. I think you are different, Charlotte. I should like it if we could be friends—and I know Jack likes you.’
Charlotte’s cheeks felt warm and she was glad that it was too dark in the carriage for Mama to notice. ‘What makes you say that?’
‘He seldom dances with very young ladies, but he danced twice with you—and he stood talking with you on every occasion you were not dancing.’
‘I dare say that was so that you might be comfortable with us,’ Charlotte murmured softly. ‘I think your cousin is an accomplished flirt, Miss Handley.’
‘Please, call me Julia. I hope I may call you Charlotte?’ Julia lowered her voice. ‘Jack has a terrible reputation, but he isn’t very wicked. I am sure he would never seduce an innocent young girl as some unscrupulous gentlemen do, but he cannot help it if the foolish ones break their hearts over him. If he takes a mistress now and then...well, all men do it, you know, at least until they marry.’
‘Who told you that?’ Charlotte asked in a whisper with a quick glance at her mother to make sure she was not listening.
‘Mama.’ Julia’s eyes sparkled. ‘She said it was quite the thing for young men and better than picking up...ladies of the night from the street. But of course, it should stop when the man gets married, though she confessed that it doesn’t always do so. My father has been faithful to her for ever, but she says she is lucky—and told me to make sure that I choose a man who will love only me.’
‘What are you two girls whispering about?’ Mama asked. ‘I believe we have arrived, Miss Handley. Pray tell your mama I should be happy if she will call and then