Her Secret Fantasy by Gaelen Foley Read Free Book Online Page B

discreet murmur and took leave of them with a graceful nod.
    Turning away, she walked at a sedate pace toward the grand curved staircase. In truth, she was glad to have a break.
    Upon walking upstairs, she found the silk-hung ladies’ lounge mobbed. Barely able to get to the looking glass, she checked her appearance as best she could, pleased by her whimsical costume with its pink tulle skirts dotted with silver sequins here and there. There was nothing particularly fairy-queenish about it, really, but it was pretty and light and it made her happy.
    She took care to check the clasps on the diamond earrings she wore tonight, for they represented some of the last of the Balfour family jewels that had not yet been pawned for blunt. Carefully, Lily pressed the back on each earring, making sure they were securely fastened. The earrings were three generations old and had a tendency to come loose. If she lost one, she would never forgive herself.
    Escaping the crush in the ladies’ lounge a moment later, she drifted over to the gallery railing along the top of the stairs and gazed down at the colorful crowd. She spotted her party and knew that Bess would not be chased away anytime soon, now that she had cornered Edward.
    Her gaze wandered to the line of French doors that opened off the ballroom to the terrace beyond. Perhaps this was the perfect time to sneak out and visit the garden folly…
    Longing to explore the moonlit garden and the grounds, with a sudden surge of boldness, she decided to chance it. She lifted the hem of her sparkly pink skirts a bit and hurried down the crowded marble staircase. She employed all the stealth she could muster, determined that none of her party should spy her and stop her from sneaking away.
    But then, as she was escaping, a ripple of excited murmurs spread through the ranks of the female guests clustered on the staircase and lined up along the railing.
    “No, that can’t be true. He made her
weep
with pleasure?”
    “I heard that her servants couldn’t decide if they should leave the pair their privacy or call the constable, what with all the screaming coming from upstairs!”
    “Screaming? My word!”
    “She told
me
he broke her bed.”
    “How very—energetic!”
    “He’s welcome to break mine,” another purred, staring down into the ballroom.
    “Better not let your husband hear you say that.”
    “As if he’d care. He still thinks I don’t know about his latest mistress, fool.”
    Lily tiptoed past them in shock, trying not to let the ladies notice she was eavesdropping on their indecent gossip.
    Who on earth were they talking about?
    “Did you hear about his tryst with Lady Campbell?”
    “What? No!”
    “Tell!”
    “Poor dear, she couldn’t even go riding with us in Hyde Park last week because of that delicious pagan.”
    “You don’t mean—?”
    “Indeed. I don’t know what he did to her, but she could barely walk, let alone sit her mount that afternoon.”
    “Good heavens!”
    Scandalized laughter.
    “Trust me, dear, she didn’t seem to mind it.”
    Astounded by their wicked talk, Lily followed the direction of the ladies’ collective gaze down to the center of the ballroom, and when she spotted the source of their excitement, she halted abruptly on the stairs.
    Oh—!
    Oh, my.
    Lifting her fingertips to her lips, Lily stood mesmerized by the dangerous-looking man who had arrived, staring right along with all the other ladies.
    No wonder all the women had gone mad.
    He was…beautiful.
    Sun-browned and raven-haired, over six feet tall with an iron physique, he wore his resplendent uniform with such pride that it was clear this was no costume for the masked ball. He carried himself like a military man, too—spine erect, chest out, shoulders back, his square chin high. And the self-assurance in the way he walked—a wary glide, part strut, part saunter—seemed to suggest that, indeed, he was master of more than one kind of conquest.
    “Who is he, Mary?”