Chap. 6
Tomoyo gulped as his heated blue gaze moved from Eddington's retreating back to where she was hiding in the shadows. "You can come out now, you know," he said, gently, a trifle amused. "Nobody is here to pounce on you, my lady."
When she still hesitated, his amusement grew, and his lips lifted slightly into something that resembled a smile. "Are you still afraid?" he asked. "What is there to be afraid of?" He carefully reached out with catlike grace and snared her wrist, pulling her forward into the light. "There. Was that so bad?" he said, his white teeth flashing in a mesmerizing smile that would have sent the majority of the female population into fainting fits. Tomoyo was not totally impervious to his grin either; her knees seemed to have turned into jelly as she looked up at his handsome face. "This way, with you in the light, I can actually see who I'm talking to. I tell you, it's very disconcerting to feel someone's eyes on you and not be able to look back at them," he said in response to what he misinterpreted as a puzzled look on her face.
"Oh," she said idiotically and immediately felt embarrassed. "I see." She looked down in humiliation, knowing how the incident he'd witnessed just now with Eddington must have looked. What woman would have been so stupid and naïve to go walking about the huge, sprawling gardens and mazes without a reliable escort? Shamed to the very depths of her soul, she studied every crack in the ground as if it were the most fascinating thing that ever existed in the world.
Cool hands lifted her chin up and long fingers traced her scarlet cheek, sending tingles down her spine. "Are you all right?" he asked. With a frown, he examined the faint bruises that marred her porcelain white skin. "These will heal quickly," he said finally, releasing her face. "I suppose you must get inside now." He gently grasped her arm to escort her to the open French doors that led to the ballroom and was surprised when she flinched and pulled away. "What is the matter?" he asked, tailing her footsteps as she moved backwards.
"Nothing is the matter," Tomoyo replied, tugging her sleeve down further to try to cover her arm. "Absolutely nothing, your grace. Now, I'd appreciate it if you would leave me alone for a few minutes."
"That is a highly improbably suggestion, my lady. I cannot possibly leave you hurt and vulnerable." He gently grabbed her wrist, pulled the sleeve of her gown up, and froze. Dark imprints in the shape of a large hand covered her delicate arm. "Who did this to you?" he asked, his eyes turning a dark silvery gray as they glittered dangerously. "Did Eddington do this to you?" he questioned, barely keeping himself from shaking her to make her answer. He stared into her violet eyes filled with pain and unshed tears and his tone instantly softened. "It wasn't him," he practically stated. "It was someone closer to you, wasn't it?"
"It's not any of your business," she snapped, but there was no mistaking the sorrow and fear in her big, beautiful, eyes. Tears, crystal tears, slid down her face, and Eriol wondered how something so painful could be so beautiful. "It's not any of your business!" she suddenly cried when she saw concern etched on his face. "Shouldn't you go inside? You've been here entirely too long."
Now, that.was.strange and true. He had been here a longer time than needed, lavishing attention on a woman who, miraculously, did not want the attention he gave. That needed some serious though and reflection. Was he falling in love.with her?
No. That was all nonsense. The duke of Clynester did NOT love, much less attach himself to anyone. But, he knew that he would eventually have to get an heir for his title and wealth. Life, he thought, was very unfair.
"Well?" she asked, interrupting his thoughts. "Will you go away?"
Eriol nodded. "Make sure you enter from another door when you come back in, or else there will be unnecessary gossip," he said curtly and turned to go, but the corner of his vision he saw tears welling up in her eyes again. Torn between turning away-she didn't want his help before, didn't she?-and obeying the intense-and insane-urge to comfort her, he finally chose the latter. He pulled her small, trembling body into his arms and embraced her. "What is it, little one?" he asked softly. He held her tightly while she struggled to escape.
"I'm not weak, damn you!" she cried. "I can take care of myself." Yet, contrary to her words, she could not resist when he offered her the only comfort she had ever received after her mother's death. She buried her dark head in his chest and sobbed her heart out in the arms of the man she did not even know.
"Please. Please don't cry," he asked of her, after which he became highly perplexed. He was begging someone not to cry? Why the hell should he care? Trying to shake off that feeling and convince himself that he was only trying to comfort her, he pulled her even closer.
That was a big mistake. At this close proximity, he could smell and feel every inch of her voluptuous body pressing against his. Try as he might, he couldn't ignore the exquisite softness of her skin or the scent of her fragrant hair.or her full, luscious red lips that seemed to beckon to him to kiss them.
Even as he tried to keep himself in check, he realized that he couldn't hold himself back much longer. And while his mind shouted at him to let her go, his body didn't seem to respond; he noticed, surprisingly, that he was loathe to release her. His eyes were fixed on her lips, and again, for the first time, his will gave way to his heart. He wanted to kiss her. He needed to kiss her.
"Look at me," he commanded and gently lifted her chin. Azure and amethyst met and locked in one profound moment. Tomoyo found that she couldn't breathe or move, or tear her eyes away; dark blue orbs entangled them in its depths and held them fixed to it. Her throb of her blood drummed in her ears and she could only hear a distant roar as his lips moved toward hers.
"Your gr-" His lips covered hers and when she gasped in shock, his tongue slid into the warm cavern of her mouth. Eriol felt her body turning into wood in his arms. With his lips and his hands, he coaxed and seduced her, urging her to relax and participate in his intimate kiss, but he got the opposite; she tried to pull away from him. Tightening his hold, he held her head immobile as he gently ground his lips into hers, reshaping hers to fit his until she surrendered to his onslaught and melted in his arms. Forbidden pleasure streaked through her body and her blood raced as she wrapped her arms around his neck in sweet submission. She drowned in the skillful spell he was weaving around her even as alarm bells clanged in her mind. The assault to her sense overcame her sense of caution, and muffled it until she could hear it no more.
****************
"Have you seen Lady Tomoyo by any chance?" a woman asked. "I do say, I haven't seen her in quite a while."
"His grace is also missing," added another young woman with a frown.
"You won't find them here," drawled Lord Eddington in a malicious voice. "You see, I saw them together in the gardens. I wasn't sure what they were doing, however."
The women's eyes widened. "You don't say they were."
"Exactly."
A young woman in a rich blue gown burst into tears. "That is so.unfair. I had planned to meet his grace today."
Eddington's eyes glinted. "Not to worry, my lady. I am here."
The woman peeked at him through her sooty eyelashes. "Why, my lord!"
"Why don't we discuss this in a more.ah.private atmosphere?" he said, leading the lady away with a grin, satisfied that other women appreciated him.
The remaining women gossiped among themselves. "Do you realize," asked Lady Bloomdale, "that we have the most delicious on-dit?" The women twittered.
In a quarter of an hour, the entire ton had heard the gossip about what had supposedly happened between Lady Tomoyo and the Duke of Clynester.
Tomoyo gulped as his heated blue gaze moved from Eddington's retreating back to where she was hiding in the shadows. "You can come out now, you know," he said, gently, a trifle amused. "Nobody is here to pounce on you, my lady."
When she still hesitated, his amusement grew, and his lips lifted slightly into something that resembled a smile. "Are you still afraid?" he asked. "What is there to be afraid of?" He carefully reached out with catlike grace and snared her wrist, pulling her forward into the light. "There. Was that so bad?" he said, his white teeth flashing in a mesmerizing smile that would have sent the majority of the female population into fainting fits. Tomoyo was not totally impervious to his grin either; her knees seemed to have turned into jelly as she looked up at his handsome face. "This way, with you in the light, I can actually see who I'm talking to. I tell you, it's very disconcerting to feel someone's eyes on you and not be able to look back at them," he said in response to what he misinterpreted as a puzzled look on her face.
"Oh," she said idiotically and immediately felt embarrassed. "I see." She looked down in humiliation, knowing how the incident he'd witnessed just now with Eddington must have looked. What woman would have been so stupid and naïve to go walking about the huge, sprawling gardens and mazes without a reliable escort? Shamed to the very depths of her soul, she studied every crack in the ground as if it were the most fascinating thing that ever existed in the world.
Cool hands lifted her chin up and long fingers traced her scarlet cheek, sending tingles down her spine. "Are you all right?" he asked. With a frown, he examined the faint bruises that marred her porcelain white skin. "These will heal quickly," he said finally, releasing her face. "I suppose you must get inside now." He gently grasped her arm to escort her to the open French doors that led to the ballroom and was surprised when she flinched and pulled away. "What is the matter?" he asked, tailing her footsteps as she moved backwards.
"Nothing is the matter," Tomoyo replied, tugging her sleeve down further to try to cover her arm. "Absolutely nothing, your grace. Now, I'd appreciate it if you would leave me alone for a few minutes."
"That is a highly improbably suggestion, my lady. I cannot possibly leave you hurt and vulnerable." He gently grabbed her wrist, pulled the sleeve of her gown up, and froze. Dark imprints in the shape of a large hand covered her delicate arm. "Who did this to you?" he asked, his eyes turning a dark silvery gray as they glittered dangerously. "Did Eddington do this to you?" he questioned, barely keeping himself from shaking her to make her answer. He stared into her violet eyes filled with pain and unshed tears and his tone instantly softened. "It wasn't him," he practically stated. "It was someone closer to you, wasn't it?"
"It's not any of your business," she snapped, but there was no mistaking the sorrow and fear in her big, beautiful, eyes. Tears, crystal tears, slid down her face, and Eriol wondered how something so painful could be so beautiful. "It's not any of your business!" she suddenly cried when she saw concern etched on his face. "Shouldn't you go inside? You've been here entirely too long."
Now, that.was.strange and true. He had been here a longer time than needed, lavishing attention on a woman who, miraculously, did not want the attention he gave. That needed some serious though and reflection. Was he falling in love.with her?
No. That was all nonsense. The duke of Clynester did NOT love, much less attach himself to anyone. But, he knew that he would eventually have to get an heir for his title and wealth. Life, he thought, was very unfair.
"Well?" she asked, interrupting his thoughts. "Will you go away?"
Eriol nodded. "Make sure you enter from another door when you come back in, or else there will be unnecessary gossip," he said curtly and turned to go, but the corner of his vision he saw tears welling up in her eyes again. Torn between turning away-she didn't want his help before, didn't she?-and obeying the intense-and insane-urge to comfort her, he finally chose the latter. He pulled her small, trembling body into his arms and embraced her. "What is it, little one?" he asked softly. He held her tightly while she struggled to escape.
"I'm not weak, damn you!" she cried. "I can take care of myself." Yet, contrary to her words, she could not resist when he offered her the only comfort she had ever received after her mother's death. She buried her dark head in his chest and sobbed her heart out in the arms of the man she did not even know.
"Please. Please don't cry," he asked of her, after which he became highly perplexed. He was begging someone not to cry? Why the hell should he care? Trying to shake off that feeling and convince himself that he was only trying to comfort her, he pulled her even closer.
That was a big mistake. At this close proximity, he could smell and feel every inch of her voluptuous body pressing against his. Try as he might, he couldn't ignore the exquisite softness of her skin or the scent of her fragrant hair.or her full, luscious red lips that seemed to beckon to him to kiss them.
Even as he tried to keep himself in check, he realized that he couldn't hold himself back much longer. And while his mind shouted at him to let her go, his body didn't seem to respond; he noticed, surprisingly, that he was loathe to release her. His eyes were fixed on her lips, and again, for the first time, his will gave way to his heart. He wanted to kiss her. He needed to kiss her.
"Look at me," he commanded and gently lifted her chin. Azure and amethyst met and locked in one profound moment. Tomoyo found that she couldn't breathe or move, or tear her eyes away; dark blue orbs entangled them in its depths and held them fixed to it. Her throb of her blood drummed in her ears and she could only hear a distant roar as his lips moved toward hers.
"Your gr-" His lips covered hers and when she gasped in shock, his tongue slid into the warm cavern of her mouth. Eriol felt her body turning into wood in his arms. With his lips and his hands, he coaxed and seduced her, urging her to relax and participate in his intimate kiss, but he got the opposite; she tried to pull away from him. Tightening his hold, he held her head immobile as he gently ground his lips into hers, reshaping hers to fit his until she surrendered to his onslaught and melted in his arms. Forbidden pleasure streaked through her body and her blood raced as she wrapped her arms around his neck in sweet submission. She drowned in the skillful spell he was weaving around her even as alarm bells clanged in her mind. The assault to her sense overcame her sense of caution, and muffled it until she could hear it no more.
****************
"Have you seen Lady Tomoyo by any chance?" a woman asked. "I do say, I haven't seen her in quite a while."
"His grace is also missing," added another young woman with a frown.
"You won't find them here," drawled Lord Eddington in a malicious voice. "You see, I saw them together in the gardens. I wasn't sure what they were doing, however."
The women's eyes widened. "You don't say they were."
"Exactly."
A young woman in a rich blue gown burst into tears. "That is so.unfair. I had planned to meet his grace today."
Eddington's eyes glinted. "Not to worry, my lady. I am here."
The woman peeked at him through her sooty eyelashes. "Why, my lord!"
"Why don't we discuss this in a more.ah.private atmosphere?" he said, leading the lady away with a grin, satisfied that other women appreciated him.
The remaining women gossiped among themselves. "Do you realize," asked Lady Bloomdale, "that we have the most delicious on-dit?" The women twittered.
In a quarter of an hour, the entire ton had heard the gossip about what had supposedly happened between Lady Tomoyo and the Duke of Clynester.