Chapter 2

Eriol Hiiragizawa, the seventh Duke of Clow, watched as Lady Avalon descended the stairs. Unlike the other males that stared at the lady's beauty, his focus was on her gown. It was well-made and complemented the girl well, but what caught his attention was the design. It was unmistakable, unbelievable. The dress was designed after the key he had been looking for. He had to know who made the gown. It was his mission.

"If the lady sees you staring like that, she'll probably make a run for it," the gentleman beside him said with a grin. "Although I can see why you'd take an interest in her, an incomparable beauty."

"Indeed, I believe I shall secure a dance with her." Eriol replied to his childhood friend, Syaoran Li, Earl of Wolfcrest. The man seemed to have a life mission of bedding more women than his late father.

"Whoa there, old boy, you'll have to pass the dragon first before reaching the princess." Syaoran eyed his tall friend in glee. "Then again, you could just dole out your charm." Syaoran knew only too well that Eriol could charm a saint to commit murder. One could even say that the duke was too beautiful for his own good. He was known to be great at seducing women, but there were also too many women who would gladly be lured by him.

"Dragon?"

"A pet name of the men for Miss Daidouji, the mousy brunette beside Lady Avalon. She is known to be timid and quiet, but she's notorious for chasing guys away from her charge. Rather protective actually. Can't really blame her with a beauty like Lady Avalon though."

Miss? An unmarried chaperone. Eriol looked at the miss in question who had her back turned as she assisted Lady Avalon. She had hair so dark it could be black. She had a short stature that probably only reached his chest. Her shapeless gown could not hide the hints of roundness from his trained eye. If what he saw was any indication, she had the body of a goddess. He wondered if her face was at least half as interesting.

"She's not mousy."

"She's rather ordinary, at any rate, a little on the pudgy side." Syaoran stated with a bland voice as he too watched Lady Avalon.

"How do you know so much of her?" inquired Eriol in a neutral tone.

"I have tried approaching Lady Avalon before, but it seems Miss Daidouji disapproves of 'unmitigated asses'', Syaoran stated with a huff.

Eriol considered for a moment before striding away with a brief "I shall check myself then."

Eriol found that the Lady Avalon had already been asked to dance, but it gave him an opportunity to assess her so called guardian for the mean time. He was closer now, and he saw that she could probably be not much older than her charge. As he came to stand behind her, he got a whiff of lavender. Too light to be perfume, but the faint scent was more tantalizing because of it. He threaded a little closer to catch more of it when he heard her murmur "heartless beasts." He didn't have time to step back before she turned and delightfully crashed to his chest.

He looked down at her, and his first clear thought was "amethyst." It seemed she, indeed, have a face to match the body. It took him a moment to recover and step back before saying "Pardon me, miss. I did not mean to sneak up on you."

Her reply was nearly lost to his ears as his attention was riveted to her full lips as she spoke. She could make a fortune with those lips. He felt a twitch at the thought before mindlessly replying, "Beasts hunt to satiate their needs."

Something must have given away his wayward thoughts for the next moment she moved as if to flee from a predator. He quickly remembered her wariness to males and used that thought as the perfect bait in his next statement.

"Please stay, miss. I'll have to hunt you down again when Lady Avalon rejoins you."

She looked like a cornered rabbit before realization sunk into her. He almost took mercy on her if he wasn't busy admiring the creamy soft-looking skin of her cheek that was tinged with pink. She might not be the conventional beauty, but her eyes definitely had a most appealing way of looking at him. He pleasantly watched as her expression changed from prey to hunter as he could almost imagine seeing her hackles rising.

Tomoyo glared at the rogue in front of her. He was just another cad out to seduce her dear Sakura. Duke or not, she would not let Sakura come back here to be enticed by this scoundrel! She had to get rid of him quick and lead him away from her innocent flower. One look at this man's face and Sakura would be a goner. Not that Sakura should be compared to the silly young chits of the ton, but there's no defense to a man like the duke of Clow. Indeed, she had heard of the rumors of his escapades. The scandal sheets always had his name somewhere. She even heard of how a year ago two of his mistresses clawed at each other at a ball while he was in the process of seducing yet another lady. Tomoyo disproved of gossip, but this man wore scandal like a cape and it was impossible not to notice when he had such wide and solid shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Your Grace, but Lady Avalon is already engaged for the rest of the evening." She knew it was a lie for they had just arrived, but she consoled herself with the knowledge that it was easy to find a respectable partner for Sakura anyway. Lord Clow, on the other hand, did not possess a single respectable bone in his admittedly wicked body. Tomoyo dashed the last thought from her mind.

"However, I do know another lady who might be interested to entertain you for the evening, Your Grace."

Eriol could practically read her mind. He figured she had no idea how much her eyes gave her away. He knew she intended to lead him away. Although he normally finished his mission quickly and efficiently, he supposed there's no hurry this time. After all, he's had this mission for a decade now. Besides, the almost desperate effort of Miss Daidouji to lead him away was irresistible. She looked like she expected him to do something immoral any moment. A gentleman should never disappoint a lady. He smiled at her and said, "How kind of you to offer, Miss Daidouji. I'd be delighted to spend the evening in your company."