Lucy figured the woman was challenging her. “My mother taught dance in our village, and I assisted her. I also assisted a gentleman instructor in London until recently.”
“How provincial,” she said in a bored tone.
Lucy did not react to the insult. More than a few ladies had treated her with disdain when she’d worked at Madame Delanger’s shop. Regardless of what transpired, she would remain calm.
“Mrs. Norcliffe,” Mrs. Vernon said, “he is the one we both dismissed. It was clear to me that Miss Longmore was the superior instructor. My girls are doing very well under her tutelage.”
“Your opinion counts for a great deal, Mrs. Vernon. I have high hopes Miss Longmore will prove herself a superior dance instructor.”
Lucy’s stomach clenched. Mrs. Norcliffe’s tone insinuated the exact opposite, but she mustn’t let fear overrule her. She was a skilled instructor, like her mother before her.
“We should concentrate on the quadrille,” one lady said, “but of course I will bow to your superior opinion, Mrs. Norcliffe.”
Lucy darted a grateful look at Mrs. Vernon.
“Lady Jersey, I do agree,” Mrs. Norcliffe said. “We are fortunate that Lord Everleigh and his friend Mr. Castelle attended, but we need two more gentlemen to practice.”
“Miss Radburn, may I have this dance?” a man asked.
“Thank you, Lord Everleigh,” Miss Mina Radburn said.
Mr. Castelle bowed to another young lady. “Miss Helena Radburn, will you consent to dance with me?”
“Thank you, Mr. Castelle,” the lady said.
A petite blond lady nudged the tall young buck next to her.
He stood. “Miss Amelia Radburn, will you do me the great honor?”
“It would be my pleasure, Lord Chesfield.”
“We are still short a couple,” Mina said.
“We only need one more gentleman,” Lucy said. “Perhaps one of the ladies would not mind making up the numbers for practice purposes only?”
“Oh no, that is unacceptable,” Lady Jersey said with a horrified expression.
Lucy curtsied, but inwardly she thought the woman entirely too finicky.
As the various conversations grew louder, matters quickly deteriorated. Lucy had no idea what they were discussing, but she felt ill at ease. Her hopes of gaining more clients began to dissipate like raindrops.
A maid arrived with a tea tray. Lucy stood with the couples, unsure what to do. The buzz of voices had grown louder, and Lucy’s discomfort heightened. She wished someone would direct her.
Miss Mina Radburn approached. “May I offer you a cup of tea?”
“No thank you,” Lucy said. She doubted Mrs. Norcliffe would approve of her partaking of refreshments.
The clock struck the hour. Two ladies departed. Not long after, another lady rose from her seat. Lucy’s hopes dwindled, and her chest tightened. She tried once more. “Perhaps the ladies would reconsider dancing without a male partner for practice purposes only.”
Mrs. Norcliffe gave her a withering look.
Her spirits plummeted. She’d hoped this opportunity would lead to more clients, but nothing had gone right from the moment she’d entered the drawing room. She would gain no clients or money today. Worse, she did not know if she should remain or leave. Mrs. Norcliffe would dismiss her, and no one would request Lucy’s instruction after this day. She would have to find another job, because her earnings as a maid at the Albany were insufficient. Now she wished Mrs. Norcliffe would end the misery and dismiss her.
Footsteps clipped outside the drawing room doors. Mrs. Norcliffe rose and clasped her hands to her heart. “Harry, you arrived just in the nick of time.”
Lucy’s heart pounded. She turned her attention to the door and had to stifle a gasp. Dear God. It was Granfield. He was the last person she’d expected to see in this drawing room. What was he doing here? For a moment she couldn’t think, and then she remembered. He had three female cousins. His mother had taken them in after they had lost their parents.
Lucy prayed he would not give her away. The last thing she needed was for Mrs. Norcliffe to realize she knew her son. There was no telling what his mother would conclude. Lucy regarded him with a warning look, but she’d no idea if he understood or not.
Harry felt as if he were having a strange dream, one where he’d stepped out on a stage dressed only in his drawers. What the devil was Lucy doing here?
Lucy stood there with a marble-like expression. That made him wonder what had happened prior to his arrival.
Mina hurried over to him. “Harry, I am so glad you got Aunt’s missive.”
He most certainly had gotten his mother’s note and had come to tell her he had no intention of spending another Wednesday evening at Almack’s. Unfortunately, that conversation would have to wait until his mother’s numerous friends dispersed.
“Harry, your timing is perfect.” Mina smiled at him. “We needed one more gentleman for our practice session.”
He cleared his throat. “I’ve no wish to interfere.”
“We were all in an uproar, but you arrived in the nick of time,” Mina said.
He had no idea what Mina was talking about, but it did not sound promising. “I regret that I’m unable to stay.”
“Nonsense,” Mrs. Norcliffe said. “We were shy one gentleman, and fortune blessed us with your presence.”
“Fortune has already blessed me,” Harry said. “Really, I have an appointment.” He didn’t mention the appointment involved walking Bandit.
Mina took his arm and led him to Lucy. “May I present Miss Longmore? Miss Longmore, this is my cousin, the Duke of Granfield.”
Lucy curtsied. “I am honored, Your Grace.”
For a moment, he was stunned. His heart kicked hard.
“Harry has agreed to help us make up the numbers for the quadrille,” Mina said.
He arched his brows. “I beg your pardon?”
“Do not worry, Harry,” Mina said. “Miss Longmore will instruct us. Do cooperate for her sake.”
He darted a look at Lucy. She curtsied and maintained a serene smile. What he didn’t know was how she had come to be in his mother’s drawing room. He dared not ask with so many people about, but apparently Lucy taught dance lessons. Had his mother hired her?
“Harry, Mrs. Vernon recommended Miss Longmore,” Mrs. Norcliffe said. “I am anxious to see if Miss Longmore lives up to her reputation.”
“Who will play for us?” Mina asked.
“I shall be glad to play,” Mrs. Vernon said, approaching the pianoforte.
“Thank you, my dear,” Mrs. Norcliffe said.
“Harry, you will partner with Miss Longmore,” Mina said. “Do try to take her instruction seriously. I know how you like to make a jest of everything.”
“I’m neither jesting nor dancing,” Harry said.
“Harry, you must practice for the competition,” Mrs. Norcliffe insisted. “I know you prefer the card room at Almack’s, but you cannot hide there all evening again.”
He put his fist on his hip. “I do not hide; I play cards and billiards.”
“Do not be tiresome, Harry,” Mina said. “Please be cooperative for Miss Longmore’s sake. You will partner with her.”
Mina’s words struck him like a hammer. Lucy probably depended on the income from her dance instruction. He mustn’t do anything to tip off others that they were acquainted, because it might create problems for Lucy, and that was the last thing he wanted.
Mina patted his shoulder. “We need your help, and it won’t kill you to dance.”
“It would be remiss of me to refuse,” he said, keeping his gaze on Lucy.
“Shall we begin, Miss Longmore?” Mina asked.
Lucy broke eye contact with him and seemed a bit flustered. “Oh, yes, of course. If everyone will take your places, we will walk through the steps without music the first time. Afterward, we will practice with music, if that is acceptable.”
“It is,” Mrs
. Norcliffe said. “You may begin.”
Conversation in the drawing room dwindled as the guests craned their heads to watch the dance lesson.
Lucy regarded Harry. “Your Grace, as the head couple, we will pass each other with our right shoulders, making half a figure eight around the couples on the outside. Are you ready?”
He nodded and gazed into her eyes as he passed within inches of her. “We must talk,” he whispered.
She shot him a warning look and immediately pasted on a smile. “Now, the opposite couple—that would be Miss Mina Norcliffe and Lord Everleigh—will pass one another in a half figure eight on the inside.”
When Mina and Everleigh completed their movements, they halted.
“We will all join hands to form a star circle in one direction for an eight count,” Lucy said.
Harry laid his hand over Lucy’s, and his skin tingled. The devil. The mere touch of her hand made him breathe harder.
“Now, switch hands and circle in the opposite direction.” Lucy met his gaze, and when her lips parted a little, Harry couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. He set his hand over her much smaller one as they turned in the opposite direction in a star circle. He imagined her hands clasped behind his neck and then sliding ever so slowly down his naked chest, teasing him with her slender fingertips.
They clasped hands and turned in a circle. Without breaking the movements, she directed everyone to turn in the opposite direction.
“The head couple skips forward and turns to face in the opposite direction,” Lucy said. He held her gaze as they skipped forward and turned to face in the other direction.
“Now the outside couples skip forward and turn to face the other direction.”
Harry had to see her after the dancing ended. He wasn’t sure what he would say. All he knew was that he had to talk to her. He was determined to win her. She’d played hard to get from the beginning, but it had only increased his desire for her.
Harry wanted her so badly that he couldn’t take his eyes off her. When her lips parted slightly, his blood heated and sizzled through his veins. She averted her eyes and directed everyone to form a star circle to the right. He imagined giving her a long, hot kiss. He wanted to tangle his tongue with hers and hear her moan for him. Good God. His cock was stirring in the middle of his mother’s crowded drawing room.
“The top and bottom couples move around the side couples on the outside in a half figure eight,” Lucy said, “while the head couples skip forward and turn about.”
When he turned about with Lucy, he met her gaze. “We must talk,” he said.
She narrowed her eyes and continued giving direction. “Inside couples turn in a half figure eight with the left shoulder around the side couples on the inside.”
As he passed her, he whispered, “I must see you afterward.”
Her lips parted as they passed each other. He wanted more than anything to take her somewhere private. If they were alone, he would pull her into his arms. He would kiss her senseless and let his hands smooth down the curve of her spine. Then he would plant kisses along her jaw and follow to her slim neck.
After the dancers completed the movements, Lucy said, “Excellent. Now, is everyone clear about the steps? If you have a question, please ask.”
“I think we’ve mastered it,” Mina said. “Harry, you’re doing well.”
He was aroused and hot all over.
Two elderly ladies raised quizzing glasses to their eyes and peered at him. Damned tight trousers hid nothing.
“Let us walk through the steps once more,” Lucy said, “and then we will try it with music.”
On the second walk-through, Lord Chesfield turned in the wrong direction, but he laughed at his faux pas. “Sorry,” he said. “I’ll try to do better next time.”
The third time, everything went smoothly.
“Now let us try with music. Will you play, Mrs. Vernon?” Lucy asked.
“Yes, when you are ready.”
Lucy curtsied. “Then let us begin.”
Harry’s gaze kept returning to Lucy. As they danced past each other, he found himself mesmerized. She performed the steps lightly and with a natural grace. When he clasped hands with her, he dared to whisper, “Look at me.”
She met his gaze and averted her eyes. “Careful,” she murmured.
He despised the pretense between them, but it was necessary. He certainly couldn’t reveal in his mother’s crowded drawing room that they were acquainted. It might cause problems for Lucy, and she likely depended on her dance lessons for income.
When the dance ended, there was a smattering of applause. Harry put his hands behind his back while the guests slowly departed.
The two elderly ladies smiled as they approached him. “You were our favorite.”
“Thank you.”
“Oh, it was our pleasure,” one of them said.
The devil.
“Harry, you surprised me,” Mina said. “You’ve always claimed you have two left feet when it comes to dancing.”
“Now you’re found out, Harry,” Amelia said. “You won’t be able to hide in the game rooms this Wednesday night.”
Since he had no intention of attending Almack’s, he didn’t refute his cousins.
“Miss Longmore, you made the dancing seem so effortless,” Mina said. “Usually I feel apprehensive on the dance floor.”
“Nonsense, Mina, you are always poised,” Mrs. Norcliffe said.
Harry could not fault his mother for championing his cousins. His mother had her flaws, but she’d always treated the girls with affection.
Mrs. Norcliffe turned to Mrs. Vernon. “I do thank you for the recommendation. The instruction certainly helps one recollect the beauty of the quadrille. Hopefully tonight my Mina will advance in the competition.”
“Aunt, I only wish to enjoy the dancing. I care nothing for prizes,” Mina said.
“Care nothing?” Mrs. Norcliffe said, her voice pitching higher. “It is important that you do your best. I’m counting on you. It is crucial that you make a favorable impression. Hundreds of others will be watching.”
“The very idea makes my legs turn to jelly,” Helena said, “but, Mina, you are not bashful.”
“I try not to think about others watching me,” Mina said. “Otherwise, I’d be terrified of turning in the wrong direction and would most certainly make a mistake because I was apprehensive.” She turned to Lucy. “Miss Longmore, how long have you been dancing?”
“My mother claimed I danced as soon as I learned to walk, but of course she was exaggerating.”
“There is a great difference between country assemblies and Almack’s,” Mrs. Norcliffe said with a sniff.
Harry frowned at his mother’s condescension. She’d clearly retained Lucy to direct the dancing. Why the devil did she have to treat her in this haughty manner?
“Indeed,” Lady Jersey said. “Only those who have influential family, elegance, and a certain je ne sais quoi may pass through the hallowed doors of Almack’s.”
Mina’s lips twitched as she exchanged an amused look with Harry.
He didn’t give a damn about Almack’s. He needed to see Lucy after this foolish practice ended. He had to speak to her, let her know he couldn’t stop thinking about her.
Lucy curtsied to Mrs. Norcliffe. “Madame, I will be glad to return next week if you wish.”
“No, you are dismissed,” Mrs. Norcliffe said in a curt manner. “The butler will see to your compensation.”
Harry ground his teeth at his mother’s abrupt dismissal and scowled at her. Naturally she only lifted her brows. He took a step toward Lucy, instinctively wanting to defend her, but he checked the impulse, because he dared not make a scene in front of all these people.
Lucy curtsied, squared her shoulders, and walked out of the drawing room with her head held high.
He wanted to follow her, but he knew it would make matters worse. When they were at the park, he never felt the differences in their social
stations, but his mother’s brusque tone made it seem as thick as the London fog.
Lucy’s face burned like a hot coal.
She was more than a little shaken as she stepped outside Mrs. Norcliffe’s drawing room. Why had the woman hired her if she did not have confidence in her capabilities? Lucy knew she had taught the lesson flawlessly. It was one she’d taught dozens of times in the past. She knew the country dances well, and Mrs. Vernon had recommended her. She thought back to everything that had transpired, but she’d done nothing to deserve the curt dismissal. The only thing that stood out in retrospect was that Mrs. Norcliffe had recognized her because she served lemonade at Almack’s. But why would that displease her?
She’d wanted the nobles to notice her so that she could gain new clients, but she’d been mortified by Mrs. Norcliffe’s rude dismissal in front of Harry.
She was no stranger to aristos treating her in an offensive manner. She’d endured rude comments from spoiled little rich girls numerous times when she’d worked for Madame Delanger. She’d mentally dismissed them because they were strangers, and she didn’t care what they thought of her—if they thought of her at all. She’d felt superior to the haughty, demanding customers.
But it had been an entirely different matter when Mrs. Norcliffe had humiliated her in front of Harry in an overflowing drawing room.
Damn his mother for treating Lucy with disdain.
After all the guests left, Mrs. Norcliffe put the sheet music aside and settled in her favorite chair. “Girls, you may be excused. I wish to have a private discussion with Harry.”
He regarded his mother coldly. “There will be no discussion, and I will not escort you to Almack’s. You can find your own way there.”
“Harry, why are you doing this?” Mrs. Norcliffe said in a shocked tone.
“You know damn well. I will not allow you to abuse an employee or a servant.”
“Mind your tongue. Of course you will escort us,” Mrs. Norcliffe said. “If you do not, you will insult your cousins and me. Others will remark upon your absence and think that you have no respect for your family.”
What a Devilish Duke Desires Page 14