Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

I gnoring him, the Duke made a sharp turn towards the French doors at the side of the room. It opened into a secluded balcony that overlooked the gardens below and it would give him some much needed reprieve from his mother and the rest of society.

He could only tolerate both of those things in small doses.

The balcony was poorly lit and blessedly empty and he gratefully tucked himself into the farthest corner, hoping that anybody who came out here wouldn't even notice him.

Cool air ruffled his hair as he stood there, itching for a cigar. But most of all, he wanted to be at home. Not his house in Mayfair though, the place never really felt like his home.

The one place he felt most at peace was in the country, with his steed and endless stretch of land.

Lost in his nostalgia, he didn't realize that he was no longer alone till he heard a sharp curse.

"Blighted corsets," the lady bit out.

Victor turned his head sharply to see a figure of a woman walking past his little darkened nook.

"Why do I have to even wear these things?" she continued, "I am quite sure that if men had to wear it, it would have been a thing of the past by now."

His mouth ticked up at her words because he agreed with her. The bloody things took forever to undo. He had once resorted to cutting one off a lightskirt's body and then had to pay for her to get a new one.

He opened his mouth to announce his presence but the disgruntled sound she made stopped him.

And then she took another step forward till she was standing under the moon light.

Victor's eyes widened. It was the sharp tongued chit he had run into earlier. The silver light washed over her and made her look like something otherworldly.

His fingers twitched at his side, but this time, it wasn't the urge for a cigar. It was with the pressing urge to pull out the pins holding her hair up and let it Tumble down her back in soft waves.

"I wish I had not let them convince me into coming to this ball," the woman muttered.

When she whirled around, the Duke thought that he had surely been discovered, but her brilliant eyes never settled in his direction.

The brown haired woman grumbled something he couldn't hear and then began to walk back into the ballroom. He shook his head at the way she all but marched towards the French doors.

Two things happened at once. First, Victor stepped forward to reveal himself to her and second, she tripped.

With a squeal, she lost her footing and began to fall, squeezing her eyes shut and bracing for the unavoidable contact with the hard ground.

Victor leaped forward and snatched her from the air, hurling her smaller body into his to save her fall.

She gasped as he pressed her against him, eyes flying wide.

"You!" she shrieked.