One Night With You (The Derrings #3)(11)

"Seth." Her eyes raked the woman he held in his arms appraisingly. "I had no idea you were interested in a little menage à trois this evening."

Scowling, he dropped his arms from Aurora, a deep ache filling his chest as she put several feet between them. "You misunderstand the situation."

Toying with the fringe edging her bodice, Fleur's lips twisted in a mocking smile. "Unlikely." Releasing a sigh, she dropped her hand. "I can only blame myself for leaving a morsel like you alone for so long. Forgive me. You wish me to leave you and your friend, mon cher?"

"No!" Aurora quickly objected, avoiding his gaze as she moved to the door. "I was leaving." He watched her, fists clenching at his sides, mixed emotions tumbling through him. He did not want her to go. Exhilaration ripped through him at the taste of her on his lips, the scent of her in the air, the feel of her in his hands.

Obviously she knew he wanted her.

Obviously it failed to matter.

Short of tying her up and tossing her over his shoulder, he could not stop her. And perhaps it was for the best. She made him feel. Too much hunger, too much need, too much… everything. Liaisons with women such as Fleur were controlled, safe… enough. Without a word, his angel slipped from the room like a fast-fading curl of smoke. He stared at the doorway, cold regret sweeping through him.

He yearned to give chase. Only he did not chase after any woman. Not again. Once was enough. Enough to learn that no woman was worth losing his head over. Or his heart. As the moments passed, Aurora slipping farther and farther away, his longing deepened, growing into a gnawing ache as he stared at the empty threshold. Every passing moment heightened his anxiety that he would never see her again. It was not to be borne.

"Something tells me you're no longer interested in my company."

"Forgive me?" he asked in a distracted voice, moving toward the door, his strides quick, purposeful.

"Of course, love. My ego won't suffer," Fleur called. "She was interesting. Not the usual fare to frequent one of my fetes."

Interesting. Yes, she was that. That and more. Her heavily lashed eyes flashed through his mind. He still did not know their color. And yet those eyes had seemed to convey so much. Only he hadn't a clue what.

With a curse, his strides quickened. Letting her get away wouldn't solve the mystery of her. Nor would it douse the fire in his blood.

No doubt about it. Seth wanted her. And suddenly enough wouldn't do. Jane shoved through the crowd, using her elbows to nudge those who wouldn't move, desperation driving out good manners. In her absence, more guests had arrived, cramming the room tight with bodies. The orchestra played louder, no doubt to compete with the deafening din. Struggling to still the wild hammering of her heart, to block the sound of blood rushing to her ears, she spied her friends through a part in the crowd. Falling upon them, she gasped, "Let's go. At once."

"Where have you been?" Astrid swept a shrewd gaze over her, then looked beyond her shoulder.

"Where is Desmond?"

"Did he harm you?" Lucy grasped one of Jane's trembling hands, her blue-gray gaze searching.

"What happened? You look as though you've seen a ghost."

A ghost? She supposed she had.

"We have to go. Now." A shudder racked her body as she glanced over her shoulder, half expecting Seth to materialize behind her, intent on picking up where they left off. The prospect thrilled her as much as it terrified her.

He kissed me. Seth kissed me. And I kissed him back.

Amazing. After all these years, she had finally gotten her dearest wish. Well, at least partly. She had wanted more than a kiss. She had wanted love, marriage, children. She had wanted to wipe her sister from Seth's mind and heart forever.

"My poor dear, you're shaking." Lucy chafed her hand with her warm ones. "Of course we will leave."

Jane sighed with relief. "Thank you."

"They're about to bring out dessert," Astrid grumbled.

"You can gorge yourself when we get home," Lucy muttered. "Cook made blackberry tarts this afternoon. You may even take some home."

"Very well," Astrid consented. She held up both hands in mock surrender. "I am all yours. Take me home and feed me until I burst." As they headed for the door, her dark gaze narrowed on Jane. "Perhaps then you can share all the juicy details of where you've been… and with whom. I don't think Desmond put that pretty shade of pink into your cheeks." Following her friends through the crowd, she debated whether to tell them. Somehow her encounter with Seth felt too personal to share, even with her two closest friends. At the edge of the ballroom, she stopped. Her scalp tingled as a wave of heat crawled over her. She knew with a certainty that he was watching her.

Slowly, she turned, her gaze immediately finding Seth amid the crowd of revelers, a source of heat that drew her like a moth to flame.

He stared at her boldly, without apology, his dark eyes scouring her in a predatory way that made her feel hunted.

"Who is that menacing-looking fellow?" Lucy asked beside her. Trapped within Seth's gaze, Jane shook her head slightly. "Someone," she paused, moistening her lips, "someone I once knew."

"Indeed," Lucy replied in a bemused voice. "Well, from the looks of him, he wants to become reacquainted."