He needed that so desperately.
“Very well, Your Grace,” he said. “I will be happy to join you.”
“Excellent.” The duchess pivoted away. “Good evening, Blackvale.”
Callum watched her go, a poof of intimidation and spark, and couldn’t help but smile. He had never believed in the fairy godmothers of children’s tales, but if the Duchess of Amberleigh could give him a moment’s peace, he wasn’t about to turn her down.
When the Duchess of Amberleigh had sent a request asking Valaria for a neighborhood tea that morning, she had almost refused. She had been refusing all invitations, even the ones from Bernadette and Flora, since her last encounter with Callum.
It was simply that she could not seem to put the mask she’d been wearing for months back into place now that he was gone. And she feared what friend or foe alike might see if she made her true self known.
In the end, even though the Duchess of Amberleigh had worded the missive as an invitation, it was clear it was more like a demand. And Valaria had known it would cost more to refuse than to acquiesce.
And so she found herself in the duchess’s parlor, Flora and Bernadette off to one side of the room with one of the duchess’s other guests, the Marchioness of Merrywood.
Valaria had been locked in reluctant conversation with the Countess of Pittsgreen for the longest quarter hour of her life. She had never liked the older woman. She was stylish and sleek, a sight to behold. And she was as sharp a wit as her contemporary, the Duchess of Amberleigh, but while the duchess had softness to the edges of her, there was a cruelty to the countess. She could destroy with her power…and she liked doing it from time to time to remind people of that fact.
She also loved gossip. She’d been dancing around trying to pry the details of Silas’s death from Valaria for the entire conversation, all while pretending sympathy and parity for her loss.
Of course, Valaria had been avoiding questions about Silas’s last moments for months. She could dodge them now without even paying much attention. Which was what she was doing when the duchess’s butler stepped into the chamber and announced, “The Duke of Blackvale.”
Conversation ceased immediately, not that Valaria would have heard it even if it continued. All the blood rushed to her ears, drowning out everything but the sound of her own heartbeat as she watched Callum step into the parlor.
“Oh,” she whispered. She couldn’t help it. She was thunderstruck by him—that had not faded in a week apart, no matter how she’d hoped that would be true.
He was unbearably handsome in his afternoon formal attire. His jacket was a hunter green and perfectly accentuated his fawn breeches, which fit tightly against firm thighs. He was freshly shaven, his harsh jaw cutting a line across the expertly tied cravat.
And when he turned his light brown gaze across the room and settled it on her, her heart almost stopped beating.
“Why in the world would the Duchess of Amberleigh only invite one man to this gathering?” Lady Pittsgreen snapped. “That one is always up to something.”
Valaria blinked, her captivated reaction wiped away by the comment. What was the purpose of Callum’s being here? Was the Duchess of Amberleigh up to something? Had he manipulated the situation in order to see her? Or perhaps come to try to convince her to change her mind about the end of their affair?
Irritation lifted in her chest and she glanced at the countess with a forced smile. “Who can say why anyone in particular is invited to these things? Will you excuse me? I see an old friend I must acknowledge.”
The countess looked annoyed that she had not extracted the information she’d been fishing for before Valaria removed herself. Still, Lady Pittsgreen waved her off. “I certainly hope we’ll meet again, Your Grace,” she said. “I’ll wheedle your secrets out of you eventually.”
Valaria forced a smile before she stepped away. She could hardly breathe as she made her way around the perimeter of the room. Her gaze was locked on Callum and his locked on her, even as he now spoke to the Duchess of Amberleigh and Flora. She gave him a little shake of her head and then nudged her chin toward the door. Hopefully he would understand her meaning and follow her at a reasonable distance. She obviously had things she needed to discuss with him and they could not be said in this public gathering.
With her hands shaking, she made her way down the hall and into the closest parlor. She stopped in the doorway and stood watching down the hall, waiting for him. And, to his credit, he did follow. A few moments later, he stepped from where the party was gathered and looked down the hallway toward her. His eyes went wide when he found her and he strode in her direction.
Her heart stuttered when he neared, and she sucked in a deep breath and then pivoted away into the room. As he entered, she closed the door behind him and folded her arms.
“Did you know I would be here?” she snapped without any other preamble.
He faced her, his expression pained for a moment. “Yes,” he admitted softly. “And I was told by the duchess that she would tell you she had invited me, as well. But I can see from your expression that she did not do so.”
She wrinkled her brow. “Why…why would the duchess equate us? Did you tell her something about our…our affair?”
He tilted his head. “I would never be so crude. But she is your neighbor, Valaria, and a sharp-eyed one at that. She did note that I had been calling on you regularly and then stopped."
Valaria’s heart sank. “Oh God. Do you think she would tell anyone? Or that others noticed?”
He pursed his lips as if the question displeased him. “The Duchess of Amberleigh may be a great many things, but she seems to like you. She seems to like me. Enough that she orchestrated this meeting without telling you. And I will have to have words with her later about that. I would not have violated your privacy, Valaria. You made your desires clear.” His expression fell. “I-I will go.”
She caught her breath. “Wait.”
She said it without meaning to. Except she did mean to. She didn’t want him to leave.
“Just wait,” she repeated, and moved toward him, drinking him in.
God, how she had missed him. Missed everything about him, from his handsome face to the way he stood, to the scent of him, to just the way he made a room feel safer when he was in it.
Even though he was the most dangerous thing in any room. At least for her.
He stared down at her, hope and hesitation sparkling in his eyes. “Wait for what, Valaria?” His voice grew rougher. “Wait for you? I will do that until the day I die if you ask me to. Even if it breaks my heart to not see you. And also to see you and know I can’t touch you. I missed you so desperately.”
She shut her eyes. When he said those words in that hungry, harsh tone, it was a physical touch to her body. To her soul. And everything she felt but couldn’t allow rose up in her. Made her want to say things and do things she shouldn’t.
And yet he was undeniable.
The brush of his fingertips across her jawline made her open her eyes. He had eased a little closer, and now she felt his warmth wrap about her like a cloak, a comfort in the icy chill that her life had become.
“Callum,” she whispered.
His fingers trembled, but he didn’t remove them. He nodded slowly. “Valaria.”