A thousand thoughts flitted across Miss Hawkins’ face, and yet, Charlaine thought she saw temptation spark in her wide blue eyes. “What if we’re discovered?”
Charlaine shrugged. “What if we’re not?”
A slow smile stole onto Miss Hawkins’ face despite her obvious effort to contain it.
“I can see that you want to come,” Charlaine remarked before grasping the other woman’s hands. “Please, do.”
“What about Pierce?” Miss Hawkins asked, still undecided. “Will he not realize that you’ve left?”
“Oh, he’s already at the masquerade.”
Miss Hawkins stilled. “But…but then we’ll surely be discovered.”
Charlaine could not help but grin. “Well, it is a masquerade.” She squeezed the other woman’s hands. “Still, are you not curious to see if he will recognize you?” A wide mix of emotions danced across Miss Hawkins’ face. “I think it’s about time the two of you spoke to each other,” Charlaine urged before her smile deepened. “I have the perfect gown for you. I swear it will not fail to catch his attention.”
That, in turn, captured Miss Hawkins’ attention for her hand moved upward and tugged on the high collar of her mouse-gray dress. Her eyes became distant as she lost herself in a memory. A pleasant one to be certain for the smile that tugged on her lips whispered of utter bliss.
“Will you come then?” Charlaine asked hopefully.
Miss Hawkins nodded. “I cannot believe I will, but, yes. I’ll come with you.”
Charlaine’s heart thudded wildly in her chest, and she could no longer stay seated. Her hands clapped together in joy at the thought of another adventure on the horizon. “Oh, this is wonderful! And if we’re to be the best of friends, you must call me Charlaine.” After what she had observed tonight, Charlaine no longer harbored the slightest doubt that Pierce and Caroline would be married in no time at all. If only those two would finally realize that as well!
Pulling Caroline off the settee, Charlaine looped her arm through hers and drew her toward the door. “Everything is prepared. We’ll change and then we’ll be off.”
“How did you know where to find me?” Caroline asked, her demeanor growing more confident as they crossed the foyer.
“I enlisted Albert’s help,” Charlaine confessed, glancing around to ensure the dear man was not lurking nearby. He did have a slightly upsetting tendency of appearing and disappearing without warning. “He, too, wishes to see Pierce happy, and he is very fond of you as well, dear Caroline.”
An adorable smile lit up Caroline’s face.
After changing with all haste, Charlaine found her new friend standing in front of the tall mirror in her chamber, her spectacle-free gaze sweeping over the ruby red gown Charlaine had chosen for her. It made her look radiant and would certainly succeed in drawing Pierce’s attention.
“You look different without your spectacles,” Charlaine observed as she smoothed her hands down her own golden gown. It shimmered like the sun, and she felt utterly glamorous in it. “You don’t need them, do you?”
“No, I don’t,” Caroline admitted, her blue eyes sparkling with her daring spirit.
Charlaine could not help but wonder why Caroline had ever decided to wear spectacles that served no purpose. However, time was running short and so they hurried downstairs and then rushed to seat themselves in the carriage Albert had reluctantly ordered for them.
“I have a confession to make,” Charlaine admitted as the carriage rumbled down the street toward the Witherton’s townhouse. “There is someone I wish to see tonight.” Perhaps she could kill two birds with one stone, bring Pierce and Caroline together—finally!—and cheer up poor Nathanial. In all honesty, Charlaine doubted the man would find much amusement without a little bit of coaxing, and Pierce was definitely not the right person for the job.
Surprise shone on Caroline’s face. “Who is he?”
Charlaine chuckled at the memory of Nathanial’s tense face. “Oh, he’s a kind, young man who believes the world has nothing left to offer him.” She wiggled her brows devilishly, enjoying the way Caroline’s jaw dropped slightly. “I intend to disabuse him of that misconception.”
That was a promise.
After all, she had promised him to be his friend, and friends looked out for one another, did they not?
And she would, whether he wanted her to or not.
Chapter Eleven
Dancing Under the Stars
This had been a bad idea!
No, correction, this had been the worst idea of all time!
Not knowing where to look, Nathanial followed Lord Markham across the large, vaulted room, his gaze sweeping over sparsely-clad women wearing a variety of colorful masks to men dressed in black—not unlike his companion—giving them a forbidden air. Yet, the dance floor all but vibrated with cheerful voices as lords and ladies moved together, turning familiar dances into something utterly foreign.
Lights sparkled everywhere. Yet, the room seemed dim by normal standards, shrouding the masquerade’s guests in anonymity.
“Here, have a drink.” Lord Markham all but shoved a glass into Nathanial’s hand as they stopped by a heavily-laden refreshment table. “You look like you could use it.”
Still at odds, Nathanial gulped down the contents, then coughed. “You don’t truly intend to stay, do you?”
For a long moment, the other man regarded him. “Have you forgotten that you’re not yourself tonight? Although Nathanial Caswell might object to this kind of amusement, the man you are tonight does not.”
Exhaling a gust of air, Nathanial allowed his gaze to wander. “I wouldn’t know how to…” He couldn’t even finish the thought.
“Go and dance,” Lord Markham remarked, gesturing toward a group of women, who stood near the dance floor, chatting and laughing. “No matter what happens tonight, no one will ever know it was you.” He moved a little closer to be heard above the hum of the music as the orchestra began to play another hauntingly beautiful tune. “While others might be unmasked by their voices alone, you do not run that risk. We’re not in Boston. No one knows you here. Drop your accent and no one will know you.”
Nathanial sighed, not certain if his companion’s words should be understood as a promise or a threat. Indeed, no one knew him here. He was alone among strangers and, to a man like Nathanial, who had always cherished the comfort of family and friends, this was a most disconcerting thought. “What should I say to them?”
Beside him, Lord Markham chuckled, however, it was a companionable sound. “It does not matter.”
Gritting his teeth, Nathanial felt as though facing a horde of barbarians as he began to make his way across the room toward the group of ladies. His ears began to ring from the noise, and his palms started to sweat as his heart beat faster and faster.
One of the ladies noticed his approach and turned to him with a smiling face. She was dressed in a dark blue gown, her blond hair curled upward and a glittering mask fitted to her face.
Nathanial wanted to turn and run for he could only too easily imagine Abigail under that mask. Would he never escape the memory of her?