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The duke’s smile changed quickly, and a flash of panic rang through Eleanor’s chest at his quick change of motion.
“What—?” Eleanor began.
“Shh,” Gabriel warned.
He quickly removed his hand from under her skirt and then pulled her skirt down to cover her legs. He placed a finger to his lips to reinforce the warning. Eleanor immediately pursed her lips.
“Not another word,” he warned.
Eleanor wanted to speak, but only to beg him to make her feel the same way a second time. Now that she had experienced what he could do to her and how he could make her feel, she only wanted more.
Footsteps came from the hallway, and someone stopped right outside the door.
Eleanor quickly dropped from the table to the floor, standing up straight and hoping that she put on a good show that nothing had happened.
How can I act as if nothing has happened when everything has happened to me?
The person who had come to the door burst into the room.
CHAPTER 23
Gabriel couldn’t tell people apart by their footsteps. Perhaps some great detectives could do that. Still, he was sure he knew who was about to burst in before he did.
When the door swung open and Sebastian stood there, Gabriel’s baseless assumption was validated.
“Yes?” Gabriel demanded, positioning himself between Sebastian and Eleanor.
“What’s going on in here?” Sebastian asked.
Gabriel’s jaw clicked at his peer’s demand. He glanced at Eleanor; her pink cheeks, sweat-covered brow, flushed chest, and heavy breathing told a simple story. One most people should have no trouble understanding.
It was impossible to hide what Sebastian had stumbled upon. Still, the way he asked the question riled Gabriel.
“What business is it of yours, Fairfax?” Gabriel demanded.
“I am a gentleman, and that makes it my business. The two of you are alone in here, and I shan’t go telling anyone that, but I wanted to check that Lady Eleanor is safe.”
“She is,” Gabriel told him.
“I would rather hear that from the lady,” Sebastian said, his upper lip twitching.
Gabriel gave a short, throaty growl. He didn’t like being questioned by anyone, even if he deserved it. He knew how it must have looked to Sebastian, and the lord had a vested interest in Eleanor. It was a challenge worth making.
Gabriel glanced toward Eleanor, not wanting to make it look like he was forcing her to say something untrue, but needing her to speak up and put the matter to bed.
Just as he had almost put Eleanor to bed in the middle of a masquerade ball.
“I am fine,” Eleanor told Sebastian.
“Good,” Lord Fairfax replied. “If you are in any sort of trouble, I am here to help you, Lady Eleanor. You only have to say the word.”
“I’m not in any trouble,” she told him.
Sebastian watched Eleanor for a while, a few different emotions crossing his features, but the most obvious one was disappointment. Disappointment, but not anger. A quiet resignation settled over him as he looked at her.
“This is a conversation to be had in private,” Gabriel told Sebastian. “Lady Eleanor should return to her mother.”
Sebastian looked briefly at Gabriel, then at Eleanor, the corner of his mouth twitching. Gabriel could read the look. They would have a private conversation, but the circumstances were anything but private. Anyone could have stumbled in on them.
