Giselle frowned. “Why not?”
“I really should go back to my room. I have so much work to do—”
“Not tonight. There will be no work. I insist you enjoy yourself.” Just then the earl passed by them and Giselle stopped him. “Donatello, my guest doesn’t have an escort, would you mind dancing with her?”
The earl’s face lit up. He turned to Bianca. “May I have this dance?”
“I... I don’t think it’s a good idea.” She was a wedding planner, not any part of the royal society. It was more than enough that she’d sat at the dining table, but now to kick up her heels—it didn’t seem right.
“Go ahead,” Giselle encouraged.
The earl turned to Bianca. “If you don’t know how to dance, I can show you. Trust me, it’s not that hard.”
Heat rushed to Bianca’s face. How was she supposed to turn him down now? He was such a nice man, but he didn’t make her heart race or fill her with giddiness like...like Leo.
In that moment, she realized she had a crush on the prince. Maybe it shou
ldn’t come as such a shock. Probably most of the single women and maybe even some of the married ladies in the room had a crush on him. What wasn’t to like?
But she couldn’t just stand around here waiting for Leo to ask her to dance. That wasn’t going to happen. And the best way to forget about how Leo made her feel was to get on with her life. Just one dance and then she would quietly slip away to her room.
“I’d love to dance.” Bianca slipped her hand in the crook of Donatello’s arm.
As he led her to the full dance floor, her gaze strayed across Leo’s. This time she didn’t have to wonder if he was looking at her. He was staring right at her. There was a frown pulling at his kissable lips. And his normally warm brown eyes were dark and stormy.
As the earl took her into his arms, she had to turn away from Leo. What was he frowning about? Leo might have invited her to the dinner, but it wasn’t like he was her date. In fact, he hadn’t spoken so much as a single word to her all evening. He didn’t earn the right to be upset with her. She hadn’t done anything wrong.
The earl hadn’t been exaggerating about his skill on the dance floor. She knew how to dance, but her moves weren’t as smooth as his. As they moved around the floor, she searched for Leo, but she wasn’t able to locate him.
Maybe he’d been upset about something else. Yes, that must be it. Someone must have said something he didn’t like. Perhaps it was the queen that had him out of sorts. Because there was no way he cared who she danced with.
When the music stopped, Bianca said, “Thank you so much for the dance. I enjoyed it.” It was the truth. “And you are quite a talented dancer.”
“Thank you. We could go again, if you want.”
“Thanks. But I think I’ll sit this one out.”
“Perhaps later.”
She nodded. “Maybe.”
And that was it. The earl moved on. Without anyone around that she knew, Bianca was left to her own devices. She made her way to the edge of the crowd. It was time to make a quick exit, but she was on the opposite side of the room from the door.
She stayed near the wall as she made her way around the crowded room. She neared the corner where there were floor-to-ceiling purple drapes with gold trim that framed the wall of windows overlooking the gardens. She paused for just a moment to admire the view.
When she turned to continued walking, someone reached out. A hand pushed against her mouth, muffling her scream. Another arm wrapped around her waist and she was yanked back into the curtains. It all happened so suddenly that she didn’t have time to fight back.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
THE DOOR SLIPPED CLOSED.
Darkness surrounded her.
Bianca’s heart raced. She was alone in the pitch black with her kidnapper. Her palms grew moist. Her mouth was dry. She had to do something. Fast.
Having gained her wits, she used all her might and kicked the person behind her. There was the muttering of a male voice. Immediately he released her. She spun around, but she couldn’t so much as see her hand in front of her face.
“What’d you go and do that for?”