“Oh, how wonderful,” she gasped.
“Wasn’t it, just, My Lady?” Delphine exclaimed, applauding loudly, as Eloise tried to regain her composure.
Jackson had removed his hand and allowed her skirts to fall. He was now on his feet, applauding loudly with the rest of the audience.
“Bravo! Excellent! Bravo!” he cheered, as Eloise rose next to him, hardly able to believe what had just happened.
“Yes, bravo, how wonderful,” she exclaimed, though in truth she had hardly heard a word of what happened in the final scenes.
Her heart was beating fast, and she turned to Jackson, whose outline she could barely make out in the darkness of the box.
“Did you enjoy that?” he asked, as the candles in the theater were lit once again, and a flickering light crept around the auditorium.
“I did, yes, very much so. It was… delightful,” she breathed, as he offered her his arm.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it. I certainly did.” He grinned.
He led them from the box and down the stairs to the entrance hall. The theater was emptying hurriedly, and they were caught up in a crowd of people making for the doors. Eloise noticed some familiar faces from the Mayfair Ball, and there was no doubt her and Jackson’s presence had been noted. It made her smile to think she was the object of their attentions. Let them speculate, she and Jackson knew the truth. But behind the façade, Eloise now wondered if what had passed between them in the park and the theater was more than just a charade. There was a passion in Jackson’s touch. The passion of a man who desires his own pleasure, perhaps, but also the passion of one to whom Eloise could not help but feel inclined.
“I’ll take you home now, and then, I hope to see you tomorrow, perhaps?” Jackson said as he helped Eloise into the waiting carriage.
“We must be seen together, mustn’t we?” she asked, and he nodded.
“As long as you’re happy to be so,” he replied.
Eloise smiled. She felt very happy to be so, and as she rode home that evening, she could not help but feel her affections for the Duke to be growing stronger and becoming ever more real.
CHAPTER8
“And he behaved honourably, did he?” Eloise’s father asked, as they sat at breakfast the following morning.
“You can ask Delphine if you like. But, yes, he behaved with all due decorum,” Eloise replied.
She was not about to tell her father of Jackson’s indiscretion. In her mind, it had been a pleasure, and one she would be only too happy to repeat. Had he acted against her will or done something to upset her, then Eloise would have had no qualms in refusing him. But she had enjoyed his touch just as much as he had evidently done so. The playfulness behind the shrubbery, the exhilarating touch at the theater… it felt to Eloise as though it were building to something more.
But she knew so little of carnal delights. They were foreign to her, and she had never known anyone who could explain them to her. That was what an elder sister was for, or a cousin, perhaps. One who had known such things herself in marriage and could shed light on the mysteries whispered yet never openly spoken of. Eloise knew there was more than just a simple touch or a kiss, but to experience such a union was surely reserved only for true feelings, and not for those which she and Jackson were pretending.
“Will you see him again?” the Viscount queried, and Eloise nodded.
“I’m invited to dine with him and his uncle tomorrow evening,” she affirmed.
Jackson issued the invitation as she and Delphine climbed out of the carriage the evening before. Whilst the prospect of encountering Jackson’s uncle was a terrifying one, Eloise knew it was necessary if their ruse was to be believed. Her father looked at her and raised his eyebrows.
“I understand he’s quite a formidable character. Hasn’t he provided some clause by which the Duke doesn’t inherit his fortune until he finds a wife? It’s most extraordinary. A hereditary duke kept a pauper until matrimony,” he muttered, shaking his head.
“That’s what I understand, Father,” Eloise murmured.
She did not want her father to dwell on this fact for too long. He may begin to wonder as to an ulterior motive in Eloise and Jackson’s courtship, but he merely passed a comment about a difficult evening ahead and said no more. Much of that day was spent on preparations for the dinner. A carriage was to arrive for her the following evening at six O’clock to drive her to the London residence Jackson shared with his uncle on the far side of Hyde Park. Once again, Eloise realized how little she knew of the man she was courting. He was an enigma, and she was looking forward to learning more about his family and his uncle.
* * *
“Peacock blue suits you better, My Lady. Don’t you think?” Delphine held up a dress for Eloise to consider.
“I was going to wear the peach dress,” she replied, and the maid nodded.
“As you wish, My Lady. You look pretty in whatever you wear.” Delphine took out the dress Eloise referred to from the wardrobe.
It was very pretty, with the subtle color of peach, the lace trim at the sleeves and the elegant neckline.