I am not quite sure what I expected of Del. I definitely did not predict that he would show up at our home as we were preparing to leave and request to take me in his carriage. Naturally, Mother said yes, ignoring my protests that it would not be completely seemly.
"There would be no issue with us riding alone if we were engaged," Del pointed out as he settled on the seat next to me, ignoring the empty seat on the other side.
"If this is how you plan to press your suit, we will never be engaged," I promised grumpily.
He frowned. "You are upset that I took you from your family?"
"No. I am upset that you are acting like we are engaged even though we are not, because if you continue doing things like this, societal expectations will force us into an engagement."
His frown deepened. "That was not my intention in taking you to the ball in my carriage. I just wanted to spend time with you."
"And protect me?"
"Perhaps. Is it so wrong that I want to protect someone I care for?"
"I just do not know how to tell the difference between protecting me because you feel responsible for my being in danger and protecting me because you genuinely care about me as a person."
"The former would be satisfied with a hired guard. The latter involves a lot more of this." He pulled me into his arms for a quick, gentle kiss. Pulling away, he brushed his fingers down my jaw. "You are so beautiful."
"Thank you," I whispered, blushing. "You are looking very dashing, yourself."
He smiled. "I know how to get about in society when I must."
"You know, you really need not put yourself out for my sake. If you have no desire to attend social engagements, I doubt I will be targeted anywhere so public. And my family is always with me."
He cupped my face with one large, calloused hand. "Ah, but you forget. I am coming to the ball to fight off my competition."
I laughed. "I thought you were teasing. You have no competition."
"None?" he asked, staring intently into my eyes. "Surely I cannot be the only man seeking to win your heart."
I blushed and looked away, embarrassed as I realized what I had given away. "There are certainly others who are trying to capture my attention."
"Ah," he said, catching my meaning. "Then you are saying that I have an edge on the others?"
"Well, you did steal my first real kiss." I kept my tone light, but he seemed to realize that my feelings were not light.
"Your first REAL kiss?"
"And second and third, as well."
"What defines a real kiss?"
"A kiss that I participate in."
"So you have never kissed another man, though you have been kissed?"
"Yes."
"Are you going to tell me about the kiss that was not real?"
I shook my head. "No, not tonight."
"When"
"Maybe not ever," I whispered. It was a painful memory, one I had never shared before.
Before he could press me again, the carriage slowed to a gentle stop. A footman opened the door and Del bounded out the door, turning to assist me down.
We were hustled along in the line of people flowing into the grand mansion. "Pretentious," I corrected myself under my breath.
Del somehow heard above the din around us and chuckled. "I will not disagree with you." He tucked my arm through his and we entered the house, stopping to put off his coat and my silver cloak. I patted my hair, making sure the elegant confection of curls and braids that Mirella had fashioned was still in place, then turned back to my escort.
He was watching me with his mouth slightly ajar and his eyes wide. I smiled shyly and stepped to his side. I was wearing a new style of dress tonight, one with a high neckline but no real sleeves. Instead, the top of the dress fastened around my neck, leaving my shoulders and upper back bare, but thoroughly covering my front.
The purple material swirled around my feet. The top was covered with silver lace and fitted to me like a glove. I knew it was flattering, but I had not expected it to affect Del so strongly.
"I am not sure how I feel about sharing your beautiful shoulders with everyone else," he murmured next to my ear as we rejoined the line moving through the halls to the ballroom. I rolled my eyes.
"That was rather overdone. I do not expect flattery from my escort."
"That was not flattery, Jen. It was a warning."
I looked up at that and found his dark eyes full of fire. I could not tell whether it was anger or a different kind of heat.
"I am a fiend of jealousy. I have never courted a woman before, so it has never been a problem."
"Are you saying it will be a problem?"
"If I catch another man making inappropriate advances, he will absolutely have a problem on his hands."
I blushed and giggled. "I doubt that will be a problem. I am not often the recipient of inappropriate advances, except from you." Again I had to push down the memory of another man, a dark room, rough hands and lips.
His words brought me back to the present. "My advances have never been inappropriate."
"So you would not mind if another man kissed me as you did earlier?"
His answering growl made me shiver, partly in fear, partly in delight. "I believe it would be best for everyone if you saved your kisses for me."
"For how long?"
"For the foreseeable future," he ground out. Noting the teasing twinkle in my eyes, his glare dissolved into an amused smile. "You little minx. You are going to lead me in quite a merry chase."
"That is the plan. It seems to me the best way to manage a wild beau is to always have the upper hand."
"We shall certainly see who is managing whom, dear heart," he promised with another of his scorching looks.