“He’ll no doubt attempt to interrogate both of you,” Joan warned. “He will be very polite about it, of course, but he is a very clever man. Be careful what you say if you wish to keep your secrets.”

Vale materialized out of the crowd at that moment and stopped in front of them. Lavinia studied him covertly and saw that there was another way in which he differed from Tobias in terms of physical appearance.

Vale had the haunting eyes of a romantic artist.

“Joan.” He bent gracefully over her gloved hand. “It is good to see that you are getting out into Society again. It has been too long.”

“Good evening, Vale.” She retrieved her hand with a smooth motion. “Do you know my friends? Mrs. Lake and Mr. March.”

“March.” Vale nodded once in Tobias’s direction and then he turned to Lavinia. “A pleasure, Mrs. Lake.”

When he took her hand she noticed the odd iron ring he wore. It was shaped like a small key. She tried for a truly charming smile and added a little curtsy for good measure.

“Lord Vale.”

He did not look particularly dazzled, she noticed. He merely bowed briefly over her hand and turned back to Joan.

“May I have the honor of a dance, madam?” he said.

Joan stiffened ever so slightly. The tiny hesitation was almost undetectable. If Lavinia had not been watching her she would have missed it altogether.

“Yes, of course,” Joan said, recovering quickly.

She flicked a puzzled glance back at Lavinia as Vale led her away.

Lavinia watched the pair move out onto the dance floor.

“Well, so much for being interrogated,” she said. “It appears that the only thing Vale had in mind was a dance.”

“Don’t be too certain of that. As Joan said, Vale is subtle.” Tobias clamped a hand under her arm. “Come, there is nothing more we can do at the moment and I find myself in need of some fresh air.”

“It is a bit stuffy in here, is it not?”

She allowed him to steer her toward the French doors that opened onto the terrace. They walked out into the cool of the spring night.

Tobias did not stop at the low rock wall. He kept going, drawing her with him down the stone steps into the lantern-lit garden.

They strolled along a path toward the darkened conservatory attached to the rear of the mansion. The windows of the large greenhouse glinted in the moonlight.

Lavinia pondered the surprise and uncertainty that she had seen in Joan’s eyes when Vale had led her out onto the floor. There were very few things that could fluster Joan, but Vale’s invitation to dance had come close to achieving that rare state.

“I wonder if perhaps you and Joan are both wrong about the reasons for Vale’s presence here tonight,” she said.

“What the devil makes you think we might be wrong?”

“It is simply that I gained the distinct impression that Vale’s goal was to dance with Joan, not to find out how our investigation was proceeding.”

“Vale is an expert at concealing his goals. Joan is equally skilled at the business, if you ask me.”

She blinked at the unmistakable thread of irritation in his voice. “You are annoyed.”

“No.”

“Yes, you are. I can sense it quite clearly. You are in an ill temper. What on earth is the matter? Are you irritated because Vale did not attempt to question us?”

“No.”

“Tobias, really, you are being very difficult.”

He came to a halt in front of the conservatory and opened the glass-paned door.

Lavinia hesitated when she saw that he intended to enter. “Do you think we should go inside?”

“If the owner had wanted no one to enter, he would have seen to it that the door was kept locked.”

“Well, I suppose-”

He tugged her gently into the humid atmosphere and shut the door. The heavy scents of rich earth and growing things teased her senses. There was enough moonlight streaming through the myriad windows to reveal the ranks of palms, ferns, and other plants arrayed in neat rows. She smiled as the pleasant warmth enveloped her.

“Isn’t this spectacular?” She surveyed the heavy foliage and started slowly down an aisle, pausing here and there to sample the fragrance of a flower. “I imagine that this is how it feels to stroll through a jungle. I trust we will not encounter any snakes or wild beasts.”

Tobias fell into step beside her. “I would not depend on that if I were you.”

“Your mood is not improving.” She stroked a long, glossy leaf.

“Do not get too close to that.” Tobias pulled her back from the plant. “I do not recognize the species and there is no point taking chances.”

She swung around, exasperated. “I have had quite enough of your surly mood. Tell me what is wrong, Tobias.”

He looked at her, eyes dark and brooding in the moonlight. “If you must know, when I watched Vale lead Joan out onto the floor, I was suddenly overtaken with an overpowering desire to ask you to dance.”

She could not have been more astonished if he had suddenly announced that he could fly.

“You wished to dance with me?”

“I don’t know what the bloody hell came over me.”

“I see.”

“I have never taken much interest in dancing,” he continued. “And with this damned leg of mine, that sort of exercise is entirely out of the question. I would make a complete fool of myself on the floor.”

In the distance she could hear the muted strains of the waltz emanating from the ballroom. A deliciously exhilarated sensation swirled through her. She smiled at him in the shadows.

“There is no one to see you make a fool of yourself in here,” she said softly.

“Except you.”

“Ah, but I am already well aware that you are not a fool, and there is nothing that you could say or do that would make you out to be one in my eyes.”

He looked at her for a long moment. Then, very deliberately, he reached for her and drew her into his arms.

And for the first time in their tumultuous acquaintance, they danced together.

His steps were awkward and careful, as if he was afraid he would accidentally step on her toes or topple her to the floor of the greenhouse. But that did not matter, she thought. What mattered was that there was music in the distance and moonlight glinted on his dark hair. What mattered was that the air around them was heavy with the exotic fragrances of flowers that had come from far-off climes. What mattered was that she was in his arms and that time was standing still for a precious little eternity.

It was a scene of metaphysical enchantment, a scene that could have come straight from the pages of one of her precious books of poetry.

Tobias moved with her in a slow, measured tread down the aisle of tropical plants. She rested her head against his broad shoulder. The waltz was faerie music. The moonlight was liquid silver. The lush foliage that surrounded them was a magical garden.

When they reached the small bower at the far end, he stopped and tightened his hold on her. He kissed the curve of her bare shoulder.

“Tobias.”

A delicious urgency swept through her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and raised her mouth to meet his.

His kiss left her breathless.

He eased the tiny sleeves of her gown down her arms, drawing the low-cut bodice to her waist. His powerful, competent hands cradled her breasts with astonishing tenderness. She felt his thumbs brush across her nipples and shivered in response.

He lowered himself onto the padded bower bench and pulled her down astride his thighs. His hands slid up her legs under the billowing satin folds of her gown. When he cupped her gently with his palm, her head fell back.

He slid one finger along her cleft, resting it against the small, tight nubbin at the top. She breathed deeply and moved against his hand.

He unfastened his trousers. She reached down and encircled him with her fingers. Her thumb glided across the broad, straining tip of his shaft.