Deceived, Yet Drawn to You - Chapter 12

Blair pulled the corners of her mouth up awkwardly, unsure how to respond. Nicoletta stared at her for a moment, then turned and naturally placed her hand on Isaac’s arm.

“By the way, Isaac, about that cigar Lord Middleton brought to the last social gathering.”

“Hm? Oh, that.”

“Didn’t it taste a bit strange? Was it all right?”

“I don’t know. I thought it wasn’t too bad.”

Standing a few steps away, Blair tilted her head slightly. Nicoletta and Isaac were leaning lightly against each other, their arms almost linked, and the series of touches looked excessively intimate.

Nicoletta especially so. As they talked, she kept looking up at Isaac, and even when she didn’t get much of a response, she laughed with a shrug of her shoulders. Her red-painted fingertips slid up along his black suit, and even Blair, who was inexperienced in interactions between men and women, felt there was something clinging about it that went beyond friendly contact.

Listening to Nicoletta’s distinctive voice, Blair felt not only discomfort but also a sense of familiarity rising within her. She blinked, trying to recall where it came from, and was just about to dig into a not-so-distant memory.

“Oh, look who’s graced us with his presence!”

At Isaac’s loud exclamation, Blair snapped back to her senses as if doused with cold water. The hazy surroundings sharpened all at once, as though traced over with a pencil.

There was no need to look around. Even in the dim lighting, she recognized him immediately. It was that man.

Walking leisurely across the lounge, the tall man with his straight posture looked like the star of the room. Perhaps her vague hope of seeing him again had been stronger than she realized, because as she watched the man who drew every eye around him, something stirred deep in Blair’s chest.

Isaac had already come up beside her and, visibly excited, took hold of her wrist.

“Lady Twyford, this way. There’s someone here tonight I really want to introduce you to.”

Should she acknowledge him? Standing before her fiancé, Blair felt the desire to greet him and the desire not to greet him swirl together within her.

“Edmund!”

The man, who’d been exchanging brief words with nearby guests, turned his gaze toward Isaac.

“It’s rare to see your face, so it’s good to see you. Honestly, are you sure you didn’t come to check the club’s ledgers rather than attend my gathering? Lady Twyford, this fellow owns a small share of the Biso clubhouse.”

Instead of replying, the man lowered his eyes slightly and looked at Blair. As she quietly met those gray eyes, Isaac stepped in as if he’d been waiting and introduced them.

“Edmund, this is my fiancée, Lady Blair Twyford. Lady Twyford, this fine gentleman is Edmund of the House of Libert. He and I graduated from the same class, Longwood Academy, class of sixty-eight. We were very close friends back then.”

Blair looked up at Edmund with wide eyes.

Libert. Anyone living in the Kingdom of Genoa would know that name. Wasn’t the charity event where she’d first met him also hosted by the son of the Duke of Libert? And she’d even spent time alone with that very person on the balcony.

There were said to be two sons of the House of Libert. She hadn’t heard much about the eldest, but she knew the rumors surrounding the other all too well.

A bastard born through a concubine. A seasoned businessman who brought renown to the family name. And among the countless rumors, one claimed he was a notorious libertine, infamous for his loose morals.

Which of the Libert brothers was that man, the ones said to be so markedly different from each other? Blair was certain it was the latter. She felt that if she were to peel away that impeccably proper exterior, she might glimpse something profoundly indecent beneath it.

“Lady Blair Twyford.”

Edmund spoke her name in a low voice. It sounded less like a greeting and more like finally testing the words aloud. They were not strangers, and this was already their third encounter.

Even so, Blair thought there was no need to point that out in front of Isaac. She didn’t want to bring up the night she’d been voluntarily trapped on the balcony, or when she’d asked to borrow a cigarette, or that he’d chosen her engagement ring for her.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lord Libert. My name is Blair Twyford.”

With that, Blair lowered her gaze and bent her knees. Avoiding Edmund’s eyes as they fell upon her forehead, she offered a polite greeting as if they were meeting for the first time.

A brief silence passed, and then, all at once, a large hand was extended toward her. Blair flicked her eyes up subtly, aware of Edmund, and gently placed her hand atop his. He bent at the waist and pressed a slow kiss to the back of her hand. Throughout it all, his ash gray gaze stayed fixed on her, never leaving her for a moment.

“Pleased to meet you, Lady Twyford.”

Straightening, Edmund wore a neat curve of a smile at his lips. Blair responded with a short bow and, without drawing attention, brushed at the back of her hand where his lips had touched, as if that might dispel his lingering warmth.

She’d received greetings like that countless times at charity events. Even so, why did the trace of his breath make her chest itch like this? Blair was certain it was because of the way his eyes looked at her, as though rummaging through her thoughts.

The uncomfortable silence, which felt as though it might stretch on, was broken, for better or worse, when Isaac stepped up onto the low dais.

“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for taking the time to attend my party. I’ve prepared a small amusement for your enjoyment.”

Blair stood there blankly and swallowed a sigh. There was still something else to endure. She hadn’t even eaten anything, yet her stomach already felt unsettled. More than anything, Edmund’s presence beside her, lingering without leaving, made her deeply uncomfortable.

“I’ve hidden ten golden keys throughout the clubhouse. The rules are simple. I’ll turn off all the lights, and you’ll search for the hidden keys for two hours using only candlelight. Whoever finds the lucky treasure will receive an invitation to a secret auction house.”

Cheers erupted from all around. The only people there who didn’t look pleased were Blair and Edmund.

“If you wish, you may form pairs of two and help each other. However, fighting over the keys is forbidden. Now, I’ll turn off the lights.”

When the already dim lights in the lounge went out completely, only the echo of jazz music remained. The guests, including Isaac, each took a silver candlestick from the table near the dais and scattered in different directions. With no real choice, Blair picked one up as well. Each step she took made the flickering candlelight sway precariously, as though it might go out at any moment.

She left the wide-open lounge. Not to search for the golden keys, but because she wanted to find somewhere to pass the time while the tedious treasure hunt went on.

If she became Isaac Dorman’s wife, would she have to attend these trivial parties so often? Once or twice might be tolerable, but amusements like this were nothing but dull, and she couldn’t stand them.

Blair crossed the corridor, glanced at the guests diligently searching for treasure in places like the dining room and the smoking room, then climbed the staircase at the end of the hall. As she stood at the landing where corridors stretched out to either side, hesitating over which way to go, a low voice caught her from behind.

“Lady Twyford.”

“…Ah.”

Blair let out a startled breath. The man who cast a long shadow over her was the person she recognized best.

“…Lord Libert, what is it?”

“I was thinking we might pair up.”

Blair looked up at Edmund with a somewhat bewildered expression. He wasn’t even holding one of the candlesticks that had been provided to everyone. A soft laugh slipped out at the sight of the man’s quite serious expression.

“Is that not acceptable? I think we’d work rather well together.”

“It’s not that. It’s just that you don’t seem like you want to look for golden keys at all.”

“That’s exactly why I asked. Your fiancé seems to have vanished somewhere, and you were planning to spend the time quietly in some out-of-the-way place until this tedious game ended, weren’t you?”

Edmund gave a light smile. Having her intentions read so precisely, Blair lost her words and fell silent for a moment.

She’d felt it from the first time they met. This man was similar to her. In a very subtle way, they were alike. They understood that, as members of high society, attending gatherings was unavoidable, yet they shared the habit of occasionally slipping away alone to find somewhere they could breathe.

“If we have the same purpose, then stay with me. I happen to know a place where we won’t be disturbed. As you heard, I own a bit of this place.”