Free The Marquis Is Trapped by Barbara Cartland Page A

will want to do, if you ask him nicely,” Lady Benson fluttered her eyelashes.
    “We always hold the Hunt Ball at our house,” the Marquis remarked, thinking that it might interest her.  “Our ballroom is quite enormous and we can accommodate more people than the Master can or anyone else in the County.”
    “And who do you like to be dancing with?  Anyone in particular?”
    “I like anyone who can dance well.”
    “Then, as we are going to dance after dinner tonight, I hope you will ask me for a waltz, Oliver.”
    The Marquis thought it was really a rebuke because he had not done so last night.
    Quickly he responded,
    “I should be most honoured and perhaps it would be correct for you to open the proceedings.”
    “That is a very good idea, as once we start dancing everyone will do the same.”
    As the ladies left the dining room, she turned to her husband,
    “Now, Gerald, you are not to stay too long.  We all want to dance and if you gentlemen start reminiscing about cricket, we will all go to sleep waiting for you!”
    Sir Gerald chuckled.
    “I know exactly what you are saying to me, Moira, and we will be with you in twenty minutes, I promise.”
    “I will accept your word,” she replied.  “And I will be very angry if you break it!”
    She walked to the door and all the gentlemen rose to their feet.
    As Lady Benson had predicted, the older gentlemen immediately began to reminisce about the days when they were young boys and grossly exaggerated the scores they had made in various matches.
    It was actually a good half-an-hour later before the gentlemen joined the ladies in the ballroom.
    Lady Benson was there waiting for the Marquis and when he reached her side, she whispered,
    “I have told everyone we are to open the dance and I have chosen a lovely tune I know you will enjoy as much as I do.”
    The Marquis put his arm round her waist and at the same time he was somewhat annoyed to see that Peter had quickly invited the pretty girl he had danced with last night to be his partner.
    ‘I will ask her for the next dance,’ he decided.  ‘She is undoubtedly better on the floor than anyone else.’
    It was only seven dances later that he managed to partner her – she was obviously a great success tonight and enjoying every moment of it.
    As soon as the dance was over, she had promised to dance with the Captain of the County team.
    In fact whilst the Marquis was trying to manoeuvre another dance with her, he found himself once again the partner of Lady Benson.
    “You dance as well as you play cricket,” she smiled at him appealingly.  “And Peter tells me that you are also an outstanding rider.”
    “I am lucky enough to have some very fine horses to ride at home.”
    “I hope that you appreciate ours and I thought that tomorrow we should all ride at about eleven o’clock in the morning.  Then after luncheon is over, we might sail down the river which I am sure you will relish.”
    “It all sounds delightful,” agreed the Marquis.
    “That is what I wanted you to say.  Just as I want you to feel that this is a very special party that I hope you will enjoy more than any of the others you have attended.”
    “I assure that you it is already at the top of my list,” the Marquis answered politely.
    “I have a special horse I would like you to ride.  It is one my husband gave me as a Christmas present last year.  If we can arrange to have a race on our private Racecourse tomorrow morning, I am sure you will win on it.”
    “It sounds marvellous, Lady Benson, and I did not know you had a private Racecourse.”
    “It was my idea and it was only finished about six months ago, but I am sure that it will be easy to arrange all sorts of races and the high jumps are excellent training for young horses.”
    The Marquis was intrigued.
    They talked on about the Racecourse as the dance finished and he found, because they had so much to say to each other, he was now dancing for the third time with his