Free Falling Into Bed with a Duke (Hellions of Havisham) by Lorraine Heath

room, sat on the sofa, and searched Minerva’s face. “How are you this morning?”
    Minerva smiled. “Quite fine.”
    With a huge sigh, Grace slumped back against the cushions. “Thank God. I hardly slept a wink last night thinking of you going to that decadent place. I’m so glad you didn’t.”
    “But I did.”
    Grace sprang forward. “So it’s done?”
    The heat rushed to Minerva’s face, nearly scalding her with its intensity. “Not exactly. Seems I didn’t have the nerve for it after all.”
    “But you went.” Grace glanced around as though she expected to see spies hidden behind the plants. She lowered her voice to a whisper. “What was it like?”
    Minerva laughed. “After all your warnings, you have the audacity to ask?”
    “I’m curious. I would never go there, but now I have an opportunity to hear all about it.”
    “That’s really why you’re here, isn’t it? Curiosity, not concern that I might be suffering through misgivings.”
    “I’m here first and foremost for you. I’ve been so worried that you’d select someone who wasn’t kind or someone who cared only about his own needs. I didn’t want you to have a selfish lover.”
    She didn’t think Ashebury would have been selfish. If his kiss were any indication, he would give far more than he received.
    “So come on, Minnie, don’t be cruel. Satisfy my curiosity. Tell me about this wicked, wicked place.”
    She almost suggested Grace ask her brother, but she was obligated not to reveal who all she’d seen there even if it was someone she considered family. “It wasn’t what I expected. It was all very proper. People stood around talking. Ladies masked for secrecy. Men not caring who knew they were there.”
    “Who was there?”
    “I can’t say.”
    “Because you didn’t know them?”
    “I took a vow not to reveal any identities. The woman in charge wears an emerald green gown and matching mask. Very flashy. You have to reveal yourself to her so she knows who everyone is. She’ll come after you if she learns you’ve spoken the name of anyone there. I don’t know how she would manage to find out, but I believed her.”
    “But you can tell me. I won’t tell.”
    “I really can’t.”
    “Well, you’re no fun.”
    “So more than one gentleman has told me.”
    “Minerva, I didn’t—”
    She squeezed Grace’s hand. “I know. I’m just being difficult. And the truth is that I’m not bothered by the myriad of ways that gentlemen find me lacking. It doesn’t matter what everyone else thinks as long as I’m true to myself—as my mother, bless her, constantly reminds me. Last night, for the first time, I actually believed it. It was quite liberating.” While everything that happened there was not to be spoken of, this was Grace, her dearest friend. “I caught a very fine gentleman’s attention.”
    Grace’s eyes widened as she leaned forward. “Who?”
    Minerva scowled.
    “Right then. You can’t tell me. Was he handsome?”
    “Why does everyone care about looks? But, yes, exceedingly so.”
    “Charming?”
    “Very.”
    “Nobility?”
    “Yes.”
    “Dark hair?”
    Laughing at her friend’s blatant attempt to deduce who he might have been, she shook her head. “Enough, Grace. I’m not going to play your little game. You’d never guess anyway. But I will tell you that he was immensely intriguing. He spoke about the beauty of the human form, in particular my legs.”
    “He saw your legs?”
    “Well, not the entire leg. Just up to my calf. But when I arrived, I had to change into this silky bit of nothing, very similar to what is depicted in paintings that reflect the women of Rome. It’s extremely easy to get into and, I suppose, exceedingly easy for a gent to get you out of. While I was almost completely covered except for my arms and décolletage, it didn’t leave a lot to the imagination. No corset, no petticoats. I rather liked it, actually. It was light as a feather. But I suppose its purpose is