Free The Duke of Daring (The Untouchables Book 2) by Darcy Burke Page B

couldn’t hear the word but read Miss Knox’s lips, and the glower she delivered Miss Parnell gave the utterance its exclamation point, at least in Andrew’s mind. Miss Knox gave her a little push for good measure.
    Miss Parnell frowned but moved forward. Andrew offered his arm, which she took—in a clearly reluctant fashion if the slowness of her movements were any indication.
    Andrew bowed to Lady Satterfield and Miss Knox. “Ladies.”
    He led Miss Parnell toward the dance floor. “Why didn’t you want to dance with me?”
    “Don’t take it personally. I don’t like to dance with anyone.”
    He glanced down at her. “Not a very good dancer?”
    She sucked in a breath and then laughed. He liked that sound. Almost as much as he liked watching her animated face. “I’m an excellent dancer.”
    He arched a brow at her. “I’ll be the judge of that.”
    She rolled her eyes. “I suppose you’re superior on the dance floor. You don’t seem to have any deficiencies.”
    He grinned, enormously pleased with her observation. “I’m so glad you noticed.”
    The set finished, and the music started for the next dance. A waltz. Andrew couldn’t believe his good luck.
    Miss Parnell’s nostrils flared. It was a slight reaction, but Andrew caught it.
    “What’s the matter?” he asked.
    “I haven’t waltzed very much. I wasn’t paying attention to the sets, otherwise I would’ve told you I couldn’t dance this one.”
    He lightly clasped her waist and took her hand. “I thought you said you were an excellent dancer.”
    She scowled at him as she curled her fingers around his and placed her hand on his shoulder. “You are most ungracious.”
    He laughed again, enjoying her immensely. “Come now, surely if you can shoot a gun with deadly accuracy, you can’t let a waltz defeat you?”
    She squared her shoulders, which drew his attention to her chest. Though she wasn’t well-endowed, she was nicely formed for her frame, and the bodice of her raspberry silk ball gown fit her to perfection.
    “No, I shan’t. I’m invincible, don’t you know?” She gave him a saucy look, and he was completely enchanted.
    They moved with the music, and he was glad he remembered how to waltz. “I have a confession to make. My waltzing experience is rather limited as well.”
    “Charlatan.”
    He laughed again. “That’s ironic coming from you.”
    She lifted a shoulder. “One might say I’m uniquely qualified to recognize deception.”
    He chuckled, enjoying himself far more than he had in a long time. And with a woman. On a dance floor. At a ball. Who would’ve thought that would be possible? He looked down at the woman in his arms and liked what he saw. She wasn’t what he expected, and yet she was everything he’d hoped.
    Hoped?
    Jarred by his thoughts, he focused on sweeping her around the dance floor instead of exploring why he found himself reacting to her in this fashion.
    She took a wrong step, and he had to grip her more tightly to steer her back on course. This brought them closer together, and he caught a nose full of her scent—something floral and spicy at the same time. Intoxicating.
    “What are you even doing here?” she asked. “The Duke of Daring doesn’t extend his adventurous spirit to insipid Society events.”
    “You are well versed in my behavior.” He wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. Neither, he decided. She wasn’t husband hunting. He had nothing to fear from her.
    “There isn’t much to do when you’re stuck along the wall. Aquilla and I used to dream up disaster situations. We assigned roles based on what we knew of people, so it was helpful for us to have a sense of what people are like.”
    “Disaster situations? I’m not sure I follow your meaning.”
    She cocked her head to the side. “As an example, the chandelier might fall to the floor, crushing people and starting a fire. Who would die, who would flee, and who would stay to rescue people?”
    He stared at her, not