Roaming hands

I spend most of the day and the evening with Benedict, until he walks me home after the ball and I retreat into the house. Simon takes his coat off and watches me with a little suspicion. "So you have moved on from Anthony to Benedict now? Shall it be Colin next time we speak?"

"I have not moved from anyone to anyone. Myself and Anthony were never a couple, and I enjoy spending time with his brother, is that such a crime? For it was a crime to enjoy the company of someone if the opposite sex, dear brother, you would indeed be a criminal, and an awful one at that." I scoff at him and remove my own coat, watching as Benedict lights himself a cigarette before he walks away. "Is a lady not allowed to have fun?"

"If you were having fun then why did you not invite him inside, hm?"

"You are asking me why he is not spending the evening?"

"Yes. I am. If you enjoy his company so very much then call him back for a nightcap. Insist he stays. That is how you shall make Anthony jealous, hm?" He raises a knowing eyebrow. "I am well aware that Siena did not take a sudden interest in myself for any other reason. And I know that she did not react that way when I rejected her solely because she was disappointed. Whatever did Anthony do to make his two mistresses so angry?"

"Mistress? Oh I shall not have that. I have never even... nothing happened between myself and anthony. I thought it should, I thought that I should go to his apartment and certain things should occur but they did not and I am glad they did not. I thought he was just a rather stressed young man and I almost pitied him and then it became apparent to me that he is nothing but a liar. And he still shall not apologise, and I wish for him to apologise." I sniff, shaking my head and standing tall, I did not like being labelled as a mistress whatsoever and I do not wish for him to say such things again. "I shall go upstairs and I shall go to bed now. Unless you wish to speak to me of whatever it is that is happening between yourself and Daphne, hm? Howcome she seems so suddenly enamoured with the prince when she was not previously seen anywhere other than your arm?"

"Since you are so close with the Bridgerton family, perhaps you shall find the answer to that yourself. Now, go to bed as you said you shall. I am sure you have a big day ahead of you tomorrow, tricking Anthony or making him angry or whatever it is you say that you are doing." He waves his hand absent mindedly so that he might encourage me to go to bed but I do not. I approach the door instead and walk outside, looking down the street to see where it is that Benedict has got to.

"Bennie! Wait, must you continue to walk so quickly? Benedict Bridgerton!" I rush after him and he hears eventually and pauses, grinning widely as I reach him. "What is it that you are grinning at, hm?"

"I just like it when you call me Bennie. Is there something I can help you with this fine evening, my lady?" He keeps the cigarette to his mouth and blows the smoke in my face and grins, before he offers it to me.

"I wondered. You mentioned that you attended parties at Lord Granville's home. Is there one occurring this evening?"

"There is indeed. I was just considering to myself as to whether I shall attend tonight or not. Why? Does my lady wish to attend with me?" He watches me closely, raising both eyebrows as he does, tilting his head ever so slightly to the side. "I thought you said you should not like to come. Too many dark corners where hands are able to roam, that is what you said, my lady?"

"Perhaps I no longer care of those roaming hands. Allow them to roam, I believe." I laugh a little as he beams. He is ever so handsome when he does that. He is ever so handsome no matter what he seems to do... "So? Shall you take me to one of these parties or shall you be too ashamed to be seen with me?"

"Ashamed to be seen with the most beautiful lady in the ton? I shall never be ashamed to be seen with you, my lady. How shall I be embarrassed to be seen with the woman that I intend to be seen with every day for the rest of my life?" His hand is gentle as it strokes soft circles on my thumb, smiling a little. "You are so beautiful."

"You are too much, Mr Bridgerton. You shall even make me blush."

"Yes, well. I hope my compliments shall always make you blush and so I shall continue to do so." His hand now moves to brush a stray strand of hair from my face, before he gently cups my chin. "Now, let us go to this party and we shall drink and we shall smoke and we shall paint and we shall see where those hands end up, shall we?"

"I like the sound of that."

Author's note

Hello!

I'm sorry I've only updated once today! I'm horribly hungover (too many homemade cocktails with my housemates last night) so this has literally taken me all day to write because I canny concentrate on anything

I uploaded the first three chapters of my Colin fic tonight too! It's called: from Paris with love. Go and check it out if you're a Colin fan!

All my love,

Ruby x