Time After Time (233 page)

Ginger’s dance card filled quickly, as some of the most eligible bachelors claimed their places. The noise of the crowd intensified as more people arrived at the ball and joined in the chatter. The gentlemen surrounding Ginger and Elizabeth kept raising their voices higher and higher, adding to the din. Ginger thought these fine men looked like gnats flying around her body, getting in her face, causing her to squint at them and shoo them away.

Ginger and Elizabeth covered their ears to partially drown out the clamor. Suddenly, everything went blissfully quiet. The air stirred with excitement. The only sound came from the swishing of fabric as people turned to find out the cause of the break in their conversations.

“What is it?” Ginger whispered to Elizabeth. She grabbed the arm of a gentleman near her, who gazed down at her adoringly. She stood on tiptoe, trying to peer over the shoulders of everyone in the room. Then she found her answer. At the landing of the stairs stood two tall muscular gentlemen with broad shoulders and narrow waists, both impeccably dressed in formal attire. One of the men intently searched the room, looking for someone. As his eyes met Ginger’s, he grinned and waved.

“Basil!” She swatted away the hands of the men around her and made her way through the crowded room to him.

Ginger launched herself into Basil’s arms, and kissed him on both cheeks. She was aware that every eye in the ballroom watched them with interest, but she threw convention to the wind and welcomed her older brother warmly as she had always done.

“Oh, I’ve missed you so. When did you arrive? How handsome you are in your formal wear. Have you grown taller in the past year?”

Laughing, Basil took her hand. “One question at a time, Sis. But before we get to the answers, I must introduce you to my good friend from St. Louis.” He clapped his other hand on the shoulder of the man standing next to him. “Ginger, I’d like you to meet Joseph Lafontaine.”

Ginger turned her attention to her brother’s friend. The dark chocolate eyes of the elegant man made her breath catch in her throat. It was him! The mysterious, handsome man on horseback whom she’d met on Broadway during the protest! He raised an eyebrow in recognition before he bowed low and kissed her hand.

“
Enchanté, Mademoiselle
.”

Little pinpricks of delight raced up her arm from the spot where his lips had touched her hand. She could feel each of his fingers as they enveloped hers — even through the cloth of her glove. Her heart pounded faster, as it had the previous day when she watched him handling his horses with quiet authority. She was mesmerized then, and she was now.

She gazed up at him, noting his sculpted cheekbones, tanned skin, and hair that was black as night. The air suddenly felt as though it had been sucked from the room. She could not catch her breath, and when she opened her mouth to reply, no sound emerged. She swayed on her feet. Basil wrapped an arm around her.

“Whoa there. I think you need some air. Come, Joseph. Let’s take her out to the balcony.”

Just what I need
, Ginger chided herself, feeling foolish for exhibiting such a display of weakness.
To go into the semi-darkness with such a magnificent man. I’ve never met a man so strong, handsome, and well-muscled. He is so unlike any other man here tonight. He definitely does not remind me of a gnat!

As they reached the balcony, Elizabeth hurried to her friend’s side. “Ginger, are you all right? I saw you run up the staircase and then suddenly you were being rushed outside!”

Ginger smiled. “I just got a little emotional over the return of my favorite brother. Surely you recognize Basil under all these fine clothes, do you not?”

Elizabeth turned toward the man standing beside Ginger, peering at him closely. “Is it truly you, Bas? You look so different from a year ago.”

Basil grabbed Elizabeth in a big bear hug, sweeping her off her feet. “Lizzie-Beth! I would not have recognized you either, except for your telltale blonde hair. You and Ginger certainly have blossomed into beautiful young ladies. You both are lovely tonight.”

When he released her from his hold and placed her feet back on the floor, she turned to the other member of the group. “You must be Basil’s secret friend. He has taunted us for weeks with your promised appearance, yet we have been told nothing about your background.”

Basil turned to the man beside him. “Let me make the proper introductions. This is Joseph Lafontaine. He joined me on the trip to New York because he has some horses to sell. And, because he’s such a big lug, he acted as my bodyguard during the trip, as I was transporting some holdings from the bank. I could think of no better man to help me than this imposing French-Canadian.”

After acknowledging Joseph briefly, Elizabeth returned her gaze to Basil, and began to bombard him with questions about life in the West
.

Charlotte and George Fitzpatrick arrived on the balcony and halted the girl’s deluge. They hugged and kissed Basil, whom they hadn’t seen in more than a year. As they all returned to the ballroom, the orchestra struck up a waltz.

Ginger pulled on her brother’s arm. “Dance with me, and tell me all about your life on the frontier.”

“Ginger, dear, you already have a young man on your dance card for this number, and he’s coming this way right now,” Charlotte reminded her.

“Oh, bother,” Ginger replied under her breath, as the gentleman who had claimed the dance appeared by her side. “Don’t you dare leave, Basil. I want to talk to you some more about St. Louis.” She turned to her dance partner. “Mr. Gray, I’d like to reintroduce you to my long-lost brother Basil. Bas, you remember Quentin Gray, don’t you?”

The two men shook hands just as the music began.

Ginger took the hand of her suitor and glided out onto the floor with him. Her mother had pounded the rules of society into her head over the last two months so, in keeping with her etiquette training, she smiled up at her partner encouragingly. She watched Quentin Gray’s Adam’s apple bob before he spoke.

“So, Miss Fitzpatrick, remind me again. How long has it been since you’ve seen your brother?”

“He’s been in the West for over a year. He looks completely different. I mean, he was always charming and handsome, but he was rather pasty-faced and not so rugged ... ”

Her voice tapered off when she realized she was describing the same characteristics that Quentin possessed. She cleared her throat and decided to wait for him to ask the next question instead of digging a deeper hole for herself. She glanced around the room while waiting for Quentin to pick up the reins of the conversation, and spied Joseph standing beside Basil.

Her gaze flickered from Joseph to Quentin as she assessed the two men. Joseph had beautiful light brown skin; Quentin’s pale white flesh hadn’t seen sun in months. Joseph’s strong black eyebrows arched above eyes that were like pools of dark chocolate; Quentin’s unruly brows met in the middle over pale blue nondescript eyes. Joseph had lips she wanted to kiss; Quentin’s protruding lips made her skin crawl. Joseph’s touch left her weak in the knees; Quentin’s sweaty palm made her want to pull back. Her head swiveled back and forth as Quentin made no further attempt at conversation and merely moved through the steps of the dance. She thought the waltz would never end. The moment the music stopped, Quentin deposited Ginger back at her mother’s side and quickly walked away.

Ginger turned to her mother in exasperation. “I don’t care if my dance card is filled for the night. I want to talk to Basil. It’s been forever since we’ve seen each other. And we should welcome his friend into our midst, don’t you think?”

“You will have all night to talk to your brother, not to mention the next few months during his visit here with us. It is such a coup to have your card filled so early in the evening of your first ball and you need to honor the requests of these fine gentlemen. Glance around the room and see all the women who are sitting by the walls, unable to find a partner for even one dance. You are an extremely lucky young lady, and I won’t have any of your foolishness. However, you’re right. We should welcome Mr. Lafontaine. I will let you have one dance with him. He’ll replace Halwyn on your dance card.”

A shiver crept up Ginger’s spine. A dance with Joseph! She ducked her head as she replied, not wanting her mother to see her excitement. She willed her voice to be calm as well. “As you wish, Mother. One dance with Mr. Lafontaine. Basil can wait.”

Charlotte and Ginger approached the two men at the edge of the family gathering, Charlotte spoke, “Mr. Lafontaine, we wish to welcome you to our town and into our family. I told Ginger she can have one dance with you this evening.”

Joseph and Basil exchanged glances before Basil smiled slyly. “You’d best do what our mother says, Joseph, if you value your life.”

Joseph took Ginger’s hand, and they took their place among the other couples on the ballroom floor. The crowd hushed as the strings of the violin and harp plucked out a gentle rhythm. As the dancers began moving around the floor, Joseph placed one hand on Ginger’s waist. She gulped and put her hand on his shoulder. And promptly tripped over her feet.

She glanced up at him, horrified. He smiled slightly.

“Calm down,
ma petite
. I will not bite. Just follow my lead.” His voice was soothing.

She took a deep breath and raised her eyes to him again. “That’s exactly what you told me when we met yesterday. ‘Just follow my lead.’”

“And by doing so you were spared the experience of going to jail and missing your ball. How is your arm?”

“Oh, it’s fine. A little Pear’s Almond Bloom was all it took to hide the bruising.”

“And your friend? Have you heard of her fate?”

“No, I read in the paper that she had been arrested, but I haven’t had a moment to myself to talk to her. She gets arrested frequently,” Ginger said with a smile.

Ginger settled into the dance, allowing Joseph to set the pace and the steps. After a few moments, her heart stopped galloping and she risked glancing at him. He was staring straight ahead and didn’t catch her gaze. She lowered her eyes again. What was it about this man that set her heart racing so wildly? Why could she not even steal a glance at him without her legs turning to jelly, making her trip foolishly all over herself? Why could she not think of one thing to say to him, whereas she could take to a soapbox in support of the rights of women and talk to anyone who happened to be willing to listen?

She’d overheard her sisters giggling to each other about how watching gentlemen made them feel, but men just didn’t affect her in the same manner. She cleared her throat as her mother’s rules of etiquette floated through her mind, screaming at her to say something to him, anything.

“This is quite elaborate attire you are wearing tonight.”

Joseph smiled slightly. “Basil told me to pack my good suit, because we were going dancing.”

“How did you and my brother meet?”

“We met in a bar on his first day in St. Louis. I will let him tell you the full story.”

He gazed into her eyes, and her throat suddenly went dry. She ran her tongue lightly over her lips and watched as Joseph’s eyes followed her tongue’s movement. His observation rattled her even more, as she attempted conversation again.

“Did you tell Basil about our previous meeting?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“I assumed you were involved in something you were not supposed to be doing, and telling your brother about it would have tipped your hand. It will remain our secret.”

“Oh.” She fell quiet as she digested this information. Now they were sharing not only a dance, but a secret! She shivered in delight. “I appreciate your concern for my privacy. And, I apologize for nearly fainting when I saw you earlier. You can imagine the scenario that raced through my head. I thought for certain my involvement in the rally was about to be exposed. But, I’m puzzled at my reaction. I’ve never in my life fainted.”

“It is a big night for you, so it is understandable.” His steps were sure as he moved her around the floor.

“Are the horses I saw you with yesterday some of the ones you’ve brought to sell? I’d like to look at them more closely.”

Joseph raised one of his magnificent eyebrows at her. “What do you know of horseflesh?”

“I know how to ride. I’ve been doing so my entire life.”

“And that makes you a qualified expert in the field?”

“I didn’t say I was an expert, for heaven’s sake,” she replied in exasperation. “I was merely making polite conversation.”

“You know, as I was watching you on the dance floor before with your partner, I began to compare you to horseflesh myself.”

Ginger bristled. “How dare you!” She tried to pull her hand away from his, but he held her tightly in place.

“Yes, I thought you were like a thoroughbred, finely boned and high-spirited, and he was a plough horse holding you back.”

“Oh.” Ginger inhaled sharply at his words. She was still struggling for breath as the last strains of the song ended, and he led her back to her family. When Joseph released her hand at the edge of the dance floor, her body deflated like a balloon that had suddenly lost all of its air.

The night continued with Basil and now Joseph, taking to the dance floor as a crowd of eager young ladies circled around them, all with dance cards that suddenly had empty spaces on them. Ginger performed her duty of dancing with each and every man who had claimed a place on her card. She tried to keep track of whom Joseph danced with, but even though he towered over most everyone else in the room, she still lost sight of him in the crowd frequently. She felt dizzy from all the swirling about.

• • •

Several hours later, Joseph watched as the Fitzpatrick family gathered together when the party began to wind down. Basil wandered over to him as he left the dance floor.

“So what do you think of my boisterous family?”

“They are not so different from my people, Bas. A bit pale, perhaps, but nothing else.”

“You’ve been pretty quiet all evening. I thought perhaps meeting most of my family at once was too much. They do have a tendency to overwhelm people.”