Always. Krystle Triplett

      2

      Tristan

      She was magnificent. As they continued to stare at each other, everything faded away till it seemed as if they were the only two people in the ballroom. He became lost in her eyes. Eyes that appeared to be blue from this distance, but he couldn’t be sure until he got much closer to her. As he stared, her skin started to flush. First, staring on her chest then slowly spreading up over her neck till it finally covered her cheeks with a rosy glow. The longer they gazed at each other, the deeper and more becoming her blush got.

      Suddenly he noticed her brother lean over and whisper something in her ear. Her expression changed immediately. The color drained from her face, and her eyes, her entire body, looked as if it froze over. She broke the stare and turned resolutely away from him. Now that their eye contact was broken, Tristan looked over at William. His best friend was regarding him with narrowed eyes and a clenched jaw. Apparently, William was not very happy with the way Tristan had fixated on his younger sister. He felt he was correct in keeping them apart. He probably was because Tristan was determined to talk to her now.

      “By Jove, she sure is something,” said Douglas, awe in his voice.

      Tristan looked around to see that he wasn’t the only one staring at her. Something that he found he didn’t care for at all. “Wipe up the drool boys,” he forced out through clenched teeth. “And, Hale, you look as if you are about to start spouting poetry. Get it together, man!”

      “Unfortunately,” said Douglas, with his eyes still following the night’s newest arrival, “my cousin James always had the artistic ability in our family. I’m afraid my poetry wouldn’t be any good, but with her looks, by god I’d try.” They all laughed and turned back around toward each other, forming their loose circle again. The conversation then drifted toward musical abilities and who would have the best voice of the group. Tristan made sure he still faced the girl. He just couldn’t take his eyes off of her.

      “What’s her name?” he said, not even caring that he interrupted some joke Harold was making. His focus was completely on her.

      “I don’t recall,” said David, a thoughtful look on his face. “I think it has to do with flowers or some such thing. Rose, or Violet. No, it was Lily. Yes, that was it. Lily.”

      “Lily,” breathed Tristan, making it sound almost like a prayer. At that moment, she looked over at him again. Her eyes narrowed when she saw that he was still watching her. He gave her a slow smile; one he knew would make most young ladies blush. It was a knowing smile, one filled with the promise of all kinds of wicked things. She took a deep breath, he could see that from here, then she forcibly turned her head.

      So, it was obvious William had said something to her about him. Whatever he had told her, it obviously didn’t reflect well on him, judging by her cold attitude. Well, he wasn’t going to let that stop him. Somehow, someway, she was going to be his.

      As he started to take a step toward her, a small form blocked his way. He looked down into the furious eyes of Lady Dashwood. He was surprised by her sudden appearance; he had actually completely forgotten she even existed. “Ah, my dear, if you will excuse me, I see a friend with whom I must speak.” He started to walk past her, but she stayed in his path.

      “Do you think me a fool,” said Sabrina, anger in her voice. “I can see the way you are staring at that girl…like some bitch in heat. If you think I’m going to allow you to go over there and—”

      “Allow me?” growled Tristan. “Madam, if you think you can dictate with whom I talk and when, then you are sadly mistaken. Now as I said, if you would be so kind as to step aside, I see someone else I need to converse with.”

      “If you leave me standing here, Tristan, then I will never forgive you,” she said, her face getting red. “We will be over!”

      “Alas, my dear,” said Tristan with a bow, “if that is what you desire, then so shall it be.” With that he swept around her and his slack jawed group of friends, heading toward the edge of the ballroom where Lily and William were standing. Already there was a group of admirers hanging around them. As Tristan made his way across the room, he tried to catch her eye again. She seemed to be making it a point to look anywhere but at him. Finally, he reached their group, but before he could break into it, William stepped into his path.

      “What do you think you are doing?” asked William, a hand raised up to push Tristan back slightly so that the two of them didn’t run into each other. “What are you even doing here? I didn’t honestly think you would bring a woman like Lady Dashwood to a place like this.” As he talked, he slowly walked forward, forcing Tristan to step back.

      “Good to see you too, my friend,” replied Tristan, a forced smile on his lips. “How did you know that Lady Dashwood would be in my company?” Seeing the slight look of guilt on the other man’s face, he realized what his friend had done. “Ah. So you sent my mistress over to my house, hoping it would keep me home all night. My, my, you really didn’t want me to come tonight.” He tilted his head to the left, and with a slight narrowing of his eyes he asked, “Why ever would you not want me to be here? Did you not want to introduce me to your lovely sister?”

      Tristan could see William grinding his teeth. After a considerable pause, in which he was sure the other man was trying to rein in his temper, William said, “I saw the way you were staring at her. She isn’t another one of your doxies. She is my baby sister and I will not have you—”

      “William? Is everything all right?” As the two men had squared off against each other, Lily had moved closer to them. She grabbed ahold of William’s arm, concern in her expression. Then she faced Tristan, her face taking on a look of contempt. “Sir, I think you are upsetting my brother.”

      Now that her eyes were on him, Tristan could see they were a lovely shade of violet with a dark blue ring around the iris. Witches’ eyes. Very fitting for someone who had so enchanted him. Her eyelashes were a darker color than her hair, so dark that they appeared as if she had used kohl to line her eyes. He could tell there was nothing artificial about her looks though; she was a one-hundred-percent natural beauty. Her lips were pulled into a straight, disapproving line, but he could tell that when she stopped frowning, they would be pleasantly plump. Her chest was also of a pleasing size, spilling over her dresses top in a much more delicate way than Sabrina’s had. Lily’s breasts were the perfect size for him; everything about her seemed to be perfect to him.

      All of his perusal took place in a matter of seconds, but by the time his eyes returned to hers, she was even more upset with him, if her narrowed eyes were an indication. Apparently, her brother didn’t much like Tristan’s lingering glance either. He started to move forward again, but Lily held her brother back with her gloved hand.

      With a formal bow, Tristan made his introduction, since it seemed obvious that William wasn’t about to. “I don’t believe we have been properly introduced. Tristan Bradley, Miss. You must be Will’s sister. I have heard so much about you. Well, not really, since I didn’t know of your existence until about fifteen minutes ago.” At that he glanced at William. “For some reason he was trying to keep you away from me.” He looked back at her and reached for her hand, intending to give her a kiss on the top of it.

      As soon as his hand touched hers it felt like sparks shot straight from her body into his. His eyes widened and he gave a slight jerk, barley noticing she twitched also. When he looked back into her eyes, he saw that they were no longer narrowed in ager but wide with shock. She felt the sparks too. Once he found his voice, he said rather gruffly, “It is a pleasure to meet you.”

      *****

      Lily

      She couldn’t catch her breath. Lily struggled to form a coherent thought. All she could focus on was the look in his crystal blue eyes and the feel of his warm hand in hers. His eyes were so blue that she felt she could drown in them, and his hand was so warm that she could feel the heat start to