"And what might that truth be?" Caine asked. "That he's actually a little civilized after all?" "How did
you guess?"
"From the way you turned out," he explained. "If he was such a barbarian, you wouldn't have become such a lady." She beamed with pleasure. "It is good of you to notice," she whispered. "Uncle is very intelligent." "He's the one who taught you how to read, isn't he?" She nodded. "It proved fortunate, too, for his eyes started failing him. At night I would read to him." "From memory?"
"Only when there weren't any books available. Harry stole as many as he could get his hands on."
"The way he speaks," Caine interjected. "That's all part of his deception, too, isn't it?"
"Yes," she admitted. "Appearances, after all. He doesn't even use proper grammar when we're alone, fearing he'll slip up in front of his men, you see."
Caine rolled his eyes. "Your uncle became a bit of a fanatic about his position as leader, didn't he?"
"No," she argued. "You misunderstand. He enjoys the deception, Caine." She continued to talk about
her uncle for another few minutes, then turned the topic to some of her most memorable escapades. Because he'd promised not to get angry, Caine hid his reaction. His hands were shaking, though, with
the true need to wring good old Uncle Harry's neck, by the time she'd finished telling him about one particularly harrowing incident.
He decided he didn't want to know all about her past after all. "I think I'd better hear these stories one
at a time."
"That's what I'm doing," she countered. She paused to smile at the servant when the woman placed a
tray of crusty rolls in front of her, then turned back to Caine. "I am telling them one at a time."
Caine shook his head. "I mean I want you to tell me one every other month or so. A man can only take so much. I promise you I'll be thinking about the story you just told me a good long while. Hell, Jade,
I can feel my hair turning gray. You could have been killed. You could have…"
"But you aren't getting angry," she interjected with a smile. "You did promise."
Caine leaned back in his chair. "I think we'd better change the subject. Tell me when you realized you love me," he commanded. "Did I force you?"
She started to laugh. "You can't force someone to love you," she said. "I believe, however, that when
I read your file, I was already falling in love with you."
She smiled over the astonished look on his face. "It's true," she whispered.
"Jade, I'm not very proud of some of the things I had to do," he said. "You did read the entire file, didn't you?"
"I did," she answered. "You were determined, methodical too, but you weren't inhuman about it. In every accounting, you were always so… reliable. People depended upon you and you never let them down. I admired that quality, of course. And then I met you," she ended. "You were a little like McKindry, because you snuck up behind me and stole my heart before I even realized what was happening. Now you must tell me when you realized you loved me."
"It was during one of our many heated debates," he said.
It was her turn to look astonished. "We never debated," she said. "We shouted at each other. Those
were arguments."
"Debates," he repeated. "Loud ones but debates all the same."
"Are you telling me you fell in love with my mind first?"
"No."
She laughed, delighted by his honesty. "Shouldn't your man be here with us? It might look suspicious
if he stays in the country, Caine."
"Sterns never comes to London with me," he explained. "Everyone knows that. Sterns hates London, says it's too cluttered."
"I miss him," she admitted. "He reminds me of you. Sterns is most opinionated-arrogant, too."
"No one understands why I put up with him," Caine said. "But if the truth were out, I don't understand why he puts up with me. He's been like a shield to me, especially when I was a lad. I did get into quite a bit of mischief. Sterns softened the telling, though. He pulled me out of certain death several times, too."
Caine told her a story about the time he almost drowned in a boating incident and how Sterns had saved him only to toss him right back in the waters to learn the proper way to swim. Both of them were laughing by the time Caine ended the tale, for the picture of the sour-faced butler in full clothing swimming alongside his small charge was quite amusing.
Jade was the first to grow somber. "Caine, did you and your friends come to any conclusions last night after I went to bed?"
"The man Richards followed home was Willburn. Do you remember Colin told us that Willburn was his director and how he confided in him?"
"Yes, I remember," she replied. "Nathan said he never trusted Willburn. Still, my brother doesn't trust anyone but Harry and Colin, and me, of course."
"Colin was wrong, Jade. Willburn did work for the Tribunal. He's now employed by the one remaining member."
Before she could interrupt him, he continued. "We're pretty certain William Terrance was the second man. Since he's dead, and your father too, that only leaves the third. Richards is convinced Terrance
was called Prince. That leaves Ice unaccounted for."
"How will we ever find Ice? We really don't have much to go on. The letters were very sparse with personal information, Caine."
"Sure we do, sweetheart," he replied. "In one of the letters, there was mention that Ice didn't attend Oxford. Also, both Fox and Prince were surprised when they met Ice."
"How did you gather that bit of information?"
"From one of the remarks made by your father to Prince in the third… no, the fourth letter."
"I remember," she countered. "I just didn't think it significant."
"Richards believes Ice could very well be a foreigner."
"And you?" she asked.
"I'm not convinced. There are other important clues in those letters, Jade. I just need a little more time
to put them all together."
She had complete faith in his ability to sort it all out. Once Caine put his mind to a problem, he would be able to solve it.
"Richards put a watch on Willburn. He thinks he might lead us to Ice. It's a start, but I'm not putting my money on it. We have other options, too. Now, sweetheart, I don't want you to leave this town house,
no matter what the reason, all right?"
"You can't leave either," she returned. "Agreed?"
"Agreed."
"Whatever will we do to keep ourselves occupied?" she asked with as much innocence in her tone as
she could manage.
"We could do a lot of reading, I suppose," he drawled out.
She stood up and went to stand behind his back. "Yes, we could read," she whispered as she wrapped
her arms around his broad shoulders. Her fingers slipped inside the top of his shirt. "I could learn how
to embroider," she added. "I've always wanted to learn that task." She leaned down and nibbled on his earlobe. "But do you know what I want to do most of all, husband?"
"I'm getting a fair idea," he answered, his voice husky with arousal.