“It is,” she assured him.
“There is one thing you should consider before you insist upon continuing our partnership, however.”
“What is that?” she asked, wary now.
“If we continue to work together, there will probably be more fiery storms such as the one that just took place.”
In spite of everything that had happened, she felt her pulse leap again. A hot little thrill chased its way down her spine. She suppressed it with an effort, pulled herself together, and straightened her shoulders.
“We are both strong-willed people, sir,” she said firmly. “I’m certain we will be able to control ourselves.”
“Speak for yourself, Louisa.”
HE ESCORTED HER OUT of the conservatory and back through the gardens. Louisa looked at the lights of the glittering ballroom. Panic shot through her.
“Must we go back inside?” she asked anxiously.
Anthony was grimly amused. “One of the tricks to handling an illicit affair, my sweet, is the ability to face the world and act as if nothing at all out of the ordinary is going on.”
He was right. She raised her chin and straightened her already very straight shoulders.
“Excellent,” Anthony murmured into her ear.
Mercifully, no one seemed overly interested in them. They passed through the crowded room with only a few casual nods and a handful of speculative glances.
When they reached the front hall Anthony called for his carriage. They went down the steps together. A footman opened the door of the vehicle. Escape was at hand, Louisa thought. She allowed herself a cautious breath of relief.
At that moment another vehicle arrived, halting directly behind Anthony’s. The door opened. A man dressed in formal black and white jumped down onto the pavement. He staggered a little and had to grab hold of the edge of the door frame to catch his balance.
He spotted Anthony. Instantly his handsome face contorted with anger.
“If it isn’t Stalbridge,” he said, slurring the s. “I presume this is the little widow from Arden Square I’ve heard so much about lately. Aren’t you going to introduce me to the lady?”
“No,” Anthony said. He kept moving, putting himself between her and the stranger.
Louisa was so shocked by the cold rebuff that she tripped on the last step. She would have gone down if Anthony had not steadied her. He handed her up into the cab.
“Julian Easton’s the name, Mrs. Bryce.” Easton whipped off his hat in a mockery of good manners. “I’m delighted to make your acquaintance. I’d heard the rumor that Stalbridge was amusing himself with a rather unusual female, but this is the first chance I’ve had an opportunity to see the little country mouse.”
Anthony walked toward him. “That’s enough, Easton. You’re drunk, and you’re embarrassing yourself.”
Easton ignored him. He looked at Louisa through the window of the carriage. “You do realize that he’s using you, Mrs. Bryce. You’re not at all his type, you see. The word in the clubs is that he’s fucking some other man’s wife and concealing the fact by hiding behind your skirts.”
Anthony kept walking toward him. At the last instant Easton seemed to realize that he was in danger, but it was too late. Anthony moved with a speed that took everyone, including Easton by surprise. He caught Easton by the sleeve of his coat. At the same time he put out one foot. It was over in a heartbeat. Easton went down very suddenly, landing hard on his rear. He sat on the pavement, looking dazed.
“Arden Square,” Anthony said to the driver as he vaulted up into the cab.
The vehicle rolled forward immediately. Louisa looked back toward the steps of the Lorrington mansion. Julian Easton was still sitting on the pavement. Fury had replaced the confusion and surprise in his face.
She turned around to face Anthony. “Who is Mr. Easton?”
“We belong to the same club.” Anthony’s voice was disturbingly neutral.
“Obviously you are not friends.”
“No,” Anthony said. “We are not friends.”
She could almost hear the door slamming shut on that avenue of inquiry. She decided to try another.
“What was it you did back there that took his feet out from under him in such a sudden manner?” she asked.
“It is a trick I learned in my travels abroad. I find it useful on occasion.”
He turned his attention to the night scene outside the window. He did not say another word until he bid her good night at her door.
“I regret that you were forced to endure that scene with Easton,” he said.
He sounded grim and strangely weary. Sympathy welled up inside her. She touched the side of his face with her gloved fingers.
“There is no need to apologize,” she said gently. “Easton was the one at fault. You have endured a great deal in the months since Fiona died. I hope that we will be able to find the answers you seek, Anthony.”
She turned and went into the house.
22
She came awake with a start, hating the familiar too-rapid beat of her pulse and the breathless sensation that always accompanied the dream. She pushed aside the covers and sat up, needing to walk, to move, anything to work off the unwholesome energy that always followed in the wake of the nightmarish images.
She stood, wincing a little when she felt the tenderness between her legs. Memories of the tryst in the conservatory flooded through her, mercifully pushing aside the worst fragments from the nightmare but bringing with them a new set of fears.
She pulled on her dressing gown, shoved her feet into her slippers, and began to pace. What had she done tonight? How had she managed to become involved in an intimate liaison with the one man who could destroy her? A man who was friends with the Scotland Yard detective who had investigated the murder of Lord Gavin? What on earth had she been thinking?
She stopped, all too well aware of the answer to that question. She had begun to fall in love with Anthony from that very first moment at the Hammond ball when he had looked at her as if he knew her deepest secrets. She was going to lose her heart to him. She knew that as surely as she knew her real name. Perhaps it was already too late.
Do not think about the future. Your love is doomed. You can never tell him the truth about yourself, and you will never be able to marry a man unless you reveal your secret to him. It would not be right.
No gentleman of Anthony’s rank in Society would marry a murderess. If nothing else, he had his family’s good name to consider.
Not that he was likely ever to fall in love with her. He had given his heart to Fiona Risby. He would certainly marry someday—in his position it was expected—but when the time came he would look much higher than a woman with no background or fortune.
Live for the here and now; it is all you will ever have with Anthony.
She halted in the middle of the bedroom, contemplating another glass of brandy. The one she had taken after Anthony had brought her home from the Lorrington house had proved surprisingly effective. She had not expected to sleep tonight, but evidently the dramatic events of the day and evening had exhausted her more than she realized. Another glass might allow her a few more hours of slumber.
She went to the window and stood looking out into the night. The scene was dimly lit by the streetlamps and a pale moon. Directly across from the front door of Number Twelve stood a cloaked figure, her face obscured by a black net veil. She looked like a wraith that had drifted out of the mist-shrouded trees.
The poor, desperate widow who had been forced to turn to prostitution had returned. Louisa was surprised to see her back. Evidently the woman had not yet learned that customers looking to buy what she was selling did not frequent this part of town. Or perhaps she was too frightened to go into the rougher neighborhoods. She was no doubt new to the streetwalking profession.