“What?” Selena head snapped in the direction Theodosia indicated with her chin. She had thought with her being confined to the house by her brother, he would drop his guard.Just a bit. Just so that she could steal a moment away from him. “Curse it.”
Between the two of them—he with his family curse and she with his merciless presence—who was really more cursed?
Their gazes locked.
A shiver rippled along her nerve endings. She hadn’t glimpsed his brawny body in three days, but she’d heard the low timbre of his voice those three mornings as she passed the dining room. However, she hadn’t had the nerve to enter, their previous conversation too fresh in her mind.
Never wear them again.
The hair on the back of her neck rose. Every instinct pulled at her to approach him, but she remained frozen in place, unable to do anything but stare at him.
Amongst all her brother’s friends, he was the only one not easily dismissed from her mind. It was those eyes. They weren’t overly intense or outrageously indifferent. They were just... perceptive. In contrast, all other gazes appeared rather flighty. That was probably why her infatuation with him at the time had lasted as long as it did.
But it hadn’t lasted.
Right.
All men were hound dogs, and that perceptive gaze had never remained on her long. Until now. Up until he’d been assigned as her guard dog, that gaze seemed to settle on older women. He had once even said so himself, and she had fostered a habit of giving her brother and his friends a wide berth when they were drinking at home after overhearing that snippet of conversation.
Ignorance meant bliss in some ways. But it was rather annoying at the moment. Should she tell him about the club’s crest? He might be of more help if she placed a bit more trust in him.
“Are you all right?” Theodosia waved a hand before her eyes. “You’ve gone from pale to light pink to bright red.”
Selena looked to Theodosia and patted her cheeks, breaking the spell woven by his gaze. “It must be the temperature of the room.”
“If you say so,” Theodosia said lightly. “What were we speaking about again? Oh, right, the cardroom.”
Yes, the cardroom. “Old women and lonely wives aside, don’t men like to play cards attheirclubs? It makes perfect sense.”
“I suppose it’s not the worst assumption.” Theodosia tapped her finger on her chin. “Cardrooms are usually where all the secret deals are made. At the very least it’s worth looking into.”
“Secret deals? How do you know that? Wait, you don’t have to answer that. Your mother.” Selena pondered for a moment. “Since your mother is so knowledgeable, would she perhaps know about family curses?”
“Family curses?” Theodosia openly scrutinized her as though she were a newfound farm animal. “Why on earth would you want to know about such things? Do not tell me the Savages are cursed?”
“Not us, no.” Selena peeked in Warrick’s direction, his gaze still on her. Her cheeks heated up again. “It’s him. He’s the one with the family curse. In exchange for his assistance to find the club, I must help him gather information on curses.”
Laughter curled Theodosia’s lips. “You? Help a man break a curse?”
“What’s with your tone?”
“Oh, no, nothing. It’s all rather interesting, is all.”
Selena cut her a look. “And I’m not helping him break the curse. He can break it himself. As I said, I am gathering information.”
“In that case, I might know of someone who can help you with this topic.”
“You do?” Delight filled Selena. “Who?”
“An acquaintance with more knowledge on these sorts of things. I shall send you his details in the morning.”
“Splendid.” At least she wouldn’t have to read a book on the matter. Not that she would have gone that far—curses weren’t real. It surprised her that Warrick would even entertain such a possibility.
“Shall we head over to the cardroom?” Theodosia asked. “You’ve put me in the mood to play a few hands.”
Selena cast one last look in Warrick’s direction before nodding. “Very well, but keep your eyes peeled for any clues.”
*
