Warrick had never been at a loss for how to respond as at that moment. They were both like little children playing tug of war, but neither gaining any ground. He suddenly laughed. “It seems we both have conflicting feelings on the matter.”
Her brows drew together sharply, but then slowly smoothed. A small smile followed. “It seems that you are right.”
He shouldn’t ask, but, “Where does that leave us?”
“I’m not sure.” She lifted her chin, meeting his gaze. “But I do know we made a deal. Shall we continue to honor it?”
“Let me ask you this first: Did you know about the sword and rose crest?”
Her eyes widened.
So she did. “You never told me.” A wild guess formed. “You never told me because you never intended for me to accept the deal, did you?”
“Honestly, at the start, no. I blundered that day. You didn’t allow me to retract my blunder.”
“I see.” So their deal had been an accidental one. “Given all that, you’re still willing to honor the deal?”
“I am.” She scooted to the edge of her seat. “How do you know about the crest?”
Warrick had half a mind to withhold the information. Tease her a bit. He cleared his throat. “I have my ways, and I’m still debating whether it’s in my best interest to continue with our deal. You are certainly quick to change your mind.”
“Fickleness is within the repertoire of a woman’s character, didn’t you know?”
“True, but then glossing over a woman’s fickleness is certainly within the repertoire of a man’s character, don’t you agree?”
She settled back into the seat and stared at him intently. There was something new about her gaze, a cautious assessment that had his nerves prickling.
“It troubles me,” she continued after a moment.
Warrick was taken aback. “What does?”
“The first kiss,” she clarified. “And today’s one. I’m not unbothered.”
“They... bother you, too,” Warrick repeated dumbly, then cursed at himself for sounding like an undeveloped infant who couldn’t yet understand words.
“Yes. Kissing you troubles me. It troubles me that I didn’t push you away. It troubles me that I liked it. It troubles be because no matter what, I can’t seem to escape you, neither can I forget the content of that list boldly claiming space on a scrap of paper written in your scrawl.”
“Selena . . .” Words failed him.
“It troubles me because I trust you and I don’t trust you at the same time.”
The corner of his eye twitched.
He didn’t like that. He didn’t like that at all.
“So since we are both so troubled, let us call what happened between us a transaction between friends,” she suggested. “We are at least that, are we not?”
Warrick exhaled a deep, lengthy breath.Friends.He liked the term better than guard dog. “I’d like to believe that we are.”
“Very good,” she said, reaching for the door of the carriage. “If you decide to continue our deal, let me know.”
Warrick started. How clever of her, turning the tables on him. Whether she meant to or not,teasinghim. Snatching any upper hand away from him. He now sorely doubted he’d ever had it to begin with.
Perhaps he was on a journey of self-discovery as well—Lord knows, it didn’t seemheknew what he wanted either—a questto find out what the devil he was supposed to do with about this curse, about this woman, about this deuced knot tightening in his chest.
He said the only thing he could at the moment. “Send my apologies to Lady Theodosia for intruding.”
Her brow furrowed, and he thought she might say something, but she then she gave a small nod before she left him alone in the carriage and made her way back to the party.
