A big problem.
“Lady Rosilee,” Blake said abruptly, glancing toward the inn. “What do you make of her?”
Bishop followed his gaze, his expression turning thoughtful. “Smart, quick-witted. Not easily intimidated. But there’s something... else about her. Like she’s hiding something.”
Blake nodded, his mind replaying the brief interactions they’d had so far. She possessed an air of confidence, yes, but it was tempered by something else, something deeper and more guarded. She was just as intriguing as she’d been all those years ago. “Does she really not remember me...?”
“You think she’s pretending not to know you?”
“I’m not sure,” Blake said, a note of frustration creeping into his voice. “She looks at me as though she’s never seen me before. And yet, she is traveling with me with such unguarded trust.” One of the perplexities of the woman, being both guarded and unguarded at the same time.
Bishop shrugged. “She doesn’t have anyone else to help her.”
Still, “She should find me suspicious.”
“Oh, don’t worry, old Duke, I think a part of her does.”
Blake scowled at the man. “She should find memoresuspicious. Every part of her should find me suspicious.”
“Then you would have had a hell of a time trying to help her.”
True... “I just don’t understand,” Blake muttered. “She knows the title I bear, and yet she can still smile at me.”
“I smile at you all the time.”
“You are not her.”
“And what a good thing that is,” Bishop muttered. “No matter what, there’s an honesty to her, a genuine quality that’s hard to fake.”
Blake remained silent, his mind turning over Bishop’s words. Honesty. Genuine. Could those words truly apply to people who were practically strangers? Bishop clapped him on the shoulder, breaking his train of thought. “In any case, we’ve got more pressing matters to deal with. Like getting you out of this place before your face swells up even more.”
Blake scowled at the man. But he was right. “Agreed. The sooner we’re away from here, the better.”
He turned his attention back to the carriage, checking the harnesses and making sure everything was in order. Despite Bishop’s infuriating comments meant to lighten his mood, which never worked, there was an undercurrent of tension, a sense that they were racing against time. Baston was still out there, still a threat, and they couldn’t afford to linger even if the man had set out before them.
“Here they come,” Bishop said, nodding toward the inn’s door.
Blake looked up to see Rosilee and Ben stepping out into the morning light. Her hair was pulled back in a simple braid, her dress plain but elegant. So damn beautiful. Almost breathtaking. She looked tired but determined, her eyes scanning the yard as though expecting trouble at any moment.
“Can’t tear your eyes away from the sight, heh?”
Blake cursed at Bishop.
The day had only just begun, and he already wanted to throttle the man.
Chapter Six
Rosilee snuck anotherpeek at the duke, but this time, instead of getting his side profile, his gaze met hers head on. She blinked, her lips threatening to twitch into a smile. Good thing Mr. Bishop and Ben were up front with the driver, or she might have had trouble keeping a composed face with them teasing the poor man, too.
“Laugh if you want,” he said bluntly, broodingly. “I know you’ve wanted to do so since this morning.”
Her eyes roamed over his swollen face with a hint of sympathy. Honestly, she wanted to give a good chuckle, but thought it more prudent to press her lips together and resist. “I do not wish to laugh.”
“Little liar.”
“How are you feeling?” she asked instead. “You’ve stopped sniffling, at least.”
The man grimaced. “I’ve been better. But nothing a few hours away from that cursed cat won’t eventually cure.”
