Page 25 of Trapped with the Earl of Sin

As they prepared to mount their horses again, Edwin approached Susanna, his expression disarmingly friendly. “You seem quite the accomplished rider, Lady Susanna. Do you often go riding?”

Susanna forced a polite smile, her nerves tingling at his proximity. “Whenever I get the chance. It is a wonderful way to clear one’s mind.”

What was happening here? Edwin never bothered to talk to her, even when he was pursuing Mary. It put her on edge.

But as she glanced at Martin, he nodded encouragingly.

“Indeed,” Edwin agreed, his eyes lingering on her for a moment longer than necessary. “There is something about the open air and the freedom of riding that allows one to think more clearly.”

There was nothing directly threatening about the way he spoke to her, but she most certainly felt uncomfortable in his presence.

Thankfully, that was all Edwin had to say. He turned away from Susanna. Leaving her stewing in a pit of confusion.

What on earth was going on? This situation only seemed to get weirder by the minute, and the wedding had not even taken place yet. There was still so much to do.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Seeing Edwin head out to the clay shooting range with Luke was the one opportunity that Martin had been looking for. He had spent the last couple of days waiting for Edwin to be away from his bedchambers so he and Susanna could finally sneak in there, to see if there was any evidence that they needed to be worried about.

So now that he had seen Edwin heading out for an activity that would likely take him a while, he knew that he needed to find Susanna right away. Martin could not risk doing this alone, he knew that Susanna wouldnotbe impressed if he attempted this without her.

The only problem was he did not know where she was.

He raced around Standen Abbey, trying to find her, but it seemed like she was nowhere. He was even more worried when he found Mary with Luke’s mother, sharing tea in the drawing room. Because they were having such an in-depth conversation,he did not feel like he could interject to ask where Susanna might be. He had to keep looking for her alone…

Relief absolutely flooded him the moment he spotted her.

Susanna was sitting in the library, by the window so the sunlight bathed her in a golden glow, with a book in her hand, her eyes fixed firmly on the page in front of her.

“What are you reading?” Martin asked as he drew nearer to her. He almost forgot what he had come in here for.

Susanna grinned as she turned the book cover his way. “I thought I would giveMansfield Parkanother try. Someone told me that it was better thanEmma,and I wanted to see if that was true.”

“And? Are you starting to agree with this obviously very intelligent person?”

“Oh no.” She chuckled. “I still think Emma is a much better main character.”

But the way that her cheeks shone pink as she put the book down suggested that perhaps she really was starting to come around to his way of thinking, after all. He liked that. He always appreciated it when people listened to his opinion and were willing to open their minds.

“So, is everything alright?” Susanna asked inquisitively. “You look like you have something on your mind.”

Martin silently cursed himself. He really had gotten so distracted by her beauty. “Yes! There is something I want to talk to you about. Edwin. He is currently out clay shooting with Luke, which gives us the perfect opportunity to spy on him.”

All the color drained from Susanna’s cheeks. “Are we going to sneak into his bedchambers? Now?”

Martin nodded. “Yes, I think that this is something we need to do. If there is anything to be found, it will be in his room.”

Susanna’s nerves were plastered all over her face, but she nodded in agreement and rose to her feet. “Right, then this is the time to do it. Let us go right now. Let us do this.”

They walked quickly together through the hallways of Standen Abbey, trying not to be seen by anyone. There were staff members all over the place, but luckily no one seemed to pay them much attention. Martin could only hope that continued while they followed through with this wild plan.

“Is anyone looking at us?” Susanna hissed as they drew nearer to the room. “Do you think we will get away with this?”

Martin glanced around, and he had to admit that so far it seemed like everything was going to plan. Not that there was much of a plan in mind.

“We are going to be fine,” he did his best to reassure her. “We do not need to be in this room for long.”

Or so he hoped.

---