Page 26 of A Royal Kiss & Tell
The pair was standing with their shoulders to a wall, facing each other. How dare they carry on like this in the halls of this house? Theywerecarrying on, weren’t they? Or were they? They didn’t seem to be kissing, which, frankly, is what she’d be doing if she was so inclined to meet a gentleman in the darkened hallway of someone’s house. What other possible explanation could there be? She took another step closer, steadying herself with a hand to the wall. They werewhispering. Was it whispers of love? She’d like to hear that.
Perhaps it was one of the new maids. Beck had recently hired two from Lord Hill, who had decamped to the country with a vow to never return to London until the air was cleared of smoke and soot. Beck said he’d never return, then.
Caroline crept closer. It wasn’t the new groom. The man was too tall. That left only one possibility—one of Beck’s wretched friends. But who was he cavortingwith? Caroline crept closer still, so close that she could almost reach out and touch the tail of the man’s coat. But then she was suddenly overcome with a violent sneeze at such velocity that she could not possibly prevent it. That bell-clanging sneeze was followed by two more. By the time she had stopped sneezing, the woman had disappeared, and the man had turned around to face her, his legs braced as if prepared to fight.
Caroline dabbed her handkerchief at her nose and looked at the man in the dimly lit hallway. Her belly dipped—good God, it washim. The Arse of Alucia.“You,”she said dramatically.
“Alsoyou.” He relaxed, and leaned against the wall again, his arms folded over his chest. “Well, well, here you are, then, Lady Caroline. I was under the happy impression that you’d gone out for the evening.”
“Well,thatwas wishful thinking.” She sneezed again. “You’re like a very bad dream following me about. Where is your paramour?” she asked, craning her neck to look.
“Not a paramour,” he said. “A friend.”
“Ha! I may be ill, sir,” she said, pointing at him, “but I am no fool.”
“I never said you were a fool. I said you were a bother.”
Caroline was winding up to admonish him for cavorting with a servant, but his last statement gave her pause. “When did you say that?”
“Oh, I don’t know. If I didn’t say it aloud, I certainly thought it.” He smiled.
It was the first time he’d actually smiled at her—truly smiledather...unless Beck was standing behind her and she didn’t know it. But Caroline was fairly confident they were the only two in this hallway, and the effect of that smile made her feel even dizzier. Normally, she would have taken advantage of his smile to charm the wits from him. “In consideration of the source, I will take that as a delightful compliment.”
He stepped closer, and Caroline suddenly remembered her state of existence—the dressing gown, the unkempt hair, the puffy eyes and red nose. No doubt her breath smelled atrocious, too. Mortified, she stepped back and away from him, and smacked into the wall. Funny, she had not sensed the wall at her back.
This wasnothow she wanted to look when she put the man in his place. It was always best to dress a man down when one was dressed all the way up. She needed her hair to be curled, to be clothed in one of the beautiful gowns she’d made for the trip to Alucia, embellished within an inch of its life. But the prince leaned forward all the same, squinting at her. “Lady Caroline...you look awful.”
“How dareyou,” she said weakly.
“Have you seen a doctor?”
She gathered her dressing gown around her. “I don’t require a doctor.”
“You look like you’re in desperate need of one to me.”
She wouldn’t mind discussing her theory of the potential for permanently losing the use of her legs with a qualified medical professional, but she would save that for another time. “Don’t try to divert my attention, sir. What areyoudoing in this hall?”
“Hawke!” he suddenly shouted, startling her. He put his hand on her arm as if to steady her.
She looked down at his arm. “What in blazes are you doing?”
“You’re wobbling.Hawke!” he shouted again, and this time caught her by the elbow.
“I beg your pardon!” She looked up at him and winced at the blinding pain behind her eyes. She was tall, but he was a head taller than her and twice as broad. He dwarfed her. Or was she shrinking? She felt as if she were shrinking. She must be shrinking because he now looked rather concerned. She looked down again and realized he had moved her around so that she was propped fully against the wall. She wasn’t actually shrinking, but she was scarcely holding herself up.
“Whoa,” he said, and caught her with one arm around her waist.
“What is happening?” She was terribly light-headed. Everything seemed so wavy.
She heard a door open behind her, and then the familiar stride of her brother coming down the hall, the bounce of light from the candelabra he carried. “What is it?” he asked as he reached them, and looked down at Caroline. He recoiled with a gasp. “Good God, you look like death.”
“Well, thank you, everyone, but I didn’t have time to dress.”
“Where is Martha?” he demanded. He put his arm around her and shoved the candelabra at the prince. “Come on, then, back to bed.”
“I think she should have a doctor,” the prince said, and held the candelabra aloft so that Beck could lean in and examine her. “She looks a bit green, doesn’t she?”
“Disturbingly green. Martha?Martha!” Beck bellowed. He pressed a hand to her cheek. “God help me, you’re on fire!”
