Page 6 of My Darling Rogue
The voices drew closer. Despite the fear of discovery, Celia pressed her ear against the wall, straining to hear the conversation. She must see what was happening. Perhaps if she squinted hard enough with one eye while looking through the tiny crack in the wood…
She could see the divan in the pool of lamplight, but nothing else.
“When I entered, I saw no one. Only this broken candlestick and a bottle of brandy. And it is nearly empty, as you can see,” Gabriel said in the calmest of manners. He moved into Celia’s line of vision.
Her heart gave an odd little jump of exhilaration.
“How do you explain my injury, sir?” Robert bit out.
Gabriel chuckled in a tone so melodic and soothing that even Celia believed his assertion. “I imagine, Lord Harvey, you tumbled from the divan and landed on the candlestick. It is rather late, after all. A bit too much brandy, and well, accidents are likely. I say, you might want to have that wound seen to. Speaking as someone with experience, you could end up with a scar.”
“He’s right, Harvey. It is rather nasty,” another voice piped up. Celia squinted harder to identify it, but the gentleman remained on the periphery.
“Lady Celia could not have slipped past me. There is nowhere else she could be other than this room,” Robert insisted. Ducking down, he searched under the piece of furniture.
“Unless she’s the size of a barn cat, she couldn’t fit under there, Harvey.” This came from a fourth man in the room. Possibly Lord Anniston, but Celia wasn’t sure. “Perhaps Rose is right. You left our card game some time ago. Maybe after too much of Ravenswood’s excellent brandy, you found a cozy spot here by the fire and dozed off. Maybe you dreamed Lady Celia was here.”
“I did not dream it. She was here. I can smell her perfume.” Robert’s voice was terse.
“I smell nothing, my lord,” Gabriel said calmly.
Celia watched with one eye as Robert moved toward the floor-to-ceiling windows just beyond the divan. He shook the heavy drapes as though Celia might tumble out of the fabric’s folds. “I did not imagine kissing her, nor how she filled my hands—”
“Careful, my lord.” Gabriel’s low growl was a warning of such violence it cut Robert off in mid-sentence. “It’s unwise maligning a guest of Lord Ravenswood. You risk offending our host, as well as the Earl of Darby and the lady’s brother.”
The man Celia thought was Anniston spoke up. “Come along now, Harvey. Let’s get you cleaned up and see the damage in better light. I believe you will require a stitch or two if you are to keep that pretty face of yours intact.”
“Tiny stitches are best, provided there is someone skilled with a needle up and about at this hour. Your valet, perhaps?” Gabriel’s voice grew distant as the men’s receding footsteps indicated their departure. “You certainly do not wish to end up with a scar like mine.”
Letting out a sigh of relief, Celia leaned away from the sliver of light. She rubbed her eyes, easing the strain she’d placed on them.
There was the slight swish of the library doors closing, men’s rumbling voices, then nothing.
Complete silence.
Celia’s breath hung in her throat while the eerie stillness stretched on. Now that the danger of discovery was over, the darkness around her was growing. But as her heart pounded like exploding cannons in her ears, and her lungs expanded and deflated with increasingly shallow pants for oxygen, she heard glass touching glass followed by a sigh of satisfaction.
Once again, she placed one eye to the panel’s crack. Her mouth formed an incredulous “oh!”
Gabriel refilled the abandoned glass tumbler with a healthy splash of brandy and downed it.
The insufferable cad! Has he forgotten he locked me in this space the size of a broom closet? How dare he—
“I’ve not forgotten about you,” Gabriel stated calmly as though he could plainly hear her innermost thoughts. He poured yet another glass of brandy and took a more deliberate sip.
Celia sucked in another deep, shallow breath. Did his tone carry a thread of amusement? And was it her imagination, or was the space around her becoming steadily darker?
Gabriel continued speaking, oblivious that Celia’s panic was increasing by the second. “Lord Harvey might return, and I’ll not risk being discovered here with you. My efforts in concealing your presence would be for naught. So, my lady, you shall remain where you are until I am certain they will not come back.”
Several seconds of silence passed.
“Very foolhardy of you to meet with the man like this,” Gabriel remarked in a strangely lowered voice. “Here in Ravenswood’s home, I mean. Somewhat dangerous as well, with all manner of guests roaming about. Is your mother aware of your nocturnal adventures? I cannot imagine she condones such behavior. You would do well to stick with hasty kisses in alcoves and along deserted garden paths.”
Celia’s stomach dropped as Gabriel’s insinuations sunk in. Did he actually think she’d sought Robert out for a clandestine affair?
Indignation battled her fear of darkness in a war of emotions.
“Ah, well. No matter.” Gabriel let out a long-suffering sigh. “The incident resolved itself rather nicely. Do not fret over repayment for my assistance. A simple thank-you will suffice, as well as your pledge this will not happen again whilst a guest at Beaumont.”
