Page 32 of Lady of Providence
He gave Clarke a pointed look, one that he hoped the man interpreted as, ‘Get out of this office in order to allow me time alone with Lady Elizabeth.’ Clarke would assume he was doing so for purposes other than the truth.
Of course, Clarke was slow to catch on, and it took a few moments for recognition to spark within his eyes as to why Gabriel may perhaps be here to call upon Elizabeth. Clarke began to slowly nod with a smile, and Gabriel could only hope that Elizabeth couldn’t see her cousin’s face, or she might suspect something was amiss.
Fortunately, she seemed otherwise occupied — on him. Her angry stare had swung from her cousin to Gabriel, and he nearly jumped at the intensity of it, though he was aware that her ire was primarily directed at Clarke.
“What are you doing here?” she asked in a heated tone.
“I am here to do as I said,” he responded, “to meet with you. I have some things to discuss.”
“Very well,” she said, sighing as she turned away, some of her anger dissipating, and Gabriel nearly laughed at the forlorn look she cast upon the pile of correspondence on her desk. For who actually welcomed attending to such drivel?
Finally, Henry rose, casting a look upon each of them before sauntering to the door.
“When you change your mind, Elizabeth, you know where to find me.”
She only shot him one more unimpressed glance before he left with a chuckle.
“Henry,” she said, throwing down the pen she had been twisting in her fingers upon the desk with some force, “is a rat.”
He said the words at the same time as she, and the two of them looked at one another in some surprise. Finally, he chuckled, and soon enough she reluctantly joined in, the two of them, at least, finding some mirth in their shared opinion of her cousin.
“You must laugh more, Elizabeth,” he said, and her smile slowly faded.
“It’s been somewhat difficult,” she said with a sigh, making her way to the circle of chairs and resting her head in her hands as she leaned over the round table in the middle. “Everything I do seems to be erroneous. Whichever way I turn, it seems to be the wrong direction.”
She waved toward the pile of letters upon the desk. “One of our largest clients has just decided to take his business from the bank, and I have no doubt that much of it was Henry’s doing. Honestly, I don’t even understand why he wants to be the senior partner when he would hardly step foot in the building for it might require that he actually do some work.”
“Would it be so bad, to allow him to take over, to take some of the pressure off yourself? For as you say, I’m sure he would rely on others who are currently working at the bank.”
“Absolutely not,” she said, shooting him a vehement glare, her violet eyes practically glowing. “The ideas he has to apparently save money would only run this bank to the ground. Ideas that he was already spouting mere days after my grandfather’s death.”
Then recognition dawned.
“You are goading me. No more manipulations please, Gabriel.”
“Elizabeth,” Gabriel said, softly now, seeing she needed to calm somewhat. “Come here.”
He crooked a finger, beckoning her closer, but she only crossed her arms over her chest as though she were defending herself.
“Why?”
“Can you just come here… please?”
He lifted his palms up now in supplication, and she sighed, dropping her own arms and stepping closer to him. Gabriel stood, moving behind her. He brought his hands to her shoulders, but when he set them down, she jumped a step away from him.
“Shhh,” he whispered in her ear, coming closer once more, and this time she shivered, likely from his breath on her neck. He slowly replaced his hands and began to carefully knead his fingers into the tight muscles of her shoulders and upper back. She tensed for a few moments until she finally gave into his touch.
“How does that feel?” he asked softly.
“Heavenly,” she admitted, her head rolling slightly back and forth as she now not only accepted his offering but silently requested more of it. Continuing his massage, he steered her over to one of the Gillows elbow chairs, helping to set her down upon it while he sat on the arm of the chair to provide himself some leverage.
He wasn’t sure how long they stayed in such a position, him applying the pressure she so needed upon the warm skin he could feel through the silk of her dress, but finally it seemed as though she were leaning back against him. When he looked over her shoulder, her eyes were beginning to shut, as though she were nearly falling asleep.
“Elizabeth?” he whispered. “Are you still awake?”
“Of course!” she said, sitting up with a jerk now, and he shook his head, knowing that soon enough she would be tensed up back over the desk, and all of his hard work would be for naught.
“I’m so sorry… I have forgotten myself,” she said, her voice just over a whisper, and he shook his head despite the fact that she couldn’t see him.
