Page 33 of It's In The Duke's Kiss
“Excellent!” Lucian’s mother pronounced, as his blood boiled. “Let us start the hunt. Here are the lists of items you must find.” As his mother handed out pieces of parchment, Lucian was drawn once more to Emma, who met his gaze with a frosty one of her own. He wanted to warn her of the man’s reputation, but there was no delicate way to do so. The only course was to quickly find everything on his own list and then track down Emma and Salisbury and keep a watchful eye on her.
With that in mind, the moment everyone had their list in hand and Danby signaled the start of the hunt, Lucian wasted no time. “May I?” he asked Mary as he motioned toward the list.
She nodded. “Please do. I’m afraid I’m not the best scavenger hunter.”
He forced himself not to snatch the list from her. Once he had it, he quickly scanned the five items on their list: a golden goblet, a crop, a pair of quizzing glasses, a lady’s hair comb, and a cane. He went straight from there to the first clue.
You’ll find the goblet where you fill it.
He grabbed Lady Mary by the elbow and started tugging her toward the fountain in the distance. As they departed, he took note that Emma and Salisbury were still standing there staring at their list. Excellent. If he was very quick and luck was with him, he could have his list finished before they ever moved.
Once they were at the fountain, he took off his coat and rolled up his sleeves while Lady Mary gawked at him. “Whatever are you doing?” she asked in a disbelieving tone.
“Retrieving the goblet,” he replied. He knew his great-uncle well. For the pleasure of watching his assembled guests act like fools, the man would have made acquiring the items on the list as difficult as possible. That’s what he’d always done in the past. He’d once confided to Lucian that he stood at his window overlooking the grounds, drinking port and chuckling to himself at his own cleverness in hiding the items.
“In the water? Surely your great-uncle wouldn’t—” Lady Mary abruptly stopped speaking as Lucian plunged his hands into the water at the deepest part of the fountain, felt around for moment, and secured the goblet. He lifted it up with a triumphant grin.
“Certainly he would, Lady Mary. Danby finds watching us amusing, and the harder we have to work, the more merriment we provide.” Lucian swung toward the study window and raised the dripping goblet in salute to his great-uncle, who he could see standing there. Danby saluted back, and Lucian focused once again on the list.
This helps you command but must be used with care.
Lucian took Lady Mary’s elbow and hurried her to the stables, where they found the crop. They strode from there to the retiring room, where the lady’s hair comb was located. Once more he rushed them outside to the gardens and found the quizzing glasses on one of the benches often used for reading.
He brought the list close to read the last clue.
A cane is often necessary when climbing these.
Lucian frowned. Danby’s house had many staircases. Which one would his great-uncle consider the most demanding? It had to be the winding stairs that led to the library. “Come! We need to get to the library,” Lucian said and started to take Lady Mary’s elbow once again, but she pulled back with a laugh.
“Please, let us rest a moment. I’m fairly winded, and if you haven’t noticed, most of the other hunters are still standing about without even their first item secured. Salisbury and Emma seem to be the only two that have found anything. We’re sure to win even if we take a short break.”
“I cannot,” he answered immediately and swept his gaze over the garden, searching for Salisbury and Emma. They’d just been near the maze and now he did not see them. His pulse ticked upward as he thought of two days ago when he’d been alone and in his garden with Emma. “I need to be finished now.”
“Why?” Lady Mary asked with a frown.
“I—” Tension knotted the back of his neck as he tried to think of what to say, but only the truth would do. “I want to be done so I can watch over your sister.”
Lady Mary’s frown deepened. “Do you think Lord Salisbury would take advantage of their being alone?”
“I’m not certain,” he admitted. “But I don’t want to chance it.”
Lady Mary studied him for a long, silent moment. “I think,” she said slowly, “that you’ve shown a remarkable concern for my sister. I wonder why that is…” Her eyes had gone from contemplative to knowing.
“It’s no more concern than I’d show for any lady,” he replied, not liking that Emma’s sister seemed to be uncovering things he’d rather not reveal.
“I daresay you’re hiding from the truth, but,” she said with a smile, “I imagine we all do at times.” She held her hand out. “Give me the list. I’ll locate the cane and you can find Emma.”
Lucian didn’t argue. He thrust the list at Lady Mary. “Check the winding stairs that lead to the library. I believe you’ll find the cane there.” He waited for her nod, and then he hurried away toward the maze.
Emma sat under a tree, listening to the leaves rustling in the wind. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath of the fresh spring air, and then leaned back into her palms and curled her fingers into the cool grass. The megrim she had been positive was coming only minutes ago already seemed to be subsiding. Mother would probably love for her to get a terrible megrim so the rumors about her would appear true, Emma thought wryly. For a moment she entertained the idea of going to find Lord Salisbury, but by now he was probably at the stables looking for the next item on their list. She didn’t really care if they won or not. The only thing she’d really cared about today was getting to spend more time with Lucian, and that hope had been mercilessly quashed by Lucian himself.
Her stomach knotted at the memory of him declaring his desire to partner with Mary. She plucked blades of grass out of the ground with a sigh. How could she have been so wrong about him? She snorted at her own foolishness.
“Is there a clue under the tree?”
Emma’s eyes flew open at the sound of Lucian’s voice above her. Her gaze traveled up his powerful legs, over his narrow hips and broad chest, to his square jaw, then up higher over his face. His lips curved gently upward, and his eyes crinkled ever so slightly at the sides with his smile. Her heart raced as she attempted to scramble to her feet, but she stepped on the hem of her skirts and nearly fell backward to her bottom. Lucian bent forward in flash, caught her, and brought her gently to her feet, snug against his chest. For a moment, they stood pressed scandalously close, pounding heart to pounding heart.
Emma’s eyes widened as her mouth parted in wonder at the revelation.
