Page 13 of Enchanted By the Lyon
Damn! No wonder she was wary of his offer of friendship and anything else that might further develop over time. “Very well,” Lucius muttered knowing he would need to leave the woman alone. “I will beg off and consider her off-limits.”
“I would appreciate that, Lucius. I feel protective of the lady considering she is a guest in my home,” Saxton said.
Lucius gazed over at his friend, saw his serious face, and nodded in reluctant agreement.
A sudden shriek from in front of them had both men turning to see Cassandra and Moriah both standing up in their stopped carriage, yelling and pointing down an alleyway.
“Bloody hell?” Saxton blurted, but Lucius didn’t stop to ask questions. He just kicked his horse into a gallop and raced down the alleyway.
It occurred to him at the last moment that he had no idea what Cassandra was shrieking about, or what was even in the alleyway, but it didn’t matter. All he knew for sure was that Cassandra was in distress and he needed to help her. Or someone.
Still, he slowed his horse’s headlong gait—at least slightly—and weaved through piles of crates and refuse. Now he could hear Saxton’s horse behind him, and still, Cassandra’s shouts.
And then ahead of him he saw the cause of her distress—a masked laggard had a young woman by the neck and was dragging her away. But once the man saw him and Saxton inpursuit, he threw the woman to the ground and ran off, out the other, open side of the alley.
Lucius pulled his horse to a sliding stop not far from where the woman lay. And then, Cassandra raced past him in a swirl of silk and petticoats, making his excited mount snort and dance. He dismounted quickly, tossed his reins to Saxton, and hurried after the headstrong beauty as she reached the sobbing woman on the ground. As she raised her face, he realized it was none other than Emily Yates, his former mistress.
Cassandra turned to peer up at him. “Lift her up, Lucius, and carry her to the carriage. We’ll take her to my townhouse,” Cassandra urged while Lucius bent down. The use of his given name passing the lady’s lips caused him to pause momentarily until she spoke again. “Hurry, my lord.”
Saxton, meanwhile, handed his horse off to his wife, who had arrived to join them. “I’m going to see if I can catch the perpetrator,” he announced, and headed out of the alley.
Lucius did as he was bid while Emily moaned in pain. “Take me home, Lord Blackthorn,” she urged, while her head came to rest on his shoulder.
“Cassandra’s place is closer, and you’ll be safe there,” Moriah chimed in about Emily’s obvious need for care.
He carried her down the alleyway to the street. As Lucius placed Emily carefully in the Saxton carriage, his friend returned, with a grim look on his face. “I lost him, the damn bastard. Who accosts a woman in the middle of the street in broad daylight anyway?” he cursed.
Lucius took his reins from the marchioness before assisting her and Cassandra into the carriage and shutting the door. “Only the worst sort. Mrs. Vaughn insists on taking Mrs. Yates to her townhouse. We should follow them to ensure they all arrive safely.”
Lucius nodded and mounted up while Saxton briefly talked with his wife. Once Lucius was in his saddle, their party traveled toward Cassandra’s. Once they arrived, Cassandra again began issuing orders at him, asking him to assist Emily into the house. The hapless woman was sobbing uncontrollably, trembling, and unable to stand unassisted. He found himself again lifting the lady up into his arms and carrying her inside when the butler opened the door.
“Higgins, send for Doctor Thornberry and hurry. This lady needs immediate attention,” Cassandra ordered as she rushed toward the stairs. “This way, Lord Blackthorn.”
Lucius went up the stairs easily carrying his ex-mistress until Cassandra opened one of the doors to a bedroom where she immediately began pushing back the curtains to allow the afternoon light into the room.
“I’ll have this room aired out for you more properly, Emily, as soon as the good doctor has seen you,” Cassandra began while Lucius placed Emily on the bed.
“I don’t need a doctor, Cassie. I just want to go home,” the woman stated even as a maid brought in a basin of water and set it along with some cloths on the nearby bedside table.
“You must amuse me so I can ensure you are not only seen by the doctor, but that you will be safe returning to your own residence,” Cassandra replied before her gaze traveled from the woman lying on the bed to Lucius as he stood at the foot. She tore her eyes from him then took hold of a blanket and placed it over Emily. “Can you tell me if you know who that man was?”
Fear flashed across Emily’s face, and she turned her head away. “I’d rather not say.”
Cassandra clucked over the woman like a mother hen watching over her chicks.
Lucius began to wonder. Who had attacked Emily, and how would they be able to find the assailant if she remainedtight-lipped? He knew from experience that she could be very secretive as well as stubborn, and even if she knew who was behind the potential abduction, she might not be willing to share that information.
Then again, he reasoned, without a man to help her—or even any family—what choice did she have? He supposed that he and Saxton would need to be the ones who stepped up to help her, especially now that Saxton’s wife, and especially his enchanting house guest had apparently taken the woman under their mother-hen-like wings. Indeed, even now his thoughts were interrupted by clucking from the head of the bed; he looked to see Cassandra frowning at him, her feathers clearly ruffled. He bit back a snort as she squawked, “Lord Blackthorn. Lord Blackthorn! If I might have a word?”
“Yes, of course, Mrs. Vaughn.”
He allowed the woman to proceed him and as they left the room, Cassandra turned back to close the door. “Thank you for your help with Mrs. Yates, my lord. I don’t know what we would have done if you and the marquis hadn’t been with us.”
He inclined his head. “I’m certain the driver could have handled the situation, but I am glad I could be of whatever help you needed,” Lucius replied before he remembered their earlier conversation. And the reprimand from Saxton. “May I take a moment—since we are alone—to offer my sincere apologies for my conduct earlier? I should never have been so… flirtatious given we hardly know one another. The implications that I might have hinted at that might lead to something more should never have occurred, of course.”
“Implications?” she asked with a frown. She appeared curious but Lucius had the impression she was also still miffed with him. Ruffled feathers, he reminded himself and bit the inside of his lip.
“Conversations of such a…delicatenature should be done in privacy, and not in the front parlor of a friend’s home,” he commented dryly wishing he forget such thoughts had ever crossed his mind given her desire for marriage.
