Page 42 of To Heal a Broken Earl
“I tried the salve last night,” he managed to say to the slight crack he had maintained.
“Did it work?” she asked, pleased.
“Do you smell a dead skunk?” he quipped.
“No.” She giggled.
“Then it worked.”
“Silly man… I mean, does your leg feel better?”
“Oh,” he said with a wink. “Yes, it feelsinfinitelybetter. Hastings will be applying the salve every evening. I hope you will let him know the magical concoction you used to transform the salve.”
“It will be my pleasure to do so,” she said, feeling a surge of warmth.
“In fact, I might even ask that persistent Italian physician to examine my leg in a month to see if there has been any improvement, and I have you to thank for that.”
“Thank you. It’s such good news. I am very happy to hear it,” she said with a smile.
“I am so happy to see you smile again,” he said.
She felt her cheeks blush.
“I also wanted to speak to you about Morgrave,” he said, his tone turning serious.
She nodded, trying to tamp down the jolt of panic that had latched on to her earlier.
“I want to reassure you, Emma, that we will find him,” Michael said, taking a step closer to her, where she stood next to the fireplace. “That is my promise to you. My pledge. We know what he looks like, we know who he is. Armstrong has already sent a missive to headquarters in London, along with the sketch.”
“I have something to confess…”
“Oh?”
“I…um…I overheard your speaking with Wright and Armstrong in your study. That Morgrave may have set that fire at Lady Beadle’s home to force her to leave and lead him here…”
He nodded. “Armstrong didn’t think about the possibility of Morgrave using them until they were almost here. By then, he decided that perhaps we should look at this differently. We know what the arsonist looks like, and we’re pretty sure we know who he is. But he doesn’t know that we know all of that. We plan to go on the offensive and look for him. That includes here. We are showing everyone in my security force his picture. I promise to keep you safe.”
She began to tremble at the thought of Morgrave being out there, nearby.
Michael reached out and clasped her shoulders. “I’m going to do everything in my power to keep you and Katie safe, Emma. Do you trust me?”
She didn’t immediately answer him.
His brow furrowed. “Everything seems so stiff and formal between us. Only days ago, we were laughing and even holding hands,” he said, picking up her hand. When she drew back, he dropped it. “I’m not going to take advantage—even though every part of me wants to kiss you.”
“Yes, I do trust you,” she whispered. “But Morgrave has escaped detection for so long. It’s like he’s a ghost, able to do all these terrible things without being caught. Without being seen.”
“But hewasseen. By you and Katie. And it is because of your courage that he will be caught. I promise you. I will protect you with my life.”
“I want to believe you, Michael. But I’m scared…for me and Katie,” she whispered. “I don’t want you to lose your life trying to protect me.” Her eyes were blurring with tears.
“Please, Emma,” he rasped. “I can’t bear to see you cry.”
With a groan, he pulled her into his arms and held her tight.
For a moment, she allowed herself to imagine how wonderful it would be to feel his arms around her every day for the rest of her life.
He leaned back and tilted her chin up. “Emma…Emma, what you do to me…”
