Page 75 of The Secret Life of a Lady
Hannah scowled as panic licked up her veins and overwhelmed her heart. ‘Impossible man! You’re being ridiculous.’
‘I’m being ridiculous?’ He raised an annoying eyebrow, his sinful mouth curving into a lazy smile that Hannah wanted to slap from his beautiful face. He was enjoying this.
‘Obviously, I don’t want to marry Philippa. But she is my patroness. I have my mission to think of. How could I continue with my investigations if we were married? A husband controls his wife. Her finances, her housing, her activities, even her friends. I could never submit to the rule of a man, Killian. Not even a man I trusted. Not even you.’
Killian grasped her hand and pressed her fingers against his lips. ‘Do you really believe I would expect obedience from you? Do not think me quite so naïve or so stupid. I value all my appendages and wish to keep them attached to my body.’
Hannah refused to laugh. This was not funny. ‘You would let me continue with my work? Willingly allowing me to traipse into the dangerous night hunting violent men? You just asked me not to confront Alfred Cavendale because you were worried for me. That would change if we were married?’
‘I asked you not to. I didn’t command you. I didn’t force you. I never will. I haven’t thought out all the details. Of course, I don’t want you wandering into danger alone, but you wouldn’t be alone. Our goals are not so dissimilar. Besides, most marriages have some level of conflict. We can work out the specifics, but none of that really matters. There is only one thing that does. Do you love me, Hannah?’
Before she could answer, the door burst open. A gentleman stumbled into the library. A giggling woman in pink feathers and white silk traipsed behind him.
‘Bollocks,’ Hannah and Killian said in unison.
The besotted man was so intent on his conquest, he didn’tnotice Hannah and Killian as they ducked behind the desk. The man swept the woman into his embrace, and they landed in a tangled heap on an unsuspecting chaise. Hannah couldn’t help but note the library was equipped with incredibly accommodating furniture.
Killian and Hannah crawled along the shadowed wall to a door on the far side of the room. Killian reached up and slowly pulled down the handle. The door creaked open wide enough for Hannah to slip through. In a trice, he was standing next to her farther down the same corridor where they entered the library.
Alfred Cavendale alighted the top stair at the end of the hall.
‘Bloody hell.’ Hannah hissed.
Killian followed her gaze. ‘Bloody hell is right.’
Hannah’s hair was a mess, and her dress was dishevelled. Killian’s own clothes were in a hasty state of disarray. She couldn’t exactly confront a potential murderer looking like a common strumpet. If Alfred Cavendale caught them together like this, whether or not he was guilty of any crimes, it would be Hannah whose freedom would be lost. She wouldn’t have a choice of marrying Killian or not. It would be decided for her by the gossips of the beau monde. Even worse, it meant Killian would be able to interrogate Alfred first. He would beat her to a confession. Which concerned her less than his safety.
There was no denying it. She loved the idiot.
‘I must go. We will talk later. Please don’t confront Alfred alone. If he is the killer, I don’t want anything to happen to you.’ Hannah wanted to say more. She wanted to tell him that she loved him. That she was terrified of trusting him, but even more terrified of losing him. That she couldn’t imagine a future without him, but neither could she devise one where they might live together in harmony. There was no time. She needed to make a hasty exit before Alfred saw them together.
The ladies’ retiring room was her best chance of escape. Hannah nodded to Killian and stepped away as he quickly buttoned his shirt and retied his cravat. She glanced back at Killian and then walked into the lily-scented room. If only she could read the expression in his eyes as easily as she deciphered the desire in his body.
Ivy and Millie rushed up to her in a flurry of silk and lace.
Ivy’s hand fluttered around Hannah’s falling curls. ‘Oh, dear. I knew that dastardly duke was up to no good. How dare he take advantage of an innocent girl?’
Hannah pressed her lips together to stop the laughter. She was about as innocent as the Devil in a dance hall.
Ivy’s hand curled into a fist, her pale skin almost translucent in the bright light from the blazing lamps. Her slight frame shook with rage. ‘I’ll kill him. Well, I won’t, obviously. But I’ll have Alfred challenge him to a duel.’ Ivy chewed on her nail as her brow drew down in worry. ‘No, then he’d just kill Alfred. Father would be a better choice.’ She looked back at Hannah, her pale-blue eyes alight with the indignant fire. ‘I’ll have father challenge him to a duel.’
Dear God. If Alfred is the killer, what does that mean for my friendship with Ivy? How could she possibly forgive me for what I must do?
For a moment, Hannah wished Killian would confront Alfred. That he would bear the burden of justice and save her the cost of what would undoubtedly be her budding friendship with Ivy. But that was cowardly. And Hannah was no coward.
‘Calm yourself, Ivy. Hannah hardly looks distraught. If anything, dear, you look like my cat after she’s lapped up a bowl of cream.’ Millie winked at Hannah. ‘Let’s just be glad no one else is here to see you. Never fear, we’ll set you to rights, and then you can tell us exactly what happened.’ She led Hannah to a vanity and pushed her into an overstuffed chair.
The women called over several maids who attacked Hannah’s hair with the skill and precision of a military brigade. In moments, no one would guess Hannah had been madly kissing the Duke of Covington, in the library, with her dagger sheathed.
18
Killian forced himself to walk away from Hannah with the promise he would meet her in a few short hours and convince her to marry him or go mad in the attempt. Alfred Cavendale’s timing was terrible, but Killian couldn’t let this opportunity escape. Hannah may be worried for his safety, but he was a skilled warrior, and far better matched against a man of Alfred’s size and strength than her. He couldn’t allow Hannah to face a potential murderer when it was within his power to confront the culprit himself.
‘Lieutenant General Killian! What a fortuitous happenstance. You are just the man I hoped to find.’ Alfred extended his hand for a firm shake.
‘Well, mission accomplished. Here I am.’ Killian stretched his mouth in a fake smile.
‘I must apologise to you for my egregious behaviour earlier. I still haven’t recovered from Patrick’s loss. Sometimes I am taken over by black moods. Please forgive me.’
