Page 12 of The Scandal You Started
Then she turned her head, and he followed her direction to the tray on the table. He glanced back at her, and she was tapping the centre of her chest with one hand.
Was she telling him she’d brought the tray in?Wait, was she a—
His brows knotted as his head reared back. “You are a maid?”
As soon as the bewildered question left his mouth, he knew it was absurd.
Of course she isn’t a maid.
It wasn’t just the way her face fell into a bland stare of judgement, making his shoulders widen in defence of his blunder. But there was something about the way she held herself with poise, that could almost be likened to that of a well-bred lady, even despite her lack of attire.
Maybe it was the self-possessed tilt of her chin.
Was she a harlot then?
Dominic almost scoffed aloud at the thought.
Now, why on Neves would his kidnappers send him a prostitute to play with? Unless this was their attempt at trying to tame his anger at being locked up for a fortnight.
Maybe she worked with them?
But who weretheyanyway? Where had that bastard River Harris, who’d lured him with the promise of a profitable investment, gone? Where and to whom had he bloody damn brought him? And what the deuces did these people think they could get out of him by keeping him there?
He had so many questions. And maybe this little woman could answer some of them.
If he could get her to talk, that was.
Dominic closely followed her gestures again as she jabbed a finger back in the direction of the tray and then made a C shape with her hand and lifted it to her mouth like she was drinking something.
Oh, water.She wanted the glass of water.
Dammit, why had I not thought of that?
“Of course,” he said and took two swift steps to the table attached to the seamless blue flooring. He swiped up the tallcylinder, gently jostling the liquid inside, then headed back to her.
Rather than placing it in her outstretched hand, he folded his body into a crouch, balancing himself on one knee. She drew back into herself, her eyes narrowing with distrust, but he offered her a gentle smile and held the glass before her mouth.
“Allow me, please,” he encouraged, tilting it towards her lips.
She hesitated, but then, tentatively, without removing her beautiful eyes from his, placed her tightly pressed mouth to the glass. If it hadn’t been for the wince her brows twisted in, he might not have realised she’d actually taken a sip. Leaning back, she ever so softly cleared her throat and winced again, and fuck, because he felt it in his chest as an acute stab.
He’d hurt a woman.
That was unfathomable. Unforgivable.
It went against everything he stood for, every ounce of respect he’d always been taught to show women. Why hadn’t he bloody looked at her before reacting? How could he have been so reckless with his anger?
Dominic swallowed around his guilt and moved the glass to her again. “Take another sip, sweetheart.” She shook her head, but he nudged the rim against her lips anyway. “Just a small one. Come on.”
There was a momentary flicker of defiance in her stare, but she took a small drink, then gently urged his hand away.
Placing the glass down on the floor, he dipped his head to look her right in the eyes. “How do you feel?”
She tilted her head and squinted, then shrugged.“Not bad, but not particularly great either,”was what he could only assume she meant.
“Please accept my sincerest apologies,” he said. “Had I realised you were a woman, I would never have reacted so violently.” He huffed an amused sound, one corner of his mouth lifting. “Notthat you resemble a man in any way. But I did not wait long enough to see that. And for that, I am truly sorry.”
Beckoned by the strand of hair clinging to her lashes, Dominic gently skimmed his blunt fingers across her forehead and over the shell of her pink-tipped ear, tucking the lock out of the way. And bloody woods, her hair was so silky, and her earlobe looked biteable with a single small, looped earring in it.
