Page 60 of A Scandalous Proposition
But at that moment the door flew open and a dominoed man stood in the aperture, filling the space with the width of his shoulders, scowling directly at her.
Chapter Fourteen
Florentina’s heart sank. She’d never overpower both men. What in the name of the devil had possessed her to come here? Lord King was almost upon her again but the appearance of the stranger distracted him. She seized the opportunity to throw the remaining champagne directly into his face. He cursed, dashing at his eyes, temporarily blinded. She had seconds to decide what to do next. Her every instinct told her to flee but in order to do that she must first get past this second man. She swung the champagne bottle aggressively at his head, but he grabbed her wrist and easily pulled it from her grasp.
The moment he touched her she knew his identity. Her heart sang with relief and she sagged against him.
‘Adam!’
He tore off his half-mask and glowered at King with murder in his eyes. The sight of him in such a towering rage caused Florentina’s elation to evaporate. She shivered with apprehension, wondering precisely what she’d set in motion.
‘Wait your turn, Fitzroy.’ Lord King’s red eyes rested upon her, glistening with malice. ‘I’ve not even started with this little wildcat yet.’
‘I beg to differ.’
Lord King’s mirthless laugh was full of subdued menace. ‘Oh, all right, Fitzroy, if you’re exercising some sort of prior claim then I suppose we could share her.’
‘I think not.’
King merely smirked. He seemed annoyed by Adam’s arrival but not threatened by it, making no effort to distance himself from him. That error of judgement proved to be fatal as, with a guttural howl, Adam pulled back his fist and landed it squarely in the middle of King’s face. The sound of bone splintering and a spurt of blood implied that his nose had been broken. Lord King let out a startled oath, crumpled slowly to the floor and lay there motionless. Adam prodded him with the toe of his boot to ensure that he was still breathing. He then flexed his fingers, grabbed Florentina’s wrist and pulled her to the door.
‘Put your mask back on,’ he said in a glacial tone. Whilst she complied, her fingers clumsy because they were shaking so badly, he pulled her domino about her to conceal her ripped gown.
‘Adam, I?’
‘Later!’
He was still grasping her wrist with one hand as he replaced his own mask. She wanted to tell him that his knuckles were bleeding and attend to his injuries. She wanted to thank him and express her relief at his timely arrival. But there was something about his manner, about the slow-burning anger in his eyes, that made her hold her tongue.
She lifted her skirts to avoid them trailing over the inert form of the footman and struggled to keep upright as Adam all but dragged her down the stairs. Only when they reached the main corridor did he slow his pace, releasing his tight hold on her wrist and sliding an arm ’round her waist instead. He held her close to his side as they sauntered through the throng and finally made their way into the courtyard, which was now almost deserted.
Florentina breathed a sigh of relief. Now was the time to thank Adam and tell him all she’d learned from Lord King. One glance at the chilling cast to his features and she changed her mind. Apart from ordering her to replace her mask he’d yet to address a single remark to her. Presumably he had come here to rescue her, not to partake of the activities. But how had he known she was here? Not that it mattered. She had never been so relieved to see anyone in her entire life.
Rochester was produced. Adam mounted and pulled Florentina up after him. He threw her facedown across the stallion’s withers with no apparent thought for her comfort, ignoring her indignant squeals. As the cool night air settled about her like a damp blanket, her relief at being rescued fast turned to anger. He had no right to treat her like this. Especially not when she’d only risked coming here to help him.
She opened her mouth to protest but might as well have saved her breath. The arm holding her down was like a band of steel as Adam pushed Rochester into a flat-out gallop. She was being jolted about quite perilously, her aggrieved words lost beneath the sound of thundering hooves and her own ragged breathing. She’d be black and blue all over and would have a few choice words to say to his lordship when he finally released her from this most humiliating position.
When Rochester’s pace slowed she cautiously raised her head. She was dizzy from the pounding her body had taken, but as her wits slowly returned to her she recognised Chamberleigh’s stable yard. Adam dismounted and lifted her down. She dared a glance in his direction and immediately regretted it. If anything his features were now even more fiercely arranged, and her indignation gave way to terror. She had somehow displeased the man she loved and had no notion how to resolve that situation.
Once again he took possession of her wrist and propelled her towards the house. Christine opened the side door and greeted them with obvious relief.
‘Thank goodness!’ She enveloped Florentina in a fierce hug.
‘Go and change,’ Adam said tersely. ‘No, she doesn’t need your help, Christine. We’ll wait for her in here.’
He indicated a small sitting room.
Florentina confidently expected Christine to tell him to go to the devil. No one dictated to her. Not here at Chamberleigh. But much to her surprise and disappointment, Christine smiled at her, said she’d see her in a few moments and preceded Adam through the door he held open for her.
In a high dudgeon, Florentina entered the dressing room, ripped off the hateful borrowed dress and gratefully replaced it with her own gown. She glanced in a mirror and grimaced. Her hair was all over the place. Hardly surprising, given the undignified manner in which she’d been escorted back here. She pulled out the few remaining pins, ran a brush through the tangles and left her tresses to fall wherever they pleased.
Dios mío,just who did he think he was? By the time she was ready to rejoin Adam, Florentina had formulated a few choice words to address to him. She tossed her head and directed her feet toward the room where he awaited her.
*
‘Thank goodness you found her in time.’ Christine handed Adam a tumbler full of his favourite whisky.
‘Another ten minutes and I’d have been too late.’
