But she had turned away from him and was hurrying despite herself in the direction of the library. She felt the panic of pursuit again, the crawling sensation at her back. She was almost safe. But not quite. She did not wait for the footman to catch up to her but flung the library doors wide for herself and hurried inside.
He was standing not far from the door, his back to her, but he turned at its abrupt opening, a look of surprise on his face. She hurried straight into his arms, her eyes closing even before she reached her destination, her face burying itself against the solid safety of his chest. She wrapped her arms about his waist even as she felt his arms come about her. She breathed in deeply the warm, safe smell of him. She was safe at last. At last. She sighed and relaxed her weight against him.
But he would not allow her to cling to the safety for long. He set his hands on her shoulders and moved them firmly away from him so that he could see her face. His head dipped down and his eyes searched hers.
“Emmy?” he said. “What is it? What has happened? ’Tis all right, my love. I am here. I have you safe.”
She could not see beyond the blessedly safe circle of his face and chest and shoulders and arms. But her mind had caught up to her panic. And she realized that he had not been alone in the library when she had entered it. She released her hold on Ashley, stepped back, and looked beyond him. Luke was standing close to the window, his hands clasped at his back, his eyes intent on her. And there was someone else by the fireside. She could not for the moment turn her eyes to look at him. She jerked her head back in Ashley’s direction.
He looked at her with silent concern for a moment, but he must have felt some awkwardness in the situation. Her mind had not quite begun to grasp it. “Emmy,” he said, “I have had an unexpected pleasure this morning. Here is my particular friend home from India with his regiment and come to visit me. Meet Major Roderick Cunningham. Rod, may I present Lady Emily Marlowe, the Earl of Royce’s sister, Luke’s sister-in-law?”
Her eyes moved to him at last. And she could see that in the same moment as she recognized him, he recognized her. But his reaction was as controlled as she hoped hers was. He smiled slowly and made her an elegant bow. “Lady Emily,” he said, “’tis my pleasure and my good fortune to arrive here at this particular time.”
Instinct had her making him a curtsy in return. Ashley must have been saying something, but now that she had finally looked at his visitor, Emily could not look away from the man who had wanted to ravish her for half a sovereign just a couple of hours before. She could feel Ashley’s hand resting lightly against the back of her waist.
“Indeed?” Major Cunningham said after a pause. “One would never have guessed. Remarkable. But do you not tire of always watching lips, Lady Emily?” His smile lit up his face and was suggestive of deep charm.
The hand at her waist turned her slightly. Ashley’s eyes were still full of concern. “But what frightened you, Emmy?” he asked. “What happened?”
She shook her head. She was not sure she was not going to faint or vomit, but perhaps she would do neither if he but kept his hand against her. This man was his friend? He was an army officer, a man bound by the code of chivalry and honor? And he had come to visit? To stay? She smiled.
Ashley’s eyes went beyond her for a moment and then looked back. “Yes,” he said, “’twill be best. Luke will take you to Anna, Emmy. I will talk with you later, or any time you have need of me. I am going to see Roderick settled. I will twist his arm and persuade him to stay for a week or so. What a very pleasant week this is going to be.” His smile was warm and happy.
Luke was beside her then, drawing her arm firmly through his, turning her in the direction of the door.
She was very naive, Emily admitted to herself. Despite her month in London, she knew very little about life as it was lived beyond the confines of a sheltered country estate. But she did know that many men—perhaps most men—did not live celibate lives. She was even aware—or thought she was aware—that many men thought any woman beneath the rank of lady fair game for their gallantry, a strangely euphemistic word. Was it possible that there had been nothing so very heinous about Major Cunningham’s behavior, given the misunderstanding engendered by her appearance?
Oh, but there had been, she thought. There had. She had said no—she had even spoken the word aloud—and he had been in the process of ignoring her refusal. He had been about to ravish her. Surely he had been about to ravish her.
“My dear.” Luke paused on the first landing of the staircase, a private place, and set a hand over hers to bring her eyes to his face. “You were very frightened.”
She stared mutely at him.
“Something happened to terrify you,” he said. “You went to the library to the protection of Ashley only to discover that he was entertaining a newly arrived guest. ’Twas unfortunate. Will I do as a substitute? Will you tell me what frightened you? Shall we find pen and paper?”
Luke had been both brother and father to her for eight years. She loved him dearly and trusted him utterly. She swallowed. And remembered that Major Cunningham was Ashley’s friend. And that perhaps that sort of behavior was not considered so very reprehensible among gentlemen. But it would be seen as reprehensible if they knew the major had treatedherso. They would have to do something about it, both Luke and Ashley. There would be dreadful unpleasantness. Ashley had looked so very happy to see his friend again.
She shook her head and then shrugged and smiled.It was nothing,the gestures told Luke.
Luke’s cool gray eyes could be the most fearsome things. They probed hers for a long while.
“I will bring you to Anna,” he said at last. “’Tis time for us to take the children outside. You will come with us, my dear, where you will feel safe. And where you willbesafe. I will not allow any harm to come to you.”
She smiled at him as he patted her hand and looked deeply into her eyes again. She was safe now, she thought. And would be safe even though he was to be a guest here for the next week. She would be safe now that he knew who she was.
She did not feel safe. The normally comfortable silence was full of unknown terrors.
20
HEfelt for the rest of the day that he had failed her in some way. She had needed his help—quite badly needed it, to have come hurtling into the library and hurling herself against him as she had when, even without the presence of Luke and Roderick in the room, there had been a footman coming up behind her and standing gawking in the open doorway, until he had withdrawn hastily at Ashley’s pointed look and closed the door behind him.
She had come for his help and he had been unable to answer her need because he had been entertaining. He had solved the problem by sending her away with Luke in order to find Anna—though he had not doubted that Luke would try to handle the situation himself. He had failed—she had been unwilling to confide in either him or Anna, Luke had told him later. She had pretended that all was well.
And she had told him the same thing when he had drawn her aside briefly after their midday meal. She had told him with shrugs and sunny smiles and blank eyes that all was well, that nothing had really been wrong in the first place. And she had run upstairs for her straw hat so that she might accompany Anna on return visits to ladies who had called during the past few days.
She had been smiling and serene when she returned and during dinner, at which they had other guests in addition to Roderick, and for an hour in the drawing room afterward. She retired early, disappearing quietly from the room. Perhaps only he noticed. They had had a silent conversation across the room before she went, using one of their oldest agreed-upon series of hand gestures.
Are you uncomfortable?he had asked, spreading his hands palms down in his lap and shaking them slightly.
