“Then whyis it that you look so guilty? Have you been up to no good?”
Violet’s back pressed against the wooden shelf, her breath catching at the sudden closeness between them. His arm rested on the edge of the shelf, boxing her in effortlessly. His other hand hung loosely at his side, but it felt like it could easily reach out and catch her wrist—or her chin—at any moment.
Her eyes darted nervously to his face. “I—I don’t know what you mean,” she stammered.
“Oh, I think you do,” he murmured. His voice was quieter now. “What kind of mischief have you been up to, Violet?”
Her throat went dry, and she found herself acutely aware of the way his body angled toward hers. His scent wrapped around her senses, making it impossible to focus.
“I haven’t been doing any mischief,” she managed to say.
Nicholas’ eyes flicked downward for a brief moment and then back at her face.
“Are you nervous, Violet?”
She swallowed hard, unable to summon a coherent response. “W-why would I be?”
“You tell me,” he hummed. “Though if I had to guess, I’d say you do not wish for me to be privy to your reading habits.”
It was at that moment that he seemed to also realize just how close they were to one another. A sudden silence hung over the both of them. Nicholas’ head dipped slightly, and she caught the faintest shift in his breathing,
And for one agonizingly long moment, neither of them moved.
Almost as if they were unable to. Frozen in each other’s company.
Then Nicholas stepped back abruptly, pulling away. He turned his head slightly, clearing his throat as if to compose himself.
“Apologies,” he said, his voice quieter now.
Violet exhaled shakily. The shock of the moment was so immense that the book slipped out of her grasp and fell to the floor with a loud thud—splayed out across the floor for all to see.
Nicholas’ eyes caught on the book then.
“Ah.Sothatexplains why you were so keen on hiding it.”
Violet’s blush deepened if that were even possible. “It’s not—it was just?—”
“You don’t have to explain yourself,” he interrupted, now bursting with amusement. “Or your rather… colourful reading preferences.”
“But they are not my reading preferences,” she defended herself. “I merely stumbled across it; I wasn’treadingit. It was inyourlibrary if you must know. I—I found it by accident.”
“I thought it wasourlibrary just a moment ago? Besides, I am not asking you for an explanation. I amsureit was just an innocent accident.”
Violet opened her mouth to argue, but he stepped back fully then, his eyes flicking briefly to the shelves around them. “You’ve done a good job with the house,” he remarked casually, as though their near-proximity a moment ago hadn’t happened at all. “The changes suit it. You suit it.”
Her heart tripped over itself at the unexpected compliment. “I—thank you,” she stammered, blinking at him.
Nicholas inclined his head, his expression unreadable once more. “Try not to lose yourself too deeply inthatsection of the library, Violet,” he added, turning toward the door. “It’s far more dangerous than you realize.”
Before Violet could muster a reply, he was gone, leaving her standing alone in the vast library, her cheeks still burning and her pulse unsteady.
She looked down at the scandalous book in her hands, groaning softly to herself. “Dangerous,” she muttered under her breath. “The only danger here isyou,Nicholas.”
“So go on then. Tell useverything.Is there any truth to the vampire rumours?”
Daphne and Isadora had arrived earlier that morning, and the three ladies sat in the drawing room to catch each other up on their lives over tea. As expected, Isadora was immediately curious and had jumped straight to the topic of marriage.
Violet took a sip from her cup. “You waste no time do you?”
