The dog gave one last lick to the now clean plate and jumped off the bed. He kept to the walls as he trotted to the bedroom door and escaped.
Julius slammed the door shut behind him. “I can’t believe that animal belongs to Marcus. My friend breathes order and discipline. I would think his dogs would be better trained.”
“Reggie is my sister’s dog.” Amanda wrapped her arms around her sides. “Liz doesn’t mind a bit of spirit.”
“Yes, I noticed that about your sister.” He paced across the room. “But that doesn’t—” He froze. “What are you doing?”
Tugging at the shoulder of her dress, she tried to pull the buttons running down the back into reach. “I’m undressing. You are in my room and have closed the door.” She might not have his confidences or his love, but she had his body and she was determined to make the most of it. She twisted her arm behind her, her fingers brushing the fabric-covered buttons but not quite able to push them through their holes. Why had she let Julius dress her in such an impractical garment? All dresses should be made with buttons running down the front. It only made sense.
“And is that what you want?” He circled behind her.
Amanda dropped her arms and rolled her shoulders, trying to ease the ache. “Honestly, I am indifferent at the moment. But the world seems clearer when we are in bed together and I am less confused. Everything there is straightforward.” Striving to fulfill a physical need was simple, unlike satisfying her emotional state.
“Indifference is a poor argument for bedding someone.” He squeezed her shoulders and turned her to face him. “And that isn’t why I came to your room tonight. I have a request to make of you.”
“And it’s not a request for something special in …” She nodded her head at the bed.
“It is not.” Julius tugged at the knot of his cravat. “I want you to accompany me to a club tonight. I need to ask someone questions, and it will look better if I bring a guest with me.” He rubbed his earlobe. “As I won’t be engaging in my usual activity at this club, you will serve as a distraction of sorts.”
“You think it will look less like you’re a spy if you have a woman on your arm.” Sound reasoning, but they both knew he’d have to find a different woman. A woman who wouldn’t shake with terror from stepping out of doors. One who would stand by his side, laugh at his jokes, purr like a cat in heat under his attentions.
Amanda had a feeling she wouldn’t like this woman.
His jaw dropped open. “How did you … why would you …?”
She took pity. “My sister. She knows that her husband and his friends work for the Crown. Did you really think she wouldn’t tell me?”
He locked his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling. “I hope you will be more discreet.”
Amanda stepped forward and poked his chest. “Liz isn’t running around telling everyone your business. Only me.” National security was important, but sisters didn’t keep secrets. Especially her and Liz. They’d agreed they would never keep anything from the other again. Not after Liz had discovered that their father had been abusing Amanda, and Amanda had never told. “And even if I were so inclined to gossip, which I’m not, who would I tell? I have no friends or associates.”
Julius looked at her with sad eyes and stroked her hair. She leaned into his touch, her flash of anger burning itself out. With a hand at her lower back, he led her to the bed and prodded her shoulders until she sat. He settled next to her, resting his bent knee on the mattress so he could face her.
“I trust you to keep my secret.” He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “Will you help me tonight?”
She pulled his hand away from her face and clasped it between her own. “You know I can’t.”
“You won’t. There’s a difference.”
“Not to me,” she whispered. Her chest burned with shame. Her fear had never truly affected her before. She was content to live hidden away. Even her sister’s admonitions to leave the house didn’t sway her. But Julius had asked for her help, and she couldn’t give it.
For the first time, she wished she were brave.
With a finger under her chin, Julius tilted her face up to look at him. “You cannot spend the rest of your life within doors. You need to try to break out of your prison. And you’ve started. You hardly pause when you leave the house to go into the gardens now. Tonight will be a perfect opportunity to test yourself further. And I don’t think it will be as difficult as you imagine.”
“Why?” Her mind raced, searching for his angle. “Because my duty to my country will overcome my fears?”
He laughed, throwing his head back and exposing the thick column of his neck. Tapping her nose, Julius shook his head. “No, mouse. After what your country almost did to you, I don’t think you owe us anything.” Leaning close, he planted his hands on the bed by her hips, caging her in. “I think tonight you will find the courage because it won’t really be you leaving the house. It will be a different woman. An intrepid woman. A woman in disguise.”
Chapter Ten
A disguise was one word for her outfit. A straight-jacket was another. Yet Amanda couldn’t deny that the French corset, binding her all the way from her hips to her breasts, made her feel secure. She might not be able to draw breath, but she was locked up tight, just as she liked. Breathing was overrated anyhow.
Reaching under the hood of her cloak, she fingered the mask Julius had given her to wear. It was crimson, to match the corset, with feathers extending from the edges. It was beautiful, but what earned Amanda’s admiration was the fact that it covered half her face, making her anonymous. Her heart had barely raced above a flutter when she’d exited the townhouse, concealed as she was. And even though Julius had opened the windows of the carriage, the darkness outside could almost make her believe she was still safely ensconced in her room, not racing through London to a club Julius belonged to.
A Venus club.
Amanda had thought that nothing could shock her senses any longer. She’d been wrong. Julius had spent the first part of their journey describing The Black Rose as though it was nothing more out of the ordinary than a stroll around the Pump Room.
