“Seven from Lord Arden,” Nik announces to the room at large, repeating Zee’s words as he has for each punishment. He raises the cane—
“Stop.”
Nik steps aside at once, and I glance over my shoulder before standing upright again, confused.
Lord Arden has come forward into the semi-circle of sofas and seats, and there are two spots of red color in his otherwise pale cheeks. “Stop,” he says again, although Nik has already stopped.
Zee is the first to speak into the electric atmosphere. “You object, Lord Arden?”
He turns to her with his chin high. “Oliver was assigned to me this weekend. His infractions were awarded solely by me. Therefore,Ishall be the one to dispense punishment.”
There’s—not a gasp, not even a whisper, but definitely a shifting of air in the room.
Zee looks at me, and Haughty Hottie rushes to fill in what she’s obviously thinking: “IfOliver consents, of course.”
I’m standing there with my mouth open, looking between Lord Arden and Zee for a long moment, until I get it together enough to say, “Sure. Yeah. Um, I mean,yes. Yes, ma’am. I do consent. Green.”
I’ve finally found the magic word. Zee gives a gracious smile. “Then as you wish,” she says to Lord Arden.
Nik holds out the cane, offering it to Lord Arden. But then myveryHaughty Hottie adds two more words to his request: “In private.”
There’s a definite whisper around the roomthattime, the staff shooting looks at each other, even murmuring together if they’re close enough.
Zee is not the kind of woman who ever looks taken aback, but I think she’s pretty close to it now. “In private?” she repeats, with a close look at her guest. “May I have a word, Elliot?”
The whole room watches the two of them head to the back of the room, where Zee seems to ask a few quiet questions, and Lord Arden answers with clipped, one-word responses. I hear only one phrase drifting over, Zee saying, “…supposed to befun,Elliot…”, to which he has, as far as I can see, no response but a mute, owl-eyed stare.
She sighs.
I want to ask Nik if this is normal, but I stay quiet. I’m as astonished as everyone else. As far asIknew, Haughty Hottie was one hundred percentdonewith me.
Zee comes back to the group again, and the whispers fall silent at once. “Oliver,” she says kindly, softly, “Lord Arden would prefer to punish you in private, in his rooms. But you are under no obligation at all to—”
“That’s fine.” It’s out of me before I can even think it through, so fast and loud that there’s a little laugh from some of the staff members afterward. But I want a chance to apologize for whatever I’ve done to offend Lord Arden—especially if tonight is the last night I’ll have the chance.
There’s something unbearably fragile under that icy exterior. Something…interesting.
Nik murmurs to me, “You’re sure you don’t want to call red? Or even yellow?”
“No,” I murmur back. “I’m green all the way.”
That seems to reassure him, and he nods at Zee.
“Alright, then,” she says, after only one more pause. “Lord Arden and Oliver will be leaving us for the night.”
“Goodnight, Lord Arden. Goodnight, Oliver,” chorus a score of voices.
Daniel gives me a sly wink as I follow Haughty Hottie out of the room, and only then do I wonder what I’m getting myself into.
CHAPTER10
Elliot
It’s a good thing that Oliver is following me, rather than the other way around, so there’s no risk of him seeing my face. I’m sure my emotions are writ plain across them, although I’m not entirely sure myself what those emotionsare.
What am I doing?
I havecompletelydisregarded house protocols, embarrassed myself and my host, and, worst of all, in a few moments I shall be alone with Oliver. That, I am certain, is a very dangerous thing.
