They were almost home when she tripped again, caught once more against his strong body. There was something shockingly delicious about it, about the warmth and strength of him, and she let out a happy little sigh as she straightened herself. “Sorry,” she said, not in the slightest bit sorry.
He looked down at her. “Lift up your skirts,” he said in his low voice.
“In public?” she said. She should have blushed at his abrupt command, but she wasn’t one for blushing.
He didn’t even look around to see if someone was watching. “In public.”
She did so, exposing her not so tiny feet in the far too tiny walking boots. “They’re not so bad,” she said, but Rafferty had let out a low curse, and a moment later he’d scooped her up in his arms.
She let out a little whoop of surprise as he carried her, and while she wanted to do nothing more than enjoy the sensation, she knew she had to look out for him.
“If someone sees us, you’ll be in trouble,” she said, unable to keep the anxiety out of her voice.
“There’s no one around.”
She turned in his arms to look, and sure enough, the street near their house was almost empty, save for a few delivery wagons. A moment later, he was down the few short steps to the alley leading to the kitchen, and she let her head rest against his shoulder for a brief moment. It was too tempting to resist.
“What is it now?” Bertha demanded when he pushed through the door. “Miss Georgie, what tricks have you been pulling?”
He set her down carefully, and she immediately sank into one of the kitchen chairs, determined not to show that she missed the feel of his arms around her. “No tricks, Bertha. My shoes are too tight.”
“And well I know that. You should have taken Miss Norah’s. Better yet, you should have stayed at home and let Rafferty do what he could. Maybe without you tagging along he wouldn’t have failed.”
“He didn’t fail, Bertha,” she said earnestly, rubbing her foot in the boot. “There’ll be deliveries this afternoon.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it. In the meantime, you’d best go up to your room before your mother hears you’ve been out gallivanting.”
“I like gallivanting,” she said defiantly.
“You should know better!”
“You need to get those boots off,” Rafferty interrupted. “Do you need me to carry you to your room...”
“She does not!” Bertha said. “She’s been wearing those boots for months now—they aren’t going to kill her. Go along with you now, and I’ll bring tea up later. I have a few words to say to Rafferty.”
Georgie looked between the two of them. Bertha was looking grim, Raffety his usual cool unreadable self. She wracked her brain for a reason to stay longer, but she was coming up blank, and she really did need to get these blasted boots off. She savored the curse word. Blasted. There was something deliciously shocking about it.
Slowly she rose, determined not to evince one sign of pain, and she smiled at Rafferty. “You could send Rafferty up with my tea.”
“I could not. He’ll have enough things to do. Go along with you.”
She gave him one last glance before heading for the servants’ staircase, over Bertha’s objections, and she didn’t start limping again until she was out of sight.
Rafferty turned back to Bertha, more than aware he was about to have his head handed to him. Too bad the deliveries hadn’t arrived yet—it would sweeten her mood.
“You don’t belong here,” she said.
Rafferty smiled faintly. “No, I don’t suppose I do, but it’ll suit me well enough for the next few weeks.”
Bertha scowled. “That foolish little girl is falling in love with you, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
“I noticed. She’ll get over it. They all do.” He moved over to the window to make sure no one had followed them—an old habit but one hard to break.
“Miss Georgie isn’t like most silly young girls. She’s got a heart of gold, she has, and I’m not going to stand by and watch you break it.”
He turned back to her, unmoved. “That’s the last thing I want to do. Don’t worry—she’ll forget all about me the moment I’m gone.”
“Not planning to stay long? I’m not surprised. I’ve never seen anyone less like a butler in my life. The sooner you’re on your way, the better.”
