Crossings. Northwoods. The fire at the hunting lodge and now another one at theDomus Emporium. There were too many threads tangled together, and the last thing he wanted was for Melanie to be caught in them.
When he reached his townhouse, he acknowledged Tipton with a curt nod and headed straight upstairs. He ought to turn in for the night, or at least get some work done, but he instead found himself drawn to the nursery once again.
The nursemaid wasn’t anywhere to be seen when he stepped inside, and he didn’t hear her moving about nearby either. She must have already retired for the night in the adjoining room.
As for Ernest, the baby was fast asleep in his cradle, his tiny belly rising and falling with each breath. Malum paused. There was a special sort of stillness that came from watching a sleeping child.
He crossed the room to the window, unlatched it, and pushed it open, letting the air cool his face. His gaze drifted outward, skimming over the quiet image of the city, one that was deceptively peaceful. In a place like London, danger was ever present, in the shadows cast by the moonlight, in the gutters and alleyways—but also beneath the chandeliers of glittering ballrooms.
Across the street, Rutherford Place appeared dark and empty. The faint scent of flowers caught his attention, and his eyes shifted to the trellises climbing the exterior of her home.
He exhaled a long, even sigh.
Crossings may not have personally set that fire at theDomus, but Malum had no doubt the duke was somehow behind it. As Malum and the rotten rakes tightened the noose, the man’s paranoia would only grow… and that made him unpredictable… dangerous. Malum had suspected all along that this would be the case, he simply hadn’t considered…
Melanie.
The memory of her tonight—the feel of her, the taste of her—flickered through his mind. Lying with her had been reckless. Foolish. And yet, there was no use regretting it. All he could do now was decide how he should proceed.
He wanted nothing more than to keep her close, but he dreaded what might happen if, when Crossings looked upon her, he saw a weakness to be exploited, a pathway to victory.
He would be right to see her as such.
Where Ernest was concerned, Malum had gone out of his way to make the Harcroft brothers believe he didn’t care. Showing affection—or worse, attachment—would have painted a target squarely on the child’s back. It would have made Malum vulnerable, and he couldn’t afford that.
So why, in the devil’s name, hadn’t he applied the same reasoning to Melanie? Agreeing to a public, albeit temporary, engagement, taking that damn ride through the park… He hadn’t been thinking.
And now, the consequences were coming due.
Was it already too late? Would the danger remain, regardless of what he did now, or could it still be averted by keeping her out of sight?
Malum… didn’t know the answer. His thoughts were going in circles, but the one thing he kept coming back to, over and over again…
He wanted her.
He leaned against the window frame.
And he waited.
SISTERS
Josie had fetched Melanie moments ago, their mother already eager to depart for home, yet now they stood idly in Reed’s foyer as everyone lingered over their goodbyes. Shifting uncomfortably, Melanie’s hands smoothed over the creases in her gown for the hundredth time.
No one had questioned Malum’s early departure, and that was a relief. But how could they not notice? How could they not see that something monumental had happened outside in that courtyard? She’d just experienced a life-changing event. How was it possible there was no visible sign?
Her chest tightened at the thought. She’d shown no restraint whatsoever. She’d practically thrown herself at him.
She was no longer untouched.
“Really, Mel?” Caroline’s voice right beside her ear nearly had Melanie jumping out of her skin. Her sister shook her head with a smirk that had Melanie’s heart jumping up into her throat. Did she know…?
Caroline reached up, plucked something out of Melanie’s hair, and then held a stray blade of grass between them. “Stargazing again?”
“What—? I mean. Oh. Yes. You caught me.” Melanie forced a sheepish smile. “It’s a beautiful night,” she added, ignoring the silent question in her older sister’s eyes.
Perhaps the signs weren’t so invisible after all…
Although, if Caroline had any idea as to what had actually taken place, there was no way she’d be laughing and smiling right now.
