When Rosie went downstairs, she had a skirmish with Andrew’s guards, which she ended by saying, “If you don’t take me, I’ll hail a hackney and go on my own.” Ten minutes later, she was in a carriage headed for the Nursery House, accompanied by an armed retinue.
They arrived in a part of town Rosie had never been before. Here, the streets were narrow and winding, alleyways branching off like dark veins. Crowds flooded the street, a motley mix of locals, brightly painted prostitutes, and even a few well-to-do gentlemen out to sample the debauchery of the stews. Pickpockets darted through the sea of bodies like hungry minnows.
The carriage turned into a back lane, stopping at black iron gates. Rosie’s escorts conferred with the men standing guard, and the gate was opened, the conveyance pulling into a courtyard which abutted the back of a squat brick building.
“Stay ’ere, my lady,” one of the guards instructed.
A few minutes later, she heard footsteps, and the carriage door was yanked open. Andrew stood there, glowering at her. He was in his shirtsleeves, the white linen over his chest covered in…blood? Rosie’s heart jammed in her throat.
“What the devil are you doing here?” he thundered.
Panicked, she reached out to pat his chest. “Are you hurt? Why are you bleeding—”
“The blood’s not mine.” He seized both her hands in one of his. “I repeat: why are you here?”
His anger sank in. Recognizing that her decision to seek him out might not have been the most prudent, she squirmed in her seat. Her jealousy over Fanny had fueled her recklessness, and one glimpse at Andrew’s foreboding expression told her there was no way she could share that.
“I had a bad dream,” she mumbled (which was true). “When I woke up, you weren’t there, and I had a dreadful feeling that something had happened to you.”
“I sent you a message.”
“I know. And I thought… I might be able to help.” She took a breath and went to the heart of the matter. The truth that went deeper than her stupid jealousy. “You’re always dealing with my troubles, and for once I wanted to reciprocate.”
He stared at her. “You thought you could help me?”
He made it sound as if the likelihood of her being of use was slightly less than the possibility of teaching a pig to fly. And thathurt. While she was used to thetonthinking of her as a shallow flirt, she didn’t expect it of Andrew. He’d helped her to regain confidence in herself, to accept her own desires and the foibles of her nature. He’d protected her and, at the same time, he’d respected her independence in a way that no one—not even her family—had before.
Now, confronted with his incredulity, she couldn’t help but wonder if she’d been blinded by her feelings for him. The voice in her head that had always whispered that he was too good for her—too good to be true—now declared,Didn’t I tell you, you ninny? You’re merely a pretty ornament, one to share a bed with. Did you think you had more to offer him?
Pain spread like cracks through porcelain. “Do you think so little of me?”
“That has nothing to do with it.” His brows snapped together. “You shouldn’t be here. You’re risking not only your neck but your reputation—”
“Corbett, where the blooming ’ell are you?” Fanny Argent appeared behind Andrew, her gaze fixing on Rosie. “Mary’s tits, what’sshedoing here? We ’ave enough on our ’ands without—”
“Shut up, Fanny.” Any glee that Rosie might have felt at Andrew’s clipped words to his employee evaporated at his next words. “She’s leaving.”
“Good riddance,” Fanny said with a sniff.
I don’t thinkso.Rage spilled inside Rosie, distracting from her heartache.If that… thatcronethinks she can get away with dismissing me…
Pulling down her veil to shield her face, Rosie pushed both hands into Andrew’s chest. Andrew staggered back a step, obviously unprepared for her actions—probably because he thought she would be a good little girl and go home like he ordered—and she used that opportunity to hop down from the carriage, her half-boots hitting the ground.
Facing Fanny, she said, “I’m not going anywhere. Whatever problem Andrew is dealing with, I can help him with it as well as you.”
“You think so?” The bawd’s smirk was visible even through the filter of Rosie’s veil. “’Ow many brats ’ave you pulled into the world with yer lily-white ’ands, eh?”
That was what Andrew and Fanny were doing… assisting in a childbirth?
Rosie had never attended a birthing, seeing as she’d been an unmarried miss until recentlyandshe was squeamish by nature. Her belly gave an uneasy flutter, but she lifted her chin. There was no way she was backing down to Fanny.
“I can follow the physician’s orders as well as anybody.” She prayed this would be limited to fetching things like hot water, towels, and whatnot—errands that would keep her out of the birthing chamber as much as possible.
“Physician?” Fanny’s laugh was like a slap to the face. “Do you think Corbett and I would be elbow deep in blood and guts if we ’ad a quack around to ’elp?”
Blood… andguts?Eww.
Bile hit her throat, yet Rosie stood her ground. “Well, you have someone to help now. Me.”
