Harry thanked the madam and took his leave. He stepped into the night air, his head spinning like a man who’d just received a blow to the head. Or one who was finally waking up.
16
Tessa stealthily crossedthe courtyard toward the mews, her arms wrapped around a large box. She’d forgone a lamp and timed her journey to minimize the chance of being detected. The night air brushed against her cheeks, cool and invigorating after the hour she’d spent tossing in her bed. She hadn’t been able to sleep. The moment her eyes closed, she’d seen the faces of Ned and Josiah and those of their weeping families whom she’d visited today, and helpless anguish had filled her.
She could do nothing for those two brave soldiers, and the menace was still at large. Her hope lay in Bennett: before supper, he’d told her he would be out this evening pursuing a lead. As glad as she was that he was making progress, she was also worried about his safety.
To distract herself, she’d decided to plant his surprise while he was out.
Hence the box in her arms and her climb up the steps to Bennett’s room above the stables. At his door, she saw the darkened window and knew he was still out. Her timing was perfect. When he returned, he would be surprised and, hopefully, pleased by her gift.
It was part of her campaign to win him over. She was reasonably certain that he desired her physically. She might be a virgin, but she couldn’t miss his obvious arousal the two times they’d kissed. Thus, she reasoned his ambivalence toward her must have to do with her other shortcomings.
Glumly, she recalled how Bennett had called her a spoiled brat. A man like him had probably had his share of bedpartners, women who were more fetching, sophisticated, and feminine than she was. Ladies who didn’t run around in trousers, who knew how to properly flirt, and who didn’t, well,annoythe man they wanted to marry.
Drat. If only she hadn’t played so many tricks on him. She winced as she reviewed her trespasses. To be fair, hehadgot his revenge with the exploding fountain (neat trick, that), yet she had a lot to make up for.
Her chest squeezed.If only I could get Bennett tolikeme.
Gaining approval had never been her forte. For years, she’d tried with her father and her classmates, to no avail. Even Grandpapa, for all that he loved her, refused to see her for who she was. The thought of another rejection, especially from Bennett, caused fear to trickle through her, yet she had to try to win his heart...because he had hers.
Even if it meant exposing herself to ridicule and pain, she had to try. She was going to use a high-risk and potentially high-reward strategy: honesty. Since Bennett had seemed to like her disclosures that night in the billiards room, she reasoned she ought to stick with that tactic. To try to win his admiration by being herself.
It’s worth a try,she thought.I can’t bungle this up any more than I already have, can I?
She reached for the knob. When it didn’t turn, she put down the gift, pulled two hairpins out of her cloak pocket, and made short work of the lock. She pushed the door open, picked up the box, and entered the shadows. Thin ribbons of moonlight slipped through the shutters, limning the outlines of furniture.
Before she could locate a lamp, a rustle sounded behind her. In the next heartbeat, she was yanked backward. Her back slammed into a wall of muscle, an arm circling her throat. Panic swelled.
“Bennett, it’s me,” she choked out.
“Tessa?”
The pressure around her throat instantly eased. She was set on her feet. As she gulped in air, a lamp flared on a nearby table. The glow illuminated the room and Bennett’s austere expression.
“Bloody hell,” he grated out. “Did I hurt you?”
“No, I’m fine. Just need to catch my breath,” she wheezed.
“I could have—” He bit off an oath, shoving a hand through his tousled hair. “What the devil were you thinking, sneaking into my room at this hour?”
Before she could answer, he steered her into the single chair at the table before stalking off. He returned a minute later and shoved a glass into her hands. She took a tentative sip; the brandy’s warmth soothed her throat.
“Well?” Bennett said.
He stood, scowling at her, his arms crossed, and it hit her: he was wearing a dressing gown…and nothing else. The well-worn navy fabric molded to his broad shoulders and revealed the strong column of his neck. Her gaze darted downward to the vee between his lapels, her pulse tripping. His chest looked like carved granite, the slabs of defined muscle dusted with dark hair.
The robe clung to his sinewy arms and narrow hips, ending below his knees. Below the hem, his naked calves bulged. His feet were large and bare.
Heat that had nothing to do with the brandy pooled in her belly. Beneath her cloak, her nipples tingled against her night rail. Zounds, he was beautiful.
“I’m waiting,” Bennett ground out.
And, unfortunately, not in a lovey-dovey mood.
“I thought you would be out tonight.” Popping up, she went to retrieve the gift she’d dropped in the scuffle. “And I came to leave you, um, something.”
A wave of self-consciousness struck her. Suddenly, she felt like an awkward schoolgirl bringing an apple for the tutor for whom she’s developed a tendre.
