“Hush, you little minx.” Carlisle’s breath heated her ear. “They might hear us up above.”
He was lying on his back, and she was sprawled atop him. They were in some sort of concealed compartment beneath the stage; above them, the trapdoor through which they’d fallen had closed again, a faint line of light seeping through.
Squinting in the dimness, she gauged that the low-ceilinged space was only a bit bigger than the Priest Hole. A short ladder rested on its side against one wall. Looking up, she guessed that she and Carlisle had fallen a good seven feet. She recalled him twisting mid-plunge to bear the brunt of the impact.
“Are you all right?” she whispered.
“I’m fine,” came his reply. “There’s a mattress beneath me.”
“This must be The Great Nicoletti’sWardrobe of Vanishing Wonders. The wardrobe has a false floor—that’s how he disappears. And, to reappear, he just climbs up the ladder.” Tickled, Vi said, “I figured out his secret.”
“Bravo,” Carlisle said dryly.
Footsteps thudded overhead. Carlisle’s arms closed around her, holding her still as hinges creaked. Vi’s breath held; someone had opened the wardrobe up above.
“See? Nofin’ inside,” said a man’s voice.
“But I could have sworn I heard something.” Violet recognized the simpering female tones as Mrs. Sumner’s. “You’re certain there’s no one in there, Tobias?”
Tobias Price, one of Billings’ cutthroat clients, Vi recalled. A bearded, barrel-chested man.
“Look for yourself, dove: ’tis as bare as a babe’s arse inside.”
“You’re right. It must be my nerves. They’ve suffered such a shock from Madame Monique’s untimely demise.”
“O’ course they would, you bein’ a true lady,” Price rumbled. “But you’ve nothin’ to fear when you’re with me. Even the devil knows be’er than to cross Tobias Price.”
“I doadorea strong gent. But it’s not the devil I fear.” A coy pause. “Can you keep a secret?”
“Did Mary ’ave tits?”
“Well, I heard from my maid who heard from one of Billings’ servants that a footman came uponLord Wormleighand Madame Monique having words the night she died.”
“That bloated old nob?” A snort. “’E’s no killer.”
“I read sensation novels. Killers are those oneleastsuspects. Besides, my maid also said that Wormleigh was seen by the library later that night—and that, as you know,” Mrs. Sumner said triumphantly, “was where Monique was found.”
Another snort. “I’d put my blunt on one o’ the filly’s studs. She ’ad a stable o’ gents, and talk ’as it that some are at the party. Any one of ’em could ’ave the done the deed.”
“You weren’t one of her studs, were you, Tobias?” Mrs. Sumner said archly.
A guffaw. “Not jealous, are you?”
“I don’t like to bathe in dirty water,” she said with a sniff.
“No need to be coy. I think you like to play dirty—that’s why you approached me. Now come ’ere, dove, and let Tobias soil you some more…”
The door slammed on the wardrobe, muffling the laughter. The pair’s footsteps moved over and off the stage. Their moans and grunts were distant, coming from the seating area.
“Did you hear that?” Violet said in an excited whisper. “About Wormleigh? And Monique’sotherlovers?”
“More leads to follow. In the interim, we’ll have to, er, wait Price and Mrs. Sumner out.”
At that moment, Violet became acutely aware of the fact that she was still lying atop of Carlisle, his arms wrapped around her. Beneath her cheek, his heart thumped in a potent, virile rhythm. Thrill, and a bit of mischief, wound through her. Despite his irritating tendency to be overprotective, here they were again, sharing another adventure together.
With her elbows on his chest, she propped her head in her hands and looked at him. The dim light limned his granite features, the sensual pools of his eyes. She recalled his gruff statement that he couldn’t hold a candle to Wick—utter codswallop, as far as she was concerned—and the surprise he’d tried to conceal when she told him that she found him attractive.
In truth, he was the most compelling man she’d ever met. She admired him: his honor, strength, and loyalty. To think, all this time she’d believed he was bullying Wick when he’d been working tirelessly to help his brother! Remorse filled her; she wanted to make it up to him. She also wanted him to understand that she wasn’t some fragile dandelion that would fly apart at a puff of air.
