Gigi is not coming. I’ve lost her. If I even had her to begin with.
His chest felt oddly tight. Rationally, he knew there was no reason for him to feel this sense of loss, but— Too late, he heard a rustling behind him. He whirled around, fists raised.
“It’s me.”
Gigi’s whispered words were rather unnecessary, since he would recognize her anywhere. She was wearing trousers again. With her hair in two glossy, thick braids, she looked like a mischievous sprite who’d stolen some lad’s outfit. In a heartbeat, Conrad’s aggression morphed into arousal.
“I’ve been watching the front door for an hour,” he said. “How did I miss you?”
“I didn’t leave through the door. I climbed out my window and down a tree.”
“You what?” Assessing the height from the second floor, he turned a scowl upon her. “You could have broken your bloody neck.”
“I told you, descending is easy.” She wrinkled her nose. “I must say, if this is the apology you promised, I might as well climb right back up.”
“This isn’t the apology,” he muttered. “My carriage is waiting. We’ll talk there.”
“Let’s get on with it, shall we?”
Turning smartly on her heel, she headed for the front gate. He followed, his irritation fading at the sight of her long, slender legs. If he had his way, she would wear trousers all the time.
He handed Gigi into the carriage and instructed his groom, Ainsley, to drive around until further notice. As they rolled off, she sat in the corner farthest away from him. Her arms were crossed, and even in the flickering lamplight, he saw that her expression wasn’t the friendliest.
“How did you get Kenny to deliver the message to me?” she asked.
He frowned. “I didn’t twist his arm, if that’s what you are implying. I saw him being besieged by bullies and intervened. He asked me to teach him how to fight, and seeing as he could be blown away by a strong wind, I agreed. After I gave him a few pointers, he insisted on repaying the debt. I refused his savings, of course…but then he mentioned who his mama was. I saw no harm in asking him to deliver a note.”
“Hmm.”
When she did not elaborate, he drew a breath. “Thank you for meeting me.”
“Did you think I wouldn’t?”
“I wasn’t certain you would show. I wasn’t certain I deserved the chance,” he admitted.
She arched her brows. “Then pray do not waste it.”
Despite her delicate beauty, she had a spine of steel. He liked that about her. He liked that while he inspired fear in grown men, she wasn’t intimidated by him—by his wealth or power.
She was a duchess through and through. His duchess.
The recognition flowed through him and illuminated the path forward.
“The apology first,” he said brusquely. “I acted like a bounder at our last meeting.”
“Yes, you did.”
“When you carried out that dashing escape and came back with the rope, I was unforgivably rude. I offer my sincerest apology for the way I acted.”
“Why did you behave that way?”
Of course she would ask.
He studied a crease in his trousers. “Perhaps I thought you would not come back.”
“You thought I would leave you stranded?”
Hearing her surprise, he looked up. “It would not be the first time I found myself in that situation.”
