Shedidlove this man. It hadn’t been a mere reaction when she saw him lying there, when she thought he might be gone forever. She did love him, and the feeling wasn’t fading, but offering her more proof as she tried to force herself not to overthink or over-plan or over-anything.
And here she was, slipping from the family quarters, past the guest quarters, up the stairs into the servant quarters where she’d left Morgan hours before. She needed to see him. To finish the conversation that hadn’t been able to be private after his attack. To make sure he was whole and safe. Because she needed that to be true more than she needed breath or food or water. She needed to touch him and feel his warmth that proved he still existed in her world.
She stepped up to his door, and the nerve she’d somehow found after years of being passive faltered. What if she knocked and he didn’t answer? Or worse, turned her away? What then?
“Then you’ll know your heart is a fool,” she muttered as she raised a fist, drew a breath and knocked.
There was a pause and then a rustling from behind the door. Then Morgan’s voice called out, “Enter.” As she opened the door, he continued from the bed, “You may tell Brighthollow that he needn’t keep sending up compresses. I appreciate the doting from the staff, but I am…”
He trailed off as she slipped inside the room and shut the door. “…fine.”
He wasn’t wearing a shirt, though the blankets were tucked around his waist. Still, there was a lot of very toned flesh on display, and she boggled for a moment at how beautiful he was. How could he be so beautiful?
But then her gaze lifted, and she flinched as the firelight and candlelight danced off the angles of his handsome face. Both his eyes were black, as was his temple.
“Your bruises,” she whispered, blinking at tears that leapt to her eyes in the face of his pain.
He lifted a hand and touched the purple skin. “They don’t hurt…much.”
He smiled at the quip. She didn’t.
He cleared his throat. “You are here.”
“I am,” she said, and clenched her hands behind her back. What in the world had she been planning by coming here? She could scarcely recall when he was so close.
“Why are you here, Elizabeth?” he whispered.
She blinked. She’d been telling herself it was just to check on him, but it wasn’t. That was just the excuse she’d used. And now she stood there, with him in his bed, and she knew why she’d really come. The answer terrified her.
She glanced down at her feet. “Are you not going to rise, Mr. Banfield?”
He chuckled. “I’m not wearing any clothes, my lady. If I rise, I think that would shock you.”
Her eyes went wide and she choked out, “O-oh. Well, then probably best to stay where you are.” She worried her lip. So he was naked. Well, that was something. Just a tug of that blanket and…
She shook her head. “We didn’t get a chance to speak after your attack,” she said.
He nodded slowly. “And you have questions.”
“I suppose we all have questions,” she said. “Perhaps I’m not owed answers.”
“You are owed answers more than anyone else,” he said, and his gaze held hers steadily. “You know why.”
She swallowed hard. He was talking about what had happened between them earlier that night. He was talking about the connection that bound them. He might not know that she loved him. He might never know that if she chose to keep it secret, but that they were attracted and connected was obvious to them both.
“Before the doctor came, it was evident you recognized the cufflinks your attacker left behind,” she said softly. “Who was he? Why would he do this?”
He let out his breath in a shaky sigh and she saw shame cross his face. It was a funny thing to see it. Morgan so often wore a mask before others. A face that deceived and tricked and played a game. But now it had slipped and she saw the truth. Dark and deep.
“What did you do?” she asked.
He dropped his chin. “Thatis the better question. I do know who the cufflinks belong to. Gareth Covington.”
She inched a little closer. “And who is Gareth Covington?” she pressed.
His mouth twisted. He struggled with the answer and her heart hurt for him. Feared for him.
She drew a short breath. “Earlier tonight you promised me no judgment. No reprisals. And I offer you the same thing now.”
