Marianne gasped at the nasty accusation and pushed her chair back slightly as the accused, Wilcox got up and leaned across the table toward her. “Do you know who I am, bitch? Do you know what I can do?”
Fear streaked through her, its cold hand chilling every part of her body. She’d never been spoken to in such a manner before and she realized how badly she had miscalculated this interaction in her naivety. Slowly she stood and held up her hands to block her face, just as Sebastian had taught her when they sparred. But she didn’t think one of her punches could stop this man. Perhaps, though, she could still calm the angry bull who looked ready to charge.
“I wasn’t trying to cause trouble, only to play a fair game, sir.”
“And we’ll have one. You’re banned, Wilcox!”
The banker lifted a hand to motion for someone to come over, likely to escort the angry man out, but before he could, Wilcox lunged at her. She staggered back, crashing into her own chair as she covered her head with her hands and waited to be struck. Only it didn’t happen because before he could reach her another man shoved his way between them and pushed the cheat so hard that he stumbled backward and fell across the table behind him.
There was a great deal of shouting and then a true fight began, sending everyone from her table rushing to join the battle. She looked up to see who her savior was and felt all the color drain from her cheeks as she realized it was Sebastian. He was here, and he was glaring down at her as he grabbed her hand and began to drag her away from the melee that had begun.
“What were you thinking, Marianne?” he hissed.
She could formulate no answer for she had never seen Sebastian like this before. His bright eyes had no teasing light in them, but were dark with emotion and his fingers gripped hers with almost desperation as he pulled her across the room.
“Answer me!” he insisted, moving her ever closer to the door.
Behind them, Mr. Lanford suddenly rushed up, his face red and his breath short. “Great God, Ramsbury, I didn’t think you were going to join us!”
Sebastian turned an even more thunderous expression on him. “Outside with you, too,” he grunted, and motioned toward the door.
Chaos reigned behind them as he maneuvered them outside where people were either streaming out of the building to escape the punches being thrown or rushing in to take part in the fray.
Once Sebastian had gotten them to where the carriages were parked, away from some of the cacophony of the hell, he released Marianne and grabbed Lanford by the lapels. As Marianne jerked her hand up to cover her mouth, Sebastian slammed him into the side of the closest carriage.
“What the fuck were you thinking, you absolute twat?” he said, too quiet and too close to Lanford’s face.
The other man swallowed, sweat breaking out on his brow. “I-I-I?—”
“You think this place is a for alady?” Sebastian continued. “Do you think that the Earl of Delacourt would be pleased that you took his innocent sister to a hell where a fight would break out just for looking in the wrong direction?”
“I-I thought it would be a laugh,” Lanford managed to gasp out. “I was there, wasn’t I? To-to protect her if need be.”
“Were you?” Sebastian pushed him harder against the vehicle and then dropped him into a heap at his feet. “Because I didn’t see you anywhere near her. I saw you flirting with a lightskirt across the room while Marianne nearly got assaulted by some drunken card cheat.”
He pivoted toward Marianne, his eyes flashing and his hands trembling. “What carriage did you come in?” he asked, his tone sharp and hard.
“I-It was Mr. Lanford’s carriage,” she whispered, tears stinging her eyes.
“Where?” Sebastian barked, turning back to Lanford.
Lanford pointed a few down the row. “That one,” he said. “The blue one.”
“Good. My horse is being held by the groom just there. You will follow us home on him. And you will keep your poxy mouth shut about all of this, do you understand?”
Lanford nodded as he got up and brushed the dirt from the muddy drive off his trousers as best he could. “Y-Yes, my lord.”
Without another word, Sebastian caught Marianne’s elbow and drew her forward again. This time he stopped at the same carriage she had taken to the hell not an hour ago and yanked the door open.
“Take us back to Delacourt’s estate,” he growled at the stunned-looking servant, who cast a quick glance at his muddy master before Sebastian yanked the carriage door shut and locked them into the darkness together.
Lanford must have indicated that the driver follow Sebastian’s order, for not a moment passed before they began to move. Sebastian said nothing, just sat across from her, arms folded, breathing heavily in the oppressive quiet of the carriage.
Marianne shifted and the shock of what had happened began to fade. “How did you know I was here?” she asked.
He was quiet a moment, but the mood in the carriage shifted again, this time she felt…guilt. He almost seemedguiltyeven though she had been the one to do something outrageous.
“Sebastian,” she said.
