“I missed you as well, Nessa.” If she were going to call him Crisp, then he was going to return to the nickname he’d given her after she had shortened his name.
“You are the only person who has ever called me that. I don’t like it any more now than I did then,” she chastised, even though there was nothing but warmth and humor in her blue eyes.
“Very well,Vanessa.” It was so good to be here, with her, as if no time had passed. “What did she mean about your little hobby?”
“It is not a hobby. I not only can spot a pickpocket in a ballroom or on the street, but I’ve been known to find items myself. If I were a man, I would have already been allowed a position with Bow Street, but since I am a mere female, it remains ahobbyto keep me entertained into spinsterhood.”
He never dreamed that Vanessa would be placed on the shelf, and he couldn’t fathom how such had happened.
“I’d even wager that I am as good a finder of people and things as you are, Crisp.”
He chuckled “Is that so?”
Vanessa notched her chin, much like she’d done so long ago when determined. “It is.”
Crisp leaned forward. “Perhaps we should make a wager as to who will find the ruby first?”
“As we are working as a team, and not separately, wouldn’t we find it at the same time?”
“Not necessarily. It could be that one of us sees it before the other even if we are standing beside each other.”
Vanessa stared at him with narrowed eyes. “Very well, I will accept your wager, if only to prove to you that you are not the only finder of all things.”
“The only question that remains is what each is willing to lose?”
Vanessa pursed her lips. “Let me think on it, for I am certain you have something that I want.”
Crisp knew exactly what he wished to claim from Vanessa but would not voice his choice until she had declared hers.
Goodness, they were to wager, and this was the perfect opportunity to gain something that she’d always wanted and dreamed of, but Vanessa didn’t dare voice her desires right now. They’d just become reacquainted after so long and he might think her wanton for making such a suggestion. Therefore, she’d wait, but not too long because they may find the ruby first.
Correction,shewould find the ruby first because it would not only prove that she was as good a finder as Crisp, but sheneededto win their wager. “Let’s read the first riddle and see if we can’t win the scavenger huntandfind the ruby.”
“We don’t really need to win the scavenger hunt. It is not why we are here,” Crisp reminded her.
“We must win,” she insisted. “You have a certain reputation, as do I. What would people think if a bunch of innocent misses and spoiled lords beat us?”
Crisp laughed. “I take your point. We’ll find the items then look for the ruby.” He lifted the sheet. “The first riddle is,follow the path of Apollo.”
Vanessa frowned. “Apollo?”
“I’m assuming a statue would be too obvious,” Crisp mused.
“Pathofcould be several things. He was the God of archery, music, dance, sun, and light.” Vanessa tried to recall all that she knew of Apollo.
She and Crisp both turned and looked about. There were several statues on the estate, which was where all the other guests were going, but she dismissed something so obvious and easy.
“We should first search for a sundial. If not there, then archery stands. If neither exists, then we go inside,” Crisp suggested.
“To the music room?”
He nodded.
“I am in complete agreement, though shouldn’tyoulook for the sundial andIwill search for anything to do with archery?”
“We are to stay together,” Crisp reminded her.
“I don’t think those rules apply to us,” Vanessa argued. “We aren’t really here for the scavenger hunt.”
