Chapter 1
“Inever met an obstacle that couldn’t be overcome with the proper tool.”
Jonathan Torren - Gear Master’s Diary
Warmthwoke me.Not the burning heat of a roaring fire, but the soothing, comforting press of bare skin against mine. The unexpectedness of it jerked me awake and sent me tumbling out of bed. I hit the dusty floorboards with a hard thump and lay there while my sleepy brain tried to piece reality together.
“You all right down there?” Duke Justin Lear’s handsome face appeared above me. Lips that had traced every inch of my body last night turned traitorously up at my misfortune. A duke shouldn’t have a mouth made for sin and mischief.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine.” I met his eyes with forced nonchalance. Justin had only stayed overnight a few times. I could still pretend he was unaware of my zombielike shamble before I’d had at least two cups of strong tea.
“Are you going to stay down there?”
I gave an indignant sniff at his amusement. “Yes, I think I am. The mice are better company than my current lover.”
“Ouch.” Justin granted me a sleepy smile. “Whatever can I do to win you away from your unworthy swain?”
Climbing to my feet, I ignored his extended hand. Instead, I offered another sniff and fought back a sneeze. “I must refute your slander. Mr. Grey Mouse is a fine fellow, despite his propensity to steal my crumpet crumbs.”
Justin roared with laughter. “You are quick-witted even half asleep, little wren.”
He often called me wren. He claimed it was because of how I introduced myself. Months ago, my foolish infatuation for a man far above my station had me gifting him one of my mechanical birds. A follow-up introduction from Oss set the stage for our current bed-sharing.
Memories from my dream diverted my attention from the sexy man in my bed. “I’m going downstairs. I think I’ve solved my design issue.”
“Are you certain I can’t lure you back? I’m sure I could occupy that busy mind of yours.” Justin’s seductive grin almost had me sliding back between my worn bedsheets.
Iron resolve, and a hard deadline, helped me resist. “While you are tempting, Your Grace, I promised Mr. Fernhan that I’d have his gift finished in time for his son’s birthday next Sunday.”
Justin’s sigh could’ve powered a sailing ship. He waved a hand at me, shooing me away. “Fine, go be a genius. I have another hour’s rest before I have to rise.” His fond expression warmed me greater than the summer sun. Foolish sentiment perhaps, but an ex-street rat doesn’t often get to bed a duke, and I was going to savor every second of our relationship while it lasted. My ridiculous heart had little hope of surviving the eventual ending of this affair, but maybe after twenty or thirty years I could rebound.
“You do that.” I pressed a quick kiss to his forehead, then rushed away before he could destroy my shaky resolve.
After my first cup of invigorating black tea, I took my second cup with me down to my basement workshop. In all the city, this was my favorite place. A long wooden table covered one side of the room and supported my latest creation. The rest of the space held bins filled with metal and wood and a small path to walk between them. Examples of my work covered the far wall. I tried to keep a sample of each invention, but some, like Oss’s bunny Amalia, couldn’t be replicated. I had no intention of building another rabbit. As it was, I couldn’t explain Amalia’s odd abilities.
Since we opened the gate between the City of Keys and the City of Magic, my personal power levels had increased. After unexpectedly animating a few of my mechanical creatures, I now wore gloves while working. I couldn’t chance my project coming to life and causing havoc upon me or my customer.
Bang! Bang!
The sound of the knocker on my front door had me setting down my work, then sprinting back upstairs, hoping to stop the noise before it woke up Justin. Gasping for breath, I opened the door to discover my charwoman, Janet. She greeted me with a bob halfway between a curtsey and a bow. A fine layer of dust from the street dirtied her skirts.
“Mornin’, sir.” She flashed me a glance through her lashes. “I wasna sure if you would want me to come by today.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Janet came every Tuesday like clockwork to fight back the spider webs and do my laundry.
She bit her lip and shifted uneasily. “Cuz of the rumors, sir. I thought you woulda heard them by now. My cousin Sissy heard them from Darla who’s datin’ Pete, the duke’s footman, you know.”
“No, I didn’t know.” I could already feel a headache building. Janet drank in gossip like a drunkard downing a bottle of ale. “What are you talking about?”
“Oh.” She set her metal pail of cleaning materials down. It clanked loudly against the cobblestones increasing my growing pain. She ignored it, busy straightening her crisp apron, then squared her shoulders and tilted up her chin. “Your sweetie is expectin’ an heir any time now. They say she is fixed to pop within the fortnight.”
My stomach swirled a queasy tidepool of black tea and cream. A startling contrast to the chill crawling across my arms. I cleared my throat. “Wh-who is he having the baby with?”
This wasn’t my first round of betrayal, and it wouldn’t be the last. That didn’t stop the poisoned knife from stabbing deep.
I’m going to kill him.
Janet fiddled at the ringlet lying on her shoulder. “I didna hear a name. I figured it was one of those posh ladies flutterin’ ‘bout him all the time.”
