The mysterious man looked her over without showing so much as a hint of recognition. His brow furrowed, and Lavinia could not tell if he was perplexed by her reaction or if he was puzzled because he truly did not know her name.
“I cannot say that we have met,” he replied, “but that does not change the situation. You came into my room unannounced and without provocation. I must assume that you were sent here on an errand of sorts.”
“What sort of errand would require me to sneak out in the middle of the night?” Lavinia scoffed.
His left eyebrow quirked up. “Excellent question, one I think you should be capable of answering. If you are, in fact, a lady andnot a maid, why are you wandering about at this hour without a chaperone?” he challenged.
Before Lavinia could reply, a muffled voice came through the door.
“Miss Fitzroy?”
The familiar voice of Lord Windham made her jump. She would have bet every farthing in her possession that the man had gone about his business and left her alone, but if she had done that, she would have lost all her coins.
She stood stock still and held her breath.
Lord Windham tapped on the door. “I have finished collecting my own book from the library and thought to return to bed, but Miss Fitzroy, if you are still in there, then perhaps we could read together for a spell.”
“I guess I owe you an apology, Miss Fitzroy,” the gentleman holding the candle said.
Lavinia cringed.
No. No! If we remain quiet now, surely Lord Windham will leave.
She shook her head earnestly, hoping to have a silent conversation with this stranger, but she knew it was fruitless.
Only my parents can speak to each other without saying a word. I should know better than to think otherwise.
“Why are you hiding?—”
Before he could finish his sentence, Lavinia lunged at him. Careful not to burn herself with the candle flame, she pressed the tips of her fingers to his lips.
“Please,” she mouthed.
Suddenly, she felt his lips curl into a smirk under the soft pads of her fingers. She gasped when he bared his teeth and then grazed them across her fingers.
Immediately, she pulled her hand away, clutching it to her chest, and stared at him with a baffled expression. This man had not hurt her, but he had certainly shocked her in a way she never would have anticipated.
He made a disgusted face. His tongue darted out of his mouth lightly as he made a coughing noise.
“What do you have all over your hands?” he asked. “It tastes awful.”
Lavinia still had her fingers cradled against her chest, but she looked down at them anyway. Even though the light from the candle did not extend so far across the room, she remembered what she had been doing before flopping onto her bed.
She lifted both hands and pantomimed writing a letter, which only made the gentleman’s smile widen.
“What?” he said playfully. “Did you really join me this evening so we could play a round of charades?” He laughed. “Very well, I’ll bite.” Then, he chuckled at his own joke. “Of course, I’ve already done that, but I should enjoy playing this little game with you if that is what you wish.”
“Could you please…” she trailed off, swallowing past the lump in her throat. “Could you lower your voice? I do not want to be found alone with a gentleman, especially by Lord Windham. He would surely tell my brother, and then…” She frowned at the man, who seemed amused.
“No one would believe him. We can even do more tonight, if you like, and no one would believe it happened because you are supposed to be sick in bed, sleeping all night.”
He stepped toward her. She felt the warmth of the candle and the sweetness of his breath against her face.
“Am I right?” he challenged.
“What can we do?”
Suddenly distracted, Lavinia felt a tickle of delight in her chest. Normally, she never would have dared to ask such an audacious question, but watching the man’s golden eyes flicker in the candlelight did funny things to her.
