“And what are we to do while you are off masquerading as Robin the Hood?” Surely, he had been kidding about…
“Youwill travel with me, of course.” He studied her, and the sides of his mouth curled. “Perhaps as my wench. I find that this case becomes more interesting the more I think on it.”
“Pardon me? I believe I heard you incorrectly.” She noted his amusement, and relief and irritation surged in response. Terrible man, baiting the desperately starving fish.
“Doubtful. Your hearing seems quite sound. You will accompany me, of course.” He twigged the gloves and smirked, but the amusement she had read in his eyes turned to icy watchfulness once more.
“You are serious?” She just stared at him for a second. “You are not simply baiting me?”
“You don’t expect me to do all the work, when you’re not paying a pence?”
“I’m paying you in favors. Favors that I have not a whit as to what they could entail. I think you are being compensated quite well,” she said tightly. Panic and desperation were a poor combination.
“Those who pay me ten thousand pounds have to do nothing more than sit on their hands. You, my dear, will be an active participant. When your favors come due, I need to make sure you are prepared to pay them.” His green eyes turned dark and dangerous.
It wasn’t that she was opposed to actively participating in freeing Kenny—the thought actually appealed to her overall desire to maintain control. But the thought of what he was implying…
“And what types of favors would those be, Mr.Noble? Skulking and thieving?”
Prickly, defensive, prideful. Her unmarried state was little mystery at times. She lifted her chin, prepared for a set down.
“I don’t recall mentioning anything about thieving, but good on you for taking the initiative, Marietta,” he said with mock approval.
“I’ll do your three favors, when the time comes—as long as I’m satisfied with your service.” She tried to project haughtiness through her gritted teeth and desperate pride. “I suppose you view yourself as some sort of fairy-tale wish granter?”
A faint smile touched his mouth. “If you care to see me that way, be my guest.” He sketched a small bow. “Only I will be asking howyoucan serveme. And youwillgive me those favors. I’ve never left anyone unsatisfied.”
His mocking smile turned edged and sensual. She had a strong intuition that he knew exactly what it did to members of the opposite sex. She shivered and drew herself up.
“You think highly of yourself. I will do my part as long as you do yours.”
“You suddenly seem much more confident, Miss Winters.” Long fingers stroked his well-defined jaw. “I wonder at the change.”
“I was nervous. Initially.” And desperate—neither emotion had really changed.
“Hardly something I’d admit to a virtual stranger. Who knows what I’ll do with that information now?” His voice grew lazy. “And you were nervous before, where you aren’t anymore?”
She lifted her chin higher, unable to answer.
His lazy air disappeared as quickly as it had come. He leaned forward, and the air, the tension, coalesced into a sharp point. She pressed into the velvet. He was at least two feet away, but it suddenly seemed more like inches.
“Are you frightened of me, Marietta Winters?” he whispered, his tone somewhere between a threat and a taunt. The interior seemed darker, the shadows longer.
She faked a calmness she didn’t feel. “Do I have reason to be?”
His eyes seemed to turn from bright green to black as he leaned past the lamp’s light. “Completely.”
Her lips parted and her thoughts froze. No. No, she would not be powerless. She threw up a hammer in her mind to break through the ice.
He leaned back, the light catching his eyes and turning them back to that startling green, almost too bright to be real. He continued pulling the supple looking leather through his fingers, as if nothing had occurred.
“There is no one to gainsay you, if you accompany me? Your older brother? What about your society connections? You may be on the fringes, but your family clings tenaciously.”
How in heaven’s name did he know anything about her family? “Mark will say nothing. As for our social connections…they matter little now.”
“I’ve found social connections, especially for the upper class, mean a great deal. Do not think to lie to me so early.” His face was smiling, mocking; his eyes were closed and remote.
“With Kenny’s arrest and my visit to you I think it safe to say any social connections have already been severed.” She looked away, wishing the shade was open so she could blindly stare at the passing sights. “We didn’t receive a single invitation today or yesterday. And the day before we received only two—and no doubt that was because they had not heard the early morning news in time to revoke them before they were sent.”
