Suddenly the water surged, dark hands reaching, grasping. She tried to step back, but her feet were rooted to the earth. The ground crumbled beneath her, and she plunged in. Cold, crushing black enveloped her.
She screamed, but no sound escaped. Water filled her mouth. The surface was too far, too distant. She clawed at it…
And Loretta’s laughter echoed from above, ringing through the deep.
“Theo!” April called desperately.She woke with a gasp, andTheo was beside her, wrapping his arms around her. He pulled her close, tucking her head against his chest.
“You are safe. I am here. I will not let anything happen to you.”
She clung to him, trembling. “I had a nightmare,” she whispered, hating the way her voice shook.
He kissed her temple. “They will not harm you. Not while I draw breath.”
She rested her head against his chest, the sound of his strong, steady heartbeat calming her.
Hold onto this,she thought.Hold onto him and hope.
Thirty-Two
Theo was pacing the length of the sitting room in an effort to calm the churning storm within him.
April had not been the same since the incident at the pond. He had never seen her so afraid nor so quiet. And then the nightmare. She had clung to him like a lost soul, and the memory of her trembling against him haunted every breath.
I should have been more careful. Should have kept her closer. Protected her better.
The door to the bedchamber opened, and he turned at once. April stepped out, dressed in ivory, the soft fabric clinging gently to her frame, her dark hair pinned with delicate care. There was still fear behind her eyes, faint but lingering.
He stepped toward her and offered his hand. “Tonight will be lovely, I promise you.”
“You still haven’t told me where we are going,” she said, slipping her hand into his.
“Impatient, are we?” he replied, lifting one brow.
She gave him a look, half smile, half pout. He chuckled and led her out. He helped her into the carriage, joining her within, and gave the driver a nod.
The carriage rolled forward into the dusk.
April shifted in her seat, leaning toward him. “You shall tell me now,” she said, narrowing her eyes with mischief as her fingers toyed with the edge of her glove.
Theo crossed his ankle over his knee, expression unreadable. “Only if you guess correctly.”
“Oh, a game,” she replied brightly, tucking one leg beneath her and resting her chin in her hand. “Is it a ball?”
“No.”
“A dinner at one of your friends’ houses?”
“Wrong again.”
“A stroll through some famous gardens?”
“Still no.”
“A private box at the opera?”
“That would have been far too easy.”
“A moonlit picnic in the forest?”
