“Stepped out?”
The front door swung open, and Ted shifted ’round to see Georgina hastening inside. She wore no pelisse, no gloves, no bonnet, and was white as a sheet.
They stared at each other as if neither wanted to break the silence first.
“I…if you’ll excuse me?” the butler stammered.
Neither replied, and the butler made himself scarce.
Teddy was the first to crack. He took one step toward her, his gaze drifting over her as his heart hammered in his chest, nearly painful in its intensity. She still wore the traveling gown she’d had on when they parted. How was that possible, as so much had occurred between then and now?
He inhaled her sweet scent, eau de rose, tracked the sight of her pink-tipped tongue darting out to dampen her plump lips, and grew hard.
Damnher.
“Georgina, how fares your father?” he clipped out.
“He’s…it’s difficult to explain.” Her gaze darted from him toward the corridor as if she feared someone might appear at any moment. Then, she grabbed his hand with icy fingers and all-but dragged him toward the drawing room. The doors were closed. With extreme care, she twisted the brass lever, opened the door a crack, and peeked inside.
“Georgina, is that—” Her mother’s voice abruptly cut off as Georgina, wild-eyed and moving with the speed of a hummingbird, closed the door. “Not here.”
And off they went to the library, where he and Drake, often accompanied by Georgina, had spent many an evening, reading, conversing, playing chess.
After ducking her head inside, purportedly to assure herself of its vacancy, she darted inside, his hand still tightly held in hers.
She needn’t have bothered with the death grip. He wasn’t letting her out of his sight.
Inside the dimly lit chamber, she released him, closed the door, and shot the lock.
Then she shifted to face him. “I didn’t expect to see you here, now. Has something happened?”
He folded his arms over his chest. “Has something happened,” he repeated as if testing the words. “I don’t believe I know how to answer that. Of a certainty, I have many questions to put to you, however. I just never anticipated starting withwhat in hell is going on here?It’s obvious you’re in a state over something.”
“I can explain.”
“I’m sure you can. That’s rather your specialty, is it not?” A cold anger he did not bother to hide laced every word.
Georgina’s face, already pale, went devoid of color.
He reached over, fingers trembling, damn his eyes, and cupped her nape. “Tell me,” he said, gentling his tone.
“It’s not important,” she said, then swallowed audibly. “Your memories have returned,” she whispered, sounding understandably anxious.
“They have. Naturally, I’ve noted some, let us say,inconsistenciesbetween what I now recall and the stories you fed me.”
“I can explain,” she said a second time.
“Oh? Which part? The part where we weren’t actually married when I went to war? Or, perhaps, the bit about Lady Catherinenotactually being Drake’s intended? Orperhapsyou wish toexplainhow almost none of the things you told me about us actually took place.”
Aside from the rose. He had given her that first rose. He shoved the inane thought from his mind.
“Don’t you dare,” he gritted out when he saw her chin tremble.
She clenched her jaw and shook her head, almost as if reprimanding herself. “I only wanted to take you from that place. It was a split-second decision.”
“I might have believed that—if not for the forged certificate you so handily produced.”
He waited for her response. When she said nothing, he asked, “Why did you do it? Was it avarice? Expediency? A means to snatch yourself an earl in one bold move?”
