She gave up the scold she had formed in her head. It had been too furious and colorful anyway. She merely wrote what she had written the last time. I have it.She folded the sheet and pennedMr. Pettiboneon the outside.
Langford took it from her and set it on the table. He then took her hand and led her out to the terrace. A table had been set there with cloths and silver. Tea was served.
She sipped hers. He smiled.
“What amuses you?” she asked.
“You take such pleasure in the taste of tea. Your expression, your sigh, the way you savor it and close your eyes—it is not unlike how you look when enjoying other pleasures.”
She felt her face grow hot. “Surely not.”
“Damned close.”
“How embarrassing.”
“No one else but I pays attention. No one else knows how you look when other senses are delighted.”
She set down her cup. “Is that why you keep pressing tea on me? So you can see medelighted? Are you in turndelightedjust in seeing medelighted?”
He laughed. “Sometimes. However, I have tea served because you so clearly relish it.”
“We never had tea at school. I have not been able to afford any worth drinking since.” She raised her cup and hid behind it while she drank deeply.
He sat back comfortably and regarded her. “You said something in the library that surprised me. About how thieves must not be notable. Perhaps that was why your mother put you in that school. Maybe as you got older, you grew less ordinary. Too notable.”
“What an astonishing notion. It is sweet of you to suggest that.”
“You think I am wrong. That I merely flatter you.”
“If you see me as somehow notable, I am not going to discourage that view. However . . .”
“Women always know the truth. That is what you told me.” He leaned forward and took her hand. “Let me tell you how notable you are. The second time I saw you, a mask covered most of your face, but I noticed you straight away.”
“Because my costume was so ugly.”
“Because there was something to your presence.”
He only flattered her. She knew that. Happy flutters bounced inside her anyway. “What do you mean, the second time? That was the first.”
He shook his head. “I did not realize it until the mystery truly unfolded, but I saw you first outside Harry’s house, examining Sir Malcolm’s home. You wore a simple green dress and a simpler deep-brimmed bonnet and carried a basket. You intended to be so ordinary as to be invisible, but I noticed you.”
“And I you.” It amazed her that he’d noticed and more so that he’d remembered.
“That quality would be inconvenient for your mother. She might be able to disappear, but her daughter showed signs of never achieving that.” He squeezed her hand. “That first time I saw you was the day you decided you could only get in Sir Malcolm’s house if you used Harry’s, wasn’t it?”
She nodded. “Perhaps my intense thought on the matter is what made me notable.” She laughed. “You are too perceptive. I have no mysteries left, I think.”
He leaned in and kissed her. “I think there will always be mysteries left with you, Amanda.” He stood and raised her up. “Let us go above so I can explore them.”
Chapter Eighteen
Two mornings later, Amanda woke to find Langford in her chamber already dressed for the day. There would be no lying abed and indulging in lazy morning pleasure today. She loved how they held off the day and the world for a while that way. She regretted the loss even this once.
He bent and kissed her. “I have calls to make. Business this morning, then a social one later. I will not be back until late. Vincent will take you to check for a letter in the afternoon.”
“You do understand that you have ruined him with all these secret missions, don’t you? He will never be a proper footman in the future. He will find the duty too dull.”
“If I fail to find good uses for his new interests, he can seek a situation that does. As it is, I am concluding that every duke should have a Vincent about.”
