“Come in,” Nicole called.
Susanna pushed open the door, Nicole’s breakfast tray in her hands.
Regina stood and started toward the hallway. “I’ll leave you to eat.”
“Come back at mid-morning after I’m dressed. Bring your fan. I’ll show you how to use it to your best advantage,” Nicole called after her.
Regina paused near the door. “Absolutely not. I’m goingto do something much more important than playing with a silly fan.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m going to ask Daffin how we may determine which one of us is the target.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Daffin inspected each window on the lower two floors of the house. The footmen had done a fine job of securing them, but Daffin found a spot or two that could be shored up. He was halfway through his inspection when he encountered a window in the dining room with a broken lock. He would have to nail it shut. After procuring a hammer and some nails from the lads in the mews, Daffin had started his task when Regina came into the dining room.
She was still wearing the white day dress she’d had on earlier. She still smelled like apples, and she still made his mouth water. It wouldn’t be easy to ignore her if she kept showing up like this. However, he couldn’t be rude to one of the two ladies of the house he’d sworn to protect. He would just have to be professional and treat her as he would any lady of thetonhe worked for. Respectful but reserved.
It didn’t help that she distracted him by her mere presence,that her eyes were the color of the afternoon sky and her lips like ripe strawberries and— Damn it. This wasn’t good. Not at all.
“How’s it coming?” she asked in a bright, friendly voice.
“Quite well,” he mumbled, three nails between his lips.
She gestured toward the windows. “Is it absolutely necessary to hammer them shut?”
Daffin pulled the nails from his mouth. “Only this one. The lock is broken. Though the truth is, a skilled criminal can knock out a pane of glass with his hand if he knows what he’s about.”
She shuddered. “Truly?”
“Yes, but the windows must be poorly made. These windows are quite fine.”
Regina leaned over his shoulder. “Show me. How would you knock out the pane if you could?”
He chuckled and shook his head. He set the nails on the floor. Then he ran his hand along the top of the lower pane and pointed to the two upper corners. “Here and here,” he said. “The glass is oftentimes loose. In a poorly constructed window, you could place the heel of your hand in the middle here. If you knock the wood hard enough, the pane would slide out. Of course, you must be quick enough to catch it so it doesn’t shatter and send someone coming to see what the ruckus is about.”
Regina peered at the window. “I never knew. It doesn’t make me feel particularly safe.”
Daffin chuckled again. He pounded the heel of his hand against the window frame. The glass remained intact. “See? Finely made. Nothing to worry about.”
Regina shifted closer to him and the scent of apples intensified.Ignore it. Ignore it. Ignore it.
“Is this the first case you’ve taken… like this? Protecting someone, I mean,” she asked.
He stuck the nails back in his mouth. “No,” he mumbled. There. Curt, short answers might dissuade her from continuing the conversation. He’d already decided the best way to deal with his attraction to her was to spend as little time in her company as possible. He was here with a job to do and a distraction like Regina could impact his ability to do it.
“Would you like me to… hand those to you?” She gestured to the nails. The hint of a blush stained her cheeks. Was she still embarrassed in his presence? She had called him a Greek god after all. The truth was, she looked like a goddess, only one who blushed and bit her lip in a way that made his breeches tight.
Daffin steeled himself. He plucked the nails from his lips and carefully placed them in her outstretched hand. Their fingers brushed against each other’s. It felt slightly indecent. What the hell? He’d never been sexually aroused by the mere touch of a woman’s hand before.
“Thank you,” he breathed, forcing his attention back to his work.
“Who else have you protected?” She arranged the nails in her hand in a precise straight line. She liked order. Duly noted.
“I protected a countess once. And a viscountess. Not at the same time.” He’d tried to protect someone else. Tried and failed. He never mentioned it, and he didn’t intend to begin now. Regina’s questions were making him remember, however. Regret gripped him.
“Were the countess and viscountess run off the road by mysterious carriages?” Regina asked, the hint of a smile on her inviting lips.
