Peace was the only thing he craved.
Not the only thing. He cast a glance at her mouth, at the swell of her breasts in the fitted pelisse, the soft thighs he didn’t need to imagine. He had already admired them in breeches.
But he’d be over it soon.
Vengeance was the only constant left.
Shadowmere’s grand iron gates came into view. Beyond them rose his house, weathered grey walls and ugly spires. The heaviness in his chest returned.
Damn this place.
Ramsey was on the steps, hands braced on his hips, before the carriage reached the portico. His grimace could put the gargoyles to shame.
“Don’t expect a warm welcome,” Dominic said.
Ramsey yanked open the carriage door, inclined his headto Miss Harland, then growled, “Where the hell have you been? You didn’t say you’d stay the night. We’ve been worried sick.”
“We had no choice.” He alighted, boots crunching the gravel. He could hardly admit he’d stayed for Miss Harland. “Mrs Flavell had information we needed. The woman made it impossible to refuse her hospitality.”
“You stayed in Grosvenor Place?” Ramsey glanced between them like they’d been caught in a naked clinch. “And it never occurred to you that might not be wise? Miss Harland has no hope of returning to society now.”
Good. He’d not see her handed back to wolves dressed as gentlemen. At least he was honest about his intentions.
She let Ramsey help her down, much to Dominic’s chagrin. The sight of her fingers wrapped around another man’s hand stirred something dark and territorial in him.
“It was my idea, Mr Ramsey.” She smiled sweetly. “The world is a big place. I don’t need to confine myself to London. I’ve long considered a tour of Bath.”
“Bath?” Dominic scoffed. “Full of gout-ridden colonels and simpering widows. You’d be bored within a week.”
“Oxford then.”
“Full of boys who think learning Latin makes them men.”
“Where do you suggest I go, Mr Hawke?”
He shrugged. “I’ll think on it.”
Kingston was the last place he should suggest.
Ramsey frowned at their exchange. If he was jealous, he could bugger off. Helping her fix the cottage all week didn’t give him any claim on her.
“Did you get what you needed in London?” Ramsey said.
Dominic ought to have recited their list of accomplishments, but all he could think about was her tongue tangled with his.
No. He hadn’t got what he needed.
He doubted he would until she was beneath him in bed.
“Mrs Haggert has agreed to arrange a meeting with the Moseley brothers. Expect her letter. Alert me the moment it arrives.”
“The witness has been kidnapped,” she added, though all Brown had done was step into a carriage. “His maid is almost certainly his lover. It’s all rather intriguing.”
“What did Mrs Flavell tell you?”
“Can we discuss it inside?” Dominic gestured towards the steps, where he’d found his father sleeping on occasion, too drunk to reach the door. “We haven’t eaten since supper.”
Ramsey shifted his stance. “There’ve been some developments here since you left. Best you hear them before you walk through that door.”
