“Is there anything else I need to know?” For this to work, there could be no more secrets between them.
She nodded, sending a frisson of apprehension straight down his spine. “I accompanied Wycliff to a clandestine meeting right before you and I married. He claimed I owed him for being allowed to use Isak, despite having paid for the boy’s time.” She rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I wanted my dealings with Wycliff over, besides which I’m not one to leave debts unpaid.”
“Wycliff’s a right bastard. You never should have gotten involved with him in the first place.”
“The point is,” she said, not addressing his criticism, “Wrengate showed up – something about a shipmentWycliff had promised to steal on his behalf. The duke lost his patience when Wycliff failed to produce the goods and turned a couple of thugs loose on us. I was left with no choice but to kill them.”
“How?” An asinine question perhaps, but her statement was so shocking he spoke the first word he could think of.
“By thrusting a blade into one man’s gut and into the other man’s throat. Left me rather shaken if I’m to be honest.”
He gaped at her in dismay, recalling all too well what his first kill had been like. His father had been watching, waiting to see if he’d back out. He hadn’t. Somehow he’d managed the deed and had held himself together until he’d been by himself. At which point he’d vomited until there was nothing left in his stomach. The incident had invaded his dreams for several months after, but at least he’d had Murry to offer support and comfort.
Who had been there for Samantha?
Another more pressing thought caused him to leave that question behind in favor of saying, “So Wrengate saw you?”
“Yes, but I wore a hooded mask. He has no idea it was me.”
“Do you know…” He tapped his finger against his armrest. “I’m suddenly keen to spar with you properly. See what you’re truly capable of.”
“I’ve been looking forward to coming clean for that precise reason, because I believe I’m worth more to youas my true self. If you let me, I’ll stand by your side through thick and thin, no matter the danger.”
A thrill of excitement unfurled in his gut. “Do you swear it?”
She stood and he watched with ever increasing fascination as she raised one side of her skirt to reveal the dagger strapped to her thigh. One swift movement unsheathed it. A second flash of the blade sliced her palm. His heart thrummed as she rounded the desk, stepped toward him, and offered the blade.
It was the one he’d gifted to her weeks before when he’d feared for her safety. His fingers grasped the mother-of-pearl handle, curling over the smooth surface. He slid the sharp edge over his skin without hesitation, felt the sting and watched the blood rise from the wound.
Samantha stuck out her palm and he clasped it, his gaze holding hers with binding force.
“Upon my honor, I shall serve and protect you until my dying breath,” she declared.
A promise he did not doubt for one second. Sincerity burned bright in her eyes, and he couldn’t resist. Not any longer. Not when he’d craved her for so very long.
Clasping her hand, he pulled her into his lap, captured her mouth in a searing kiss, and relished the sweet surrender. He no longer wanted to punish or restrain, choosing instead to guide them both back to the path they’d strayed from. It hadn’t felt safe before, but that had since changed. She’d opened his eyes,forced him to see, and now that he had, there was no going back.
A soft moan heightened his awareness, each teasing scrape of her teeth sending hot little darts of desire across his skin. Damn it all, but he wanted her. So very badly. And yet, there was more for them to discuss before he could make her completely his.
For their bodies and souls to truly be united as one, he’d have to lay himself bare as well. So he kissed her again, hard and fierce, before setting her back on her feet. The dazed look in her eyes caused endless satisfaction to streak through his veins. The smile he gave her was probably smug. It couldn’t be helped.
“Here, use this.” He gave her a handkerchief with which to clean the smeared blood from her palm. Retrieved an additional one from his desk drawer, which he used to wrap his own hand. Tracked her every movement as she returned to the chair she’d occupied earlier. Waited for her to sit before saying, “As you probably know, Orendel came to see me. He wants me to track down his daughter’s killer so he can enact his own justice.”
Samantha didn’t so much as flinch. “Sounds reasonable. I’d like to help, if you’ll allow it.”
“Of course.” It would be so damn good for them to be working together again. He looked forward to every second of it. So he told her what he’d learned thus far and gave her an update on Mr. Jones’s murder as well.
Her expression turned pensive. She bit her lip, eyedhim briefly, and finally said, “There’s a favor I’d like to ask of you. It pertains to Isak.”
“The errand boy?” He wasn’t sure how he factored in to any of this.
“He came to me for help the other day, looking worse than a bare-knuckle fighter who’d just lost the last ten matches. Turns out, Wycliff’s taken to beating him. And that’s not the worst part.”
What she told him next made Adrian’s stomach coil. A quiet rage started brewing inside him, hardening every muscle until he felt on the point of snapping.
“If we can pull Isak away from that life, he can help me keep up my ruse with Kendrick. The boy is loyal. He has potential and I…” She took a deep breath. “I’d like to do what I can for him. Harlowe refused.”
“Did he now?” Adrian gritted his teeth. How could anyone be so callous as to ignore a child in need? He stood, the movement banishing some of the tension gripping his body. “You needn’t worry. I’ll handle Wycliff.”
