“I see.”Adrian offered a tight smile and began to step past when Wrengate caught his upper arm.Adrian dropped his gaze to the duke’s offending hand, his muscles already bunched, his body ready to beat the bastard until he begged for mercy.“Unhand me.”
Instead of doing as Adrian demanded, Wrengate leaned in.“You would do well to stay out of my affairs, Croft.”
“Why?Are you afraid of what I might find?”Adrian asked, his voice at least as lethal as the duke’s if not more so.It was time to remind the man who he was dealing with.“Be warned.If I discover that you played a hand in my sister’s death, I’ll put your head on a pike.”
A brief hesitation suggested the statement required time to process.And then, “I had nothing to do with that, but I may play a part in your wife’s demise if she doesn’t stand down.”
“You’re either extremely brave or extraordinarily foolish to threaten me so.”
“I know she was in my home,” Wrengate murmured.“Given what you’ve just revealed, I can only assume she was searching for clues.”
“You’re wrong,” Adrian lied.“My wife was never there.”
“The body type fits.As does the blonde hair I managed to tear from her head.”Adrian growled but Wrengate ignored him and added, “Had I not managed to catch her, I’d still be wondering about the identity of the person who killed my men some months ago, but now I know it must have been she.Are you aware that she was collaborating with Wycliff?”
“She never met the man, but what you’ve just told me suggests you did.”
Wrengate scoffed.“Your attempt at protecting her with deniability is a touch ridiculous, but I’ll accept it.Just know that if either of you ever crosses my path again, I’ll make sure you get the public executions you deserve.”
Adrian smirked.“Have you paid no attention to what’s going on, Wrengate?I’m a law-abiding citizen with Bow Street on my side.Not exactly the sort of man who gets sentenced to death.Especially not when another effort to end my life would just support the opinion that I’m being unjustly hunted.So why not abandon that thought and enjoy the rest of your evening?I know I plan to.”
A jerk of his arm released Wrengate’s hold, allowing Adrian to shove his way past him.He continued toward the bar without glancing back and ordered his drinks while doing his best to relax.Truth was despite all attempts at appearing unmoved by Wrengate’s words, the duke had rattled him.
The revelation that he’d figured out it was Samantha who’d snuck into his home – that it was also she who’d fought his men and killed them – was unnerving.It put her at risk.Far greater risk than Adrian cared to admit.Because Wrengate would be watching her now.The threats he’d made against her should not be taken lightly.
He returned to his box and paused for a moment to study her seated figure until she sensed his presence and turned.Her face brightened as she found his gaze.A smile pulled at her lips, the pleasure in her expression expanding his heart to near bursting.
God help him but he loved this woman, and he would do all he could to protect her.Even though he often felt like she had no wish for his assistance.
He stepped toward her and offered her one of the glasses then took his seat and told her of his encounter.She listened intently, her brow slightly creased until he was done.And then she said, “You need not worry.I’ve no intention of interfering with Wrengate again.”
“You mean it?”
“He’s not the man you’re seeking.Whatever he may be up to, I don’t think it’s any business of ours.”
“We don’t know that for certain.Our handwriting analysis was inconclusive.”
“Which is why you should try to dig deeper.If he’s the man you’re seeking then you deserve your vengeance.But as far as I am concerned, he’s a problem I’d like to put behind me.”
Her readiness to give up on learning more about Wrengate’s activities was rather surprising.“Considering what he put you through, this surrender on your part has me at a bit of a loss.Anything I should know?”
She sipped her drink slowly, and Adrian’s stomach tightened, for he knew in that moment – sensed it in the way he always sensed her presence from across a crowded room – that his life was about to change.A chill swept his spine and he shuddered.
A discomfort that turned to pure dread when Samantha turned to him and said, “I’m with child.”
Mouth dry, he stared at her for a long moment while every fear he harbored tore through him.His mother had died in childbirth.Now he faced the chance of losing his wife in a similar way.And what if they had a daughter?How would he protect her from the dangers of the world when he’d not even managed to protect his sister?
Then again, it could be a boy, in which case the child would stand to inherit an empire nourished by threats, blackmail, and unforgiving ruthlessness.And why had none of this struck him sooner?
“Adrian?”Concern filled Samantha’s gaze.“Are you all right?”
“I…” Heaven help him, he couldn’t breathe, yet he somehow managed to rasp, “How long?”
“A month or so.Doctor Wolf confirmed it this morning.I went to see him while you met with Cummings.”Adrian had wanted to check on the progress his secretary had made thus far in reconstructing his files.“My courses are long overdue at this point and bearing in mind the rest of the symptoms – the malaise and my sudden craving for lemon sorbet – Doctor Wolf is certain it cannot be anything else.”
“A month or so?”It felt like the world was spinning.“You’ve suspected you might be increasing these last two weeks, haven’t you?Since the first time you saw Doctor Wolf.”
“Yes but—”
