Mama sighed. “Fine.”
Sittingon the piano bench next to Angeline, Royston couldn’t completely remove the sense of guilt gnawing at him.
The only reason Havisham had concocted this absurd plan was to allow Royston to be in Mrs. Haywood’s house and search her study undisturbed.
He’d perform on the piano in the study, hidden from Mrs. Haywood’s guests, and after that, while the guests enjoyed tea, he would search the room.
He kept going back and forth with his decision, but he had to admit he wouldn’t have a better opportunity to find those documents since his solitary presence in the study was part of the plan. No need for breaking and entering.
“And those are the movements of this piece,” Royston said, finishing Strauss’s Emperor Waltz.
Angeline focused and repeated the hand movements. They were only vaguely correct.
“I’m really sorry for this situation. I can’t believe Mama agreed to this madness.”
No, he was sorry. “Don’t worry. I don’t mind helping you, and I agree with the fact Lady Redvers shouldn’t have disparaged you. Miss Taylor is a fine player, but what you do with a bow isn’t easy either. You have talent. Lady Redvers shouldn’t insult people.”
“You’re saving me. Again. I have a seriously enormous debt with you.”
“No, you don’t.” He took her hand but released it immediately before he did something inappropriate.
“But your being here to help me proves I was right. You have a kind heart.” She gave him one of her devastatingly beautiful smiles.
“You think too highly of me.” He would have helped her anyway, but instead, he needed to get something from her mother.
She gently put her hand over his. “You’re too modest.” She glanced at her scarred hand, her brow furrowing. “You kissed my hand,” she whispered.
“Because I don’t care about the scar. Your scar has a story to tell. A story of survival and pain. No one should make fun of you because of it.”
She stared at him with too much awe. “I’m happy to…”
“Yes?” he prompted when she didn’t continue.
She laughed. “I don’t know. I guess I’m just happy to be here with you. That’s all. Your presence calms me. Your closeness makes me more confident.” She seemed about to say something else but remained silent.
When she smiled, her lips became more inviting, stretching and curving up. His heartbeat stuttered when she tilted her head and a sable curl of her hair fell to her slender neck. Something was happening to him because he couldn’t remove his gaze from her lips, her rosy cheek, or her inky eyes that took him prisoner, and he was a willing captive.
They were still sharing the piano bench, so their shoulders touched, and she was a breath away from him. So close. So tempting.
He inched closer. She parted her lips and inhaled deeply. They met midway. Or rather, their lips did. He pressed a kiss gently to her soft lips. His mouth captured her little moan. He wanted to do more, taste her with his tongue, but at the same time, he didn’t want to ruin the precious moment.
Growing up in a brothel, he’d seen all sorts of kisses, some too savage for a proper lady like Angeline. He’d seen love-making positions that defied the law of physics. Hell, he’d performed some of those. But when it came to being gentle, he wasn’t sure he could do it. Better to do less than too much.
Breaking the kiss required a ridiculously big effort. “Are you all right?”
Her cheeks were the colour of peaches, and her eyes shone like black diamonds. “Never been better.” Her gaze dipped to his mouth.
He ought to remember that he might be a baron, but she was above his status. He came from the gutter. The title didn’t count.
She moved closer again, her breathing speeding up. His pulse spiked, hammering in his ears and urging him to devour her pretty lips.
He was so afraid of being too rough that he shuddered. “Angeline…”
The door swung inwards, and Mrs. Haywood entered. Damn. He straightened, finding it hard to say anything. Oh, right. He should stand up when a lady was standing. He scraped back the bench with too much energy, causing Angeline to fall backwards. He caught her by the waist and sat her back on the bench.
“Sorry,” they said together.
“I moved too quickly.” He released her, but the brief contact caused him to shiver all over again as if it were the first time he touched a woman.
