Page 76 of The Lady’s Sweet Revenge

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Harlow didn’t know what had happened. One moment she was kissing Reese and playing a fun game of taking control, when she inadvertently stumbled into a table, sending the vase crashing to the floor. A second later the door to the countess’s room began to open, and in a blur she was inside a dark bed chamber with Reese’s palm coving her mouth.

“Shh,” he ordered with his other hand still grasping her arm.

She nodded to indicate she understood and would remain quiet but he didn’t remove his hand. He could not see her, but surely he could have felt her nod. Eventually, when it seemed he wouldn’t let go, she stepped back and did it for him.

“Don’t make a sound,” he said in a sharp hiss. Gone was the fun-loving earl who was kissing her in the hallway. In his place was a man who seemed quite angry. She couldn’t see his face in the darkness of the room, but she felt how tense he was.

She remained quiet as they heard the countess speaking to a footman she’d retrieved to clean up the mess. They waited long after the corridor had fallen silent again.

Reese stepped to the window and opened it with a shove of the drapes and turned back to her. It took a second or two of seeing his fuming glare before she realized she was correct about him being furious and that it appeared he was mad at her.

“What have you done?” he asked, his voice still low and irate.

“Me? I accidentally knocked over a vase,” she explained though wasn’t certain why she had to. He had been there. He saw what happened. He’d saved them from being caught, but now he was mad.

Eventually the pieces fell into place.

“You think I did it on purpose,” she said; there was no need to ask the question.

“In all the nights you’ve come to my room, you’ve never delayed in the hall because we both knew doing so presented too great a risk with my mother at the other end of the corridor. But tonight… I knew something was off with her from the conversation at dinner. She didn’t try to manipulate me into doing what she wanted. I should have known.”

She blinked at him. In complete shock that he would think such a thing of her.

“You think I devised this plan to be caught, so I could trap you into marriage? When I have told you repeatedly I would never marry under such conditions.”

“So you’ve said. But it could have all been part of your plan to catch me off guard.”

A cold laugh burst from her as she threw her hands up. “I can’t believe this. You were kissing me in the hall. Perhaps you are the one who was trying to trap me.”

“Lower your voice, unless you still intend for us to be caught here.”

She was at a loss as to what to do. He’d been hunted by the misses and mamas of the ton and now he thought her to be like them. She couldn’t think of any way to convince him it wasn’t true.

But she lowered her voice because despite what he believed, she didn’t wish for them to be caught. Reese only had so much control over his mother. It was one thing for him to demand she tell everyone nothing had happened between them when she had no proof. But yet another if the countess found them dressed as they were well after everyone had gone to bed.

“Very well,” she whispered. “I will keep my voice down. But you are mad if you think I would devise such a plan.”

“Am I? I want nothing more to believe it was only an accident, but it just seems all too perfect.”

It was her turn to shush him when his voice grew louder. She pulled him away from the door, closer to the corner where they would be less likely to be heard.

“Tell me you and my mother did not plot your conspiracies this afternoon while in the drawing room.”

She paused in her answer, as she recalled what they’d discussed—or not directly discussed—that afternoon. Harlow had, in fact, conspired with the countess so she would stop being an obstacle. But not this…

Her delay in responding sealed her fate. For he pulled away from her, hurt and betrayal in his dark eyes.

“It’s not as you think,” she said quickly in an attempt to defend herself. But it was too late.

Reese shook his head.

“Stay away from me. I can’t believe ye—someone who has been betrayed by someone ye loved—would do the very thing to someone else.”

With that he stole from the room, leaving her there alone in the dark. After checking the hallway and finding it empty, she scurried across the hall to her room. Belle came to her instantly and jumped up on the bed when Harlow flopped gracelessly on the mattress.

“He doesn’t believe me,” she told the dog as tears welled in her eyes. She lay there for a long time, recalling every action and word that transpired that evening. They’d been so happy and now it was all gone.