Page 96 of A Winter Scandal

“You know as much, or more accurately, as little as I do.” Gabriel refolded the note and stuck it in his pocket.

“Do you think Jocelyn is with her?”

“I don’t know. I still have not seen nor heard from her. This note is as close as I have come to her. I hope that if I can find Hannah and talk to her, I can at least find out where Jocelyn is.”

“What do you want from me?”

“To come to the Twelfth Night party tomorrow night at Mrs. Howard’s house. I believe she invited you.”

“She did.” One corner of Rawdon’s mouth curled up in wry amusement. “Not perhaps an entirely enthusiastic invitation, but she did indeed ask.”

“It’s a masque ball, so everyone’s face will be partly concealed. I would like an extra pair of eyes—and, perhaps, an extra pair of fists. She is frightened of someone. There have been rumors of a stranger loitering about the village.”

“The man who took the child?”

Gabriel shrugged. “Perhaps. I am walking into this whole affair blind.”

“Very well.”

If Gabriel was surprised by Rawdon’s easy agreement, he did not show it. He simply nodded. “Thank you. I will see you there tomorrow evening.”

“Tell me one thing,” Rawdon said as Gabriel turned to go, and Gabriel swung back to face him. “Why did you ask me? Why not one of your friends?”

“Because right now, you are the only man I am certain of.”

“Oh, miss!” Lolly let out a long sigh as she stepped back from buttoning Thea’s gown. “You look beautiful, you do.”

Thea smiled as she took a slow turn around, examining herself in the mirror. With Lolly’s help, she had done her hair in an artful arrangement of curls, and her dress glowed against her skin in the candlelight.

Matthew, crawling on the floor, headed for the hem of Thea’s dress, and Lolly swooped down on him. “Oh, no, you don’t, Master Matthew.” She swung him up to a burst of giggles.

Thea turned and leaned forward to kiss the baby on the cheek and run her hand over his soft curls. “Promise you will watch him closely tonight, Lolly.”

“I won’t take my eyes off him, miss. Peter will check my room before bed, and after that, he promised to make his bed in the hall across the doorway. The new man is going to stand watch downstairs in the hall.”

“Good.” Thea smiled and murmured a good-bye to Matthew, giving him a final light kiss.

Lolly carried the baby out of the room and Thea returned for a last look in the mirror. It was perfect … well, almost perfect. She could not help but think how well the earrings Gabriel had given her would suit the dress. Opening the top drawer of her dresser, she pulled out the box. The golden earrings glowed against the black velvet background, the garnets twinkling in the candlelight. She pulled one out and held it up to her ear. And her internal argument was over.

She slipped the earrings into her earlobes and turned her head from side to side, studying the effect. They were the finishing touch, the last little bit of perfection. And, really, what did it matter if it was improper to accept them from Gabriel? She had done things with Gabriel that were a great deal more improper. The thought of the look in Gabriel’s eyes when he saw her wearing his gift was simply more than she could refuse.

No one need know, anyway, where the earrings had come from. She did not plan to volunteer the information, and hopefully no one would be rude enough to ask outright. If someone did, she would … well, she would simply lie. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t lied hundreds of times to the parishioners. After all, she had assured Mrs. Templeton that her singing voice was beautiful, and Thea had sworn that the Thompson baby was handsome; it would be hard to find two more egregious bouncers than those.

She heard the knock on the front door, and a moment later the deep timbre of Gabriel’s voice as he greeted Mrs. Brewster. Thea took a deep breath, picked up her mask, fan, and gloves, and started down the stairs. Gabriel was standing in the entry, chatting with Daniel, as Thea came down the stairs. He turned at the sound of her footsteps and looked up.

The expression on his face was everything she had hoped it would be.

“Thea.” The word was little more than a breath as he came to the bottom of the steps, gazing up at her.

Thea beamed, unaware of how her face lit up. Gabriel reached up his hand as she came to the last few steps, and Thea took it. His fingers tightened on hers, telling her, as did his eyes, the things he could not say in front of her brother.

“You are a vision,” he told her, bowing over her hand and lightly brushing his lips across it.

Thea caught sight of Daniel, behind Gabriel, goggling at her in amazement, and she let out a giggle of sheer happiness. “Thank you, Lord Morecombe.”

“Only one thing could make you even lovelier.” Gabriel held out a box. Nestled inside was a delicate corsage of mingled white and red rosebuds.

Thea took it with a gasp of delight. “But how—where—it is the middle of winter!”