Page 23 of Captivating the Earl (Lords and Ladies in Love 5)

Lord Hawkins wiped his mouth with his serviette and took the envelopes from Wycliff. “Thank you.”

Lizzie leisurely ate her breakfast while the men perused their letters. Hopefully, the children had kept up with their lessons while she was recovering. Nurse had stopped by her bedchamber yesterday to tell Lizzie how the little ones were getting on. She had assured her that all was in order, and between her and on

e of the other maids, they had handled everything quite well in her absence.

Her eyes roamed over to Lord Hawkins as he began to open his second letter. She really wished the man did not affect her the way he did. Even if she weren’t a disgraced runaway, he would never be the type of man to pay her any attention. If she ever began to think otherwise, all she had to do was remember they had danced together once, yet he had no memory of her at all. Gentlemen like Lord Hawkins preferred sophisticated alluring widows, opera dancers, and bored matrons for their beds, and lovely, sweet debutantes for their wives. She was neither.

Except she was the one he’d kissed in the carriage a few days ago. So maybe she was not so unmemorable after all.

As she watched him, he began to read his letter. His eyes immediately shifted to her, then he went back to reading. His lips tightened, and he inhaled deeply. He looked as though the missive had upset him a great deal. Unsure why, she began to fidget, heat rising to her face.

Suddenly anxious to leave the room, she pushed her chair back. Both men looked up. “Please stay seated,” Hawkins said.

Lord Wycliff looked from Hawkins to her with more interest than Lizzie would have liked. This was not good. What was in that letter?

Finally, he laid the vellum carefully in front of him. Lord Wycliff studied him. “What is it, Hawk?”

He leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms over his chest, and regarded her with an icy stare. “Perhaps you would like to comment again about your horse’s cut girth, Lady Elizabeth Munro?”

Chapter Ten

Lizzie’s heart pounded at the look on Lord Hawkins’s face. He gave the impression of using all his control to keep from lashing out at her.

“I can’t believe I’ve spent a week with Lord Loverly’s daughter and didn’t realize it. What do you have to say for yourself, Lady Elizabeth?”

Lizzie took a quick peek at Lord Wycliff, who sat with his eyes wide and his jaw slack. Oh, lord, there went her employment. “I don’t know what you expect, my lord. What is it you wish me to say?” Perhaps that was an understated question, but one did have to start somewhere when one’s brain was muddled.

Hawkins ran his fingers through his hair and turned to Wycliff. “May I have a few moments alone with Lady Elizabeth? There are sensitive government matters we need to discuss.”

His request cut through Lord Wycliff’s shock. Her employer shook his head, as if coming out of a dream, and stood. “Of course. I will be in my library.” He glanced in her direction—more questions on his face than condemnation—bowed and left the room, taking the footman with him. He closed the door gently, but the tension in the room caused Lizzie to jump when the latch snapped, as if he’d fired a pistol.

Lizzie had almost begged Lord Wycliff not to leave her with the ferocious-looking Lord Hawkins. Although she had no worries that he would physically harm her, he did look angry enough to make her wish to disappear.

Hawkins studied her for a minute, but she refused to fidget under his regard and remained still, her hands in her lap, her eyes downcast.

“Lizzie, look at me.”

Taking a deep breath, she raised her eyes and wished she hadn’t. The anger radiating from him, along with the letter fisted in his hand, deflated the little bit of courage she’d managed to dredge up. “Yes, my lord?”

“I assume from Wycliff’s reaction that no one in this household knows your true identity?”

“That would be a correct assumption, my lord.”

“And you saw nothing wrong with pretending to be someone else? Not allowing these generous people to know they were harboring a wanted woman?”

Lizzie squirmed in her seat. Yes, Lord Hawkins had managed to reduce her to a fidgeting bundle of nerves. “I did nothing wrong, my lord. To my knowledge, when I accepted the position I was not a wanted woman. I told the authorities when they first questioned me that I knew nothing of my father’s affairs.” She took a deep breath. “Since my Season was effectively over, I thought it would be in my best interest to disappear.”

Hawkins pushed back his chair and stood, startling her even more. He began to pace, the letter still clenched in his hand. “This letter was forwarded to me from my London townhome. It is from the Home Secretary. The message says the Home Office has discovered that Lady Elizabeth Munro, daughter of the late Earl of Loverly, has taken up employment in my cousin’s home.

“The missive asks me to travel to Wycliff Estates and bring Lady Elizabeth back to London to be questioned by the Home Office.”

Lizzie jumped from her seat and headed for the door. She had to get out of here. The authorities had not believed her the first time, and after her disappearance they would never believe her. The thought of spending even one night in Newgate scared her enough that she considered running again.

She made it to the exit just as Hawk’s hand slapped the door before she could open it. “Do not attempt to leave.”

Panic and anger overwhelmed her at his icy tone. “You don’t understand, my lord. They will throw me into prison.”

He turned to block the door and pointed to her chair. “Sit.”