Elias seized her by the arms. His skin was blazing hot against hers, and the heat shot through her limbs, setting her aflame in that familiar, dangerous way of his. “Blast it all, you left my house in the middle of the night, May! Do you not know the dangers that lurk in the night? It is a blessing that you are whole and unharmed—you are unharmed, aren’t you?”
May gasped as the familiar smell of him invaded her senses. His breathing was quick, far too quick, and hers accelerated to match pace.
“I am wholly unharmed, I promise you.” She tried her best to calm him down. His fingers entwined with hers, fear blanketing his gaze. She had to calm him somehow; he was far past his usual controlled self. “You need not worry that our… altercationdamaged me in any way. I am perfectly fine, so you can return to your life now.”
Whatever desperation brought him here, there was no escaping the consequences of their actions, and one of them needed to be in control and say what needed to be said. Even if he muddled her mind and heart with his very presence. It would do neither of them any good to pretend they could be anything but strangers.
Elias’s eyes hardened, as if her words held their fever at bay. “Do not try and play it down. I know the pain I inflicted. I was merciless—a skill I cultivated so precisely only to carelessly unleash it upon the one I vowed not to hurt. May, you have no idea how sorry I am for the accusations I hurled at you. There are words that should never be said, and yet, I said them all. I have earned your loathing, I know that.”
“You only said what you believed, so how can I hold them against you?” Her shoulders fell even as she tried to stand tall. That’s what hurt so much. “In the end, you don’t really know me…”
It was the truth, no matter how he flinched at her words, and he would come to realize it, too. She could see Elias fight his words, but before he could reply, someone rapped on the door. His hands fell away as he put some distance between them just in time for the servant to return with another man.
“Good afternoon, Southam. I’ve hardly known what to do with myself ever since receiving your missive.”
“Thank you for being so accommodating with your time, Baxter.”
“You’ve asked for my assistance—well, here I am.”
Elias inclined his head appreciatively. “Allow me to introduce Miss Carr.”
“It is an honor to meet you, Miss Carr. Truthfully, I cannot remember the last time the duke let someone into his circle. Are you well acquainted?”
“Not too well—” started May.
“Miss Carr is a lady’s maid to Lady Justina Mallory, and I am honored to call her my dear friend. She is also a terrible rider, a worse liar, and has no qualms appearing foolish or poorly mannered if it takes the heat off a friend. She often has difficulties with the correct forms of address but has a kind word for all, regardless of rank. So, yes, you could say that I know Miss Carr quite well.”
Lord Baxter coughed into his fist in a poor attempt to conceal some emotion—mirth or surprise, perhaps. “Oh, I see.”
May’s face was on fire.
“Incidentally, her departed mother is the original owner of that medallion you’ve acquired recently. She is the sort of person who would rather forfeit her own inheritance than take advantage of someone else, you see.”
He looked straight at her, as if to say,I know everything that matters about you, May Carr.
Lord Baxter was visibly gladdened to find the conversation steered back on solid ground. “Well, in that case, you can help yourself to the thing. At first, I thought I might have stumbled upon a rare sapphire, but Christie assures me I am mistaken. Fooled by the fellow who sold it to me, more like. Oh, well, it is the fate of men like us to fall for a ruse every so often, eh?” The man winked at the duke. “Keep the trinket if it makes you happy.”
The men shared some parting words but May only had eyes for the assistant, who brought out a velvet box and set it on the nearby table.
Could it truly be…?
By the time the assistant finished fussing, Lord Baxter had left, undoubtedly uninterested in being entangled in whatever was happening here, and nothing stood between May and the box. She approached slowly, as if the box would take off, but eventually it lay in her grasp, pinned under her unblinking stare. She swung the lid open and stilled as the wave of emotion choked her up.
A beautiful Rivière necklace shone green and gold in the light. This was it.
“My mother’s necklace…”
“These are beautiful sapphires, indeed,” said Elias casually over her shoulder.
“They are tourmalines,” she amended as her fingers trailed over the beautiful stones.
“I am loath to correct you, but I can tell you with some confidence that this is a sapphire necklace. I’ve had it expertly checked.”
“It can’t be! Didn’t your friend say he had it checked by Mr. Christie himself?”
The duke smirked. “He certainly did. It was, after all, the easiest way to return the necklace into your possession.”
“I do not understand… You convinced him to lie? So that Lord Baxter would willingly give the necklace away to me?”
