Page 8 of A Stranger’s Promise

Surprise shone in his eyes. His chiseled lips parted as if to reply, then his gaze fell on the children. An awkward moment of silence passed before he said in a mild voice, “Then see to it, Miss Atchenson.”

She nodded, pleased.

A ghost of a smile curved his lips. “If you are satisfied, may we leave?”

Her stomach fluttered at the smoky timber of his voice. She managed a prim, “Yes, my lord. As it pleases you.”

Once again, he rapped on the plate glass window.

Silence returned. The carriage lumbered on. And this time, lulled by the vehicle’s gentle sway, Charlotte fell asleep.

* * *

“Miss Atchenson,” a man’s deep voice intruded upon her dreams. “Miss Atchenson, we’ve arrived.”

Charlotte frowned. “Go away.” She melted deeper into the corner, seeking a more comfortable position.

“Miss Atchenson,” the deep voice insisted with a distinct note of humor. “We have arrived.”

This time, someone shook her shoulder.

“Devil take you, sirrah. Can you not see I am trying to sleep?” She slapped at the fingers that gently gripped her arm. Realization pierced the haze of her thoughts and she froze. She’d fallen asleep. Even worse, had she just sworn at her employer?

Charlotte jumped to her feet and collided with the solid, muscled wall of Lord Cassilis’s chest. He grunted and chuckled a, “Ho, lass,” as he fell back under her momentum. His hands fell about her waist as he landed on the opposite seat and she tumbled into his lap.

Heart pounding, Charlotte stared up into his green eyes.

His mouth twitched in humor. “That will teach me not to wake you from a sound sleep, eh, lass?”

Charlotte swallowed. His eyes shifted to her throat. Something primal leapt to life in his green eyes. A charged tension ignited between them. Slowly, he released her, trailing a hand down her hip before she was able to shove off his thighs.

She plopped onto the opposite seat and managed a subdued, “Pardon me, my lord.”

“We will lodge here for the night, Miss Atchenson,” he said, quite unruffled, and rose to exit through the carriage door.

Embarrassment washed over her. She hadn’t noticed the open door. Had everyone witnessed their inappropriate encounter? To her dismay, Lord Cassilis extended a hand into the carriage to help her down. He nodded and her gaze caught on his dimpled chin. She placed her hand in his. As his large fingers swallowed hers, she tried her best to ignore the shiver of attraction. Heavens, what was it about the man?

She touched down on the ground and he released her. He stood for a moment, eyes intent on her face, then touched his fingertip to the brim of his hat, and moved to join the footmen untying the trunks at the back.

Charlotte caught sight of the children, huddled together a few feet away. She hurried to their side and took a moment to study her surroundings as Lord Cassilis directed the unloading of the luggage. The carriage stood in front of a tidy stone inn at the edge of a small village as picturesque as a painting. Pine trees surrounded a courtyard blanketed with snow, and an oil lantern swayed on a lamp-post by the door. The inn’s diamond-paned, leaded windows twinkled with lights that made her think of a hot meal and a warm bed.

A wave of exhaustion washed over her as she stretched her hands toward the children. “Let’s go, shall we?”

They didn’t hold her hands, but they followed her properly enough, perhaps enticed by thoughts of a hot meal and a bed themselves. Whatever the reason, she felt grateful. She hadn’t strength enough to engage in a new clash of wills.

She’d no sooner bustled them inside the inn than Lord Cassilis joined them with his black silk hat tucked under his arm. With a nod for her to wait, he crossed the small reception area in three long strides and, in minutes, the short, wiry innkeeper slid two large skeleton keys on brass rings across the counter.

Looping the keys over his thumb, Lord Cassilis yawned and waved for them to follow. He led them through a maze of narrow, twisting passages.

Charlotte hurried behind him, and tried her best to ignore the muscled thighs of the man she’d sat on in the carriage. She found herself relieved in more ways than one when he finally paused before a door and fitted a key into the lock.

The lock tuned with a click, then he stood aside and said, “This is where you’ll stay with the children.”

With a quick but tired nod, Charlotte shepherded the children into the room. It was a pleasant enough place with one large bed located against the far wall and another placed near the window. A table stood before a fire that crackled in an iron grate, and a rose-colored china basin stood in one corner.

“Your supper and luggage will arrive shortly,” Lord Cassilis announced. “I bid you good night.”

Charlotte turned and bobbed a quick curtsey. “Good night, my lord,” she replied. He grasped the doorknob to pull the door closed and she recalled that, as a governess, she held the responsibility to teach her charges the ways of polite society. Clapping her hands, she ordered as kindly as she could, “Bid your father good night, children.”