Page 37 of The Smuggler’s Escape

Noelle stared down at her hands, willing herself not to clench them.

Lady Ariadne tittered. “Nervous, are we? Were I but ten years younger—and unwed, needless to say—I would give you a run for your money, I vow.”

Jackson appeared with Snowflake, thank heavens, but Richard said, “Will can take her. You will be happier in the curricle with me.”

Noelle forced a smile as false as Lady Ariadne’s and simpered, “Bien sur, chéri.” She pulled herself together enough to send him a silent question. What about the goods?

Richard smiled blandly and handed her into the curricle, then climbed up himself. Noelle pinched his arm. “What’s going on?” she hissed, and dredged up another smile and a wave for Lady Ariadne.

“Stand away,” he told Will, and the curricle moved forward.

“Why did you bring Will here?” Noelle demanded. “As well advertise to that excisemen what we are doing!”

“Will is known for his way with horses, so it will not seem strange that I brought him here to inspect a hunter. Stop worrying about the brandy. I told you I would take care of everything. Now, where shall I pinch you? This is such a delightful game.”

“Nowhere!” Noelle edged away, but as always with Richard, there was no escape.

“On your lovely soft, round bum, perhaps, under which the contraband is hidden.”

Automatically, she glanced down.

Richard laughed. “My love, you must learn to prevent those speaking eyes of yours from straying exactly where they shouldn’t.”

Her bum tingled, as did nearby regions of her traitorous body. It was all she could do to prevent her eyes from flickering to Richard’s breeches, which was absurd, as she had no interest at all in what lay—or more likely stirred to attention—under them.

Richard, on the other hand, seemed able to decide exactly where his eyes should linger and for how long. She was tingling all over by the time he faced front again and said, “Will and the groom had it out of the stable and under the seat before the exciseman had time to do more than note our arrival.”

Noelle let out a long breath. “Where are we going now?”

“To your uncle’s, where we will join my mother and your aunt and proceed to Chichester.”

“What about all the brandy? Why must you involve the Dalbeys? If Hale sees them with us, he’ll suspect you of helping the smugglers, too.”

“My dear girl, I’ve known the Dalbeys all my life. They’ve often done odd jobs for my family. Why should he suspect anything of the kind?” His tone and expression indicated that same old contempt for her fears.

As a way of getting rid of the tingling which so undermined her, she couldn’t have done better herself. If she couldn’t control her eyes, maybe she could manage her voice. Be rational. Be calm. You are a daughter of the Revolution, an educated woman and Richard’s equal in every way. “Try to understand, Richard. Lieutenant Hale hates the smugglers, but he hates me most of all. He has caught me twice in suspicious circumstances when I was acting as a decoy. He couldn’t disprove my stories and had to let me go, but in the meantime the convoys got through. He is determined to catch me. Didn’t you see how angry he was last night?”

Richard grinned. “It was most entertaining.”

Seething, she said, “Oh. I see. It’s all fun, isn’t it? Well, it may be for you, but it’s not fun for me.”

Richard said softly, “I’d be happy to make it more fun, if you’d only let me.”

“Listen to me,” she said through gritted teeth. “Hale is quite capable of putting two and two together if he sees you and me with the Dalbeys.”

Richard pooh-poohed this with a wave of the hand. “We aristocrats have a few remaining advantages, you know. He won’t dare accost anyone working for me. Doubtless he already stands on shaky ground with his superiors after last night.”

Much what she had told Jackson, but she hadn’t really believed herself.

“He doesn’t care about that,” Noelle said, her voice rising. “Unless by some lucky chance he is stationed in another area entirely, he will not give up.”

“My dear girl, you’re becoming hysterical. I thought better of you.”

Noelle clenched her fists and spoke through her teeth. “I am not hysterical. I know what I’m talking about. I wish you had never become involved. You will ruin everything.”

“Nonsense,” Richard said, as if she were a silly child.

“You refuse to take me seriously. You didn’t even pay attention to my warnings about Lady Ariadne and piquet.”