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Robert moved to the door and hesitated before closing it. He walked past the group in silence.
Nick speared his valet with a glare, boring his eyes at Jack’s arm still around Giulia’s shoulders. “I ought to change. Why are you not preparing my evening rig?”
Jack dropped his arm from Giulia’s back, clasping his hands together behind himself. Offering a tight smile, he said, “I was helping Tilly search for Miss Pepper.”
“I have returned now. You are no longer necessary.” He held Jack’s gaze, waiting for the man to leave.
Giulia glanced between the men. If Nick’s possessive behavior was odd, Jack’s defiant stare was simply shocking.
She broke the thick silence. “I will see you again shortly.” She stepped away from the men, remaining composed as she moved into the parlor and closed the door behind herself. When they were gone from sight, she expelled a shaky breath and crumpled into a chair.
* * *
Giulia did not have heaps of time to compose herself. The men returned dressed for dinner within minutes. Each of them was solemn and pouty, but for different reasons—or, so she imagined. They moved into the dining room and continued to eat in silence, the air thick from all that had occurred. Nick’s outburst toward Jack was as irritating as it was strange. By the time he had returned, Giulia had built the moment up in her mind until she was near fuming. She refused his arm for dinner and continued to ignore him at the table.
There were obviously more important things to worry about than whether or not it was acceptable for her to accept a servant’s comfort. Her own uncle had not cared, so why should Nick? Besides, she had not even noticed the man’s arm about her when Lord Hart and Nick returned. To be singled out was embarrassing enough as it was. To bring such pointed attention to it was outside of enough.
“Did you have a successful outing?” Giulia asked the earl, careful to keep her eyes from flitting in Nick’s direction. She didn’t care if she was being childish. He deserved to be ignored.
“You could say that,” Lord Hart answered with his mouth full. He finished chewing and she waited for more. “Found out where she is staying. Now we need to determine our plan of action.”
Silence permeated the room once again, and Giulia startled when her uncle spoke. “What did she want?”
Giulia lifted her gaze. “Nothing.”
“We have to be honest with each other if we are going to handle this efficiently.”
“I speak the truth.” Giulia looked at her uncle. “She did not ask for anything. She still wants the key, and that is all. I told her I did not know anything about this key. The strangest thing…” Giulia trailed off as her brow furrowed and she considered the interaction. She could feel both sets of men’s eyes boring into her, but she turned to the earl only. “I think she believed me, that I do not know anything about the key. But I feel as if she still thinks I have it. Whether or not I know.” She shook her head and went back to eating.
“That sounds like Patrick,” the earl muttered.
Giulia glanced up at Nick without thinking, the surprise in his face no doubt mirroring her own. She glanced away quickly, but not before seeing the small smile of victory on Nick’s perfect lips.
“He would have hidden it somehow,” Lord Hart continued. “Patrick cared for the hunt. He was clever about it, too.”
“Do you think it could be in my things?” Giulia asked. She had not considered this before.
“Yes, or in his. What have you done with my brother’s possessions?”
“He didn’t have many. I kept what was important to me, and Ames kept the rest.”
Lord Hart sat back in his chair and linked his fingers over his belly. “Then it could either be hidden in your things or somewhere in London.” He sat up suddenly. “Have you warned your friend? Lily is clever, too. I am sure she knows of him.”
“I have,” Giulia nodded. “I wrote to him as soon as I could after I saw her the first time.” She continued to ignore Nick, but she could feel his stare with gusto at this point.
“Perhaps we should write again, request that he bring us anything that may have belonged to Patrick,” the earl suggested.
“Oh, I do not see how that—”
“That is not necessary,” a familiar voice cut in.
Giulia’s head whipped around to find the very man they were discussing standing beside Wells in the doorway, a boyish grin spread across his face. Ames’s coat dripped and his hair was plastered to his forehead, his hat hanging limp in his hand.
She pushed away from the table and stood, drinking in the sight of the only person left on earth who afforded her a distinct connection to her father. She hesitated slightly, her hand gripping the back of her chair. This man had not written to her in months. He was a link to something familiar, but he also felt a stranger. It was disconcerting, to say the least.
But his eyes told a different story. They danced with pleasure, seeming to appreciate the sight of her every bit as much as she cherished the sight of him. Before she could convince herself otherwise, she allowed a grin to spread over her lips, released the chair, and all but jumped into Ames’s arms.
* * *
