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Suddenly embarrassed that she’d even attempted this with Gabriel lying right next to her, she pulled her hand away and turned on her side. Would he be appalled at her wanton behavior? She scoffed. He’d probably urge her on. She sighed and shifted one more time, determined to get some sleep after all.
The next day, Gabriel rented a pair of horses and an old curricle for lack of a better vehicle.
Evie was overjoyed. She wrapped Jane’s shawl around her head and sat there grinning, looking around at the countryside. Gabriel couldn’t help but smile as he looked at her.
The wind, the loud sounds of horse hooves, and the carriage wheels prevented any meaningful conversation, but Evie managed to jump up once in a while and yell at him to look at the sun, or the funny-looking cloud, some sheep, or anything else she encountered. She was completely different from the subdued, sickly-looking girl who suffered in a closed carriage.
Gabriel prayed it wouldn’t rain until they got to their destination for the night. Moving in a light curricle, they could run horses at a much faster pace, which meant they would be able to reach London almost twice as fast.
The sun was already setting, but Gabriel refused to stop at any of the nearby villages. With such a speed, they’d be able to get to Warwick by nightfall. There, he could finally enjoy a nice bed at the Marquess of Vane’s house, provided he was in residence. Gabriel envisioned a soft feather mattress and a huge four-poster bed, and he almost groaned out loud, so delightful the image seemed to him.
He was jolted from his daydreaming when the horses suddenly yelped and reared, threatening to overturn the curricle. Evie grabbed the handles in front of her as Gabriel tried to calm the horses, to no avail. One of the animals reared, successfully overturning the curricle on its side and sending both Evie and Gabriel skidding to the ground. They landed solidly in the mud.
“Are you all right?” Gabriel asked.
“Yes, I’m well.” Evie tried to sit up in the slippery mud, unsuccessfully.
At that moment, three men jumped out from the side of the road, pointing their guns at them. Gabriel groaned in frustration. Why did this keep happening to them? And why did he never have a gun with him when it did?
He did have a pistol under his seat, but with the vehicle overturned, he had no way of quickly grabbing it. Moreover, even if he was lucky enough to pull it out before one of the bandits shot him, he’d never be able to outgun all three of them. He raked his hand through his hair before raising his arms in surrender.
“Take whatever you want, and be on your way,” he said calmly, more for Evie’s benefit than for the thugs’. Evie shifted closer to his side. One of the bandits sneered at her.
“Whatever we want? What if we want her?” he said mockingly. Gabriel felt Evie burrowing herself into his side.
“That would be a grave mistake,” he said calmly. “Take the money.” He slowly reached for his purse inside his coat, jingling with change, and threw it to the bandit. “And you’ll leave unharmed.”
The bandits guffawed in answer.
“And what if we don’t?” the one closest to Evie said, moving even closer to her side.
“You don’t want to do this.” Gabriel regarded him lazily. “Harm her, and you’ll be hunted for the rest of your lives.”
“Such an important little treasure, is she?” asked the man who looked like he could be their leader.
“She’s a duchess,” Gabriel said dismissively.
“Is she now?” The leader looked around the scene. “Traveling in a frail old curricle? With no outriders?” All three bandits laughed loudly. “And you be the prince?” More laughter followed.
“It doesn’t matter whether you believe me or not.” Gabriel shrugged. “The truth is, it is better for you to leave us both unharmed, and you know that.”
“We also know”—the bandit took a step closer—“that she must have some jewelry in her purse.” The bandit looked Evie provocatively up and down her dirt-stricken length. Gabriel put a protective arm around her shoulders.
“Give him your purse, love,” he murmured in her ear.
She looked at him pleadingly. “It’s all our money…” she began, then flinched, realizing she said the wrong thing. It only made the thugs want her purse more. She drew in a long breath and threw her purse over at them.
“Excellent,” one of the bandits intoned. “To the horses!”
They mounted the animals that were tethered beside the road and cantered away, leaving Gabriel and Evie penniless, sitting in the dirt next to the overturned curricle.
“Bullocks!” Gabriel closed his eyes in agony.
He should have stopped at one of the closer villages. His foolish dream of a nice, warm bed vanished. Looking as they did now, they would be turned away from Vane Manor in a heartbeat.
A light chuckle from Evie returned him to the present. He looked over at her in surprise. Her shoulders were shaking, and she was visibly trying not to laugh. He raised a brow at her, his own lips twitching with laughter. She looked at his puzzled face and doubled over, laughing even harder. Gabriel joined in the laughter. Her amusement was infectious.
Evie tried to get up but slipped and fell squarely on her buttocks, her hands flailing at her sides. She looked around her, stunned, and then dissolved in a new fit of laughter.
