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She nodded. “Go on, then.”
“How do you know where my brother is?”
“Right now?”
“Yes.”
“How do younotknow? You knew they were eloping.”
He nodded. “I did, but for barely any time before youdid. A hastily written note, received in the moments before I was summoned to Havistock House.”
She nodded. It made sense. Helene and Jack had left quickly, and if the scout downstairs was any indication, just in time to escape her father’s hunt.
In exchange for Clayborn’s truth, she offered a bit of her own. “Couples on their way to Gretna Green are rarely smart about their choices. They regularly choose speed over security, and they barely ever cover their tracks—the downfall of entitlement.” She could have stopped there, but added, “Your brother and Lady Helene had a half-dozen possible choices for the night. The Matchbreaker has a far-reaching network that puts eyes in every one of them. They aren’t difficult to track. We’ll catch them tomorrow.”
“We?” he asked.
She bit her tongue. “Iwill catch them. You’ll catch up eventually, I’m sure.”
The corner of his mouth twitched, which was the only reason she noticed his mouth at all. It had nothing to do with the dim light and the warm fire and the fact that they were in a bedchamber together. Nor the constant memory of how those lips felt on hers when she’d kissed them.
I shouldn’t have done that.
She urged herself to remember his words after he’d kissed her. She’d been a mistake.
He lifted his chin in the direction of the box. “If you apply pressure to two opposite corners, you’ll be able to rotate an exterior panel.”
A wave of excitement crashed through her as she tumbled the oak cube over and over, rushing to follow instructions. After a failed first attempt, she found the corners that activated the puzzle and—twist. She looked to him. “Amazing.”
She could feel his attention on her, more focused than before. “Mmm.” It wasn’t the first time he’d rumbled likethat, a cross between agreement and something else . . . something likeapproval.
She shouldn’t like it.
There were too many things about this man she shouldn’t like.
And still, she couldn’t seem to stop herself.
“Did you make this?”
“No.”
“What next?” she asked, her fingers chasing over the box, looking for new trips, for switches or buttons. And there, where it had not been before, was a tiny notch. Barely noticeable. She gave a little sound of delight and inspected it. Pressing, pulling.
An idea sparked. She lifted her fork.
“No.” The word was firm. Insistent. Not to be disobeyed.
Her attention flew to him, and she stilled. “No?”
“No,” he said, as though it was enough.
She set it down. “So... what?”
“Another question.”
“Or I keep working at it.”
He nodded. “Or you keep working at it. But I don’t expect you’ll have much time with it now that I know where it is, and we are locked together for the evening.”
