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Ravencroft held his hands up. “Put down the knife, Maggie.”
Maggie shook her head. “No.”
Ravencroft stayed still. A lady with a knife was a dangerous individual, and he had already had his share for the evening. Maggie glared at him. He glanced around the room and noted his brother was still in bed. However, his clothes lay across the floor and Maggie held Crispin’s knife. What had happened? He hoped his brother hadn’t attacked Maggie. However, it would explain her defensive behavior.
“I mean you no harm,” Ravencroft tried to reassure her.
She pointed the knife at Crispin. “But you cannot speak the same for Crispin,” Maggie accused.
A look of concern crossed Ravencroft’s features. “Did Crispin harm you?”
Maggie recoiled. “Your question is absurd!”
Ravencroft nodded toward the clothes on the floor. “Is it?”
Maggie blushed a fiery red. “Stop distracting me. Why are you here?”
Ravencroft winced at the change of the uncomfortable conversation. By the color of Maggie’s cheeks, he spoke out of line. It would appear his brother and his fiancée’s sister had shared an intimate moment, which would explain why she stood in defense. She thought to protect Crispin from him. The thought comforted him. Crispin needed more people in his life to show him his worthiness in receiving love.
“I came back to check on Crispin,” Ravencroft explained.
Maggie’s face scrunched in confusion. “Crispin? You say his name as if you share a closeness.”
Ravencroft sighed. Crispin was right. They needed to confess their deception. This evening proved how dangerous it was for them to accomplish their revenge on their own. They were no match for Lady Langdale and the destruction she hoped to attempt.
“Because we do. He is my brother.”
Maggie took a step back, unsure how to respond. ‘Twas impossible. “No.”
Ravencroft took a seat to show Maggie he wasn’t a threat. “Yes. We share the same mother.”
“Impossible. Your mother is dead.”
Ravencroft scoffed. “If only that were so. It would make life a lot less complicated.”
“How so?”
Ravencroft quirked a brow. “I do not believe you need me to explain how that is possible.”
Maggie cleared her throat and avoided Ravencroft’s gaze. “Not that. Explain how the circumstances came to be.”
“’Tis not my story to tell. I only told you of our relationship for you to understand that I mean him no harm.”
Maggie glanced between Crispin and Ravencroft, deciding if he told the truth. She would prefer to hear Crispin’s explanation. Still, she needed her questions answered. “Who was the girl from earlier?”
Ravencroft dragged a hand down his face. A complicated question that, if not answered correctly, could affect the result of Maggie forgiving Crispin once he told her the full brunt of the truth about who he was. “They are friends, nothing more but nothing less.”
Maggie peered at him with skepticism. “Your answer makes no sense.”
“Another topic best answered by Crispin since I do not understand the depth of the friendship myself.”
“And Rogers?”
“A friend as well.”
“Someone else Crispin will need to explain?” Maggie asked.
Ravencroft nodded.
