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Chapter Two
The sudden gleam in Lord Ralston’s cobalt blue eyes was oddly unnerving. And how had she not noticed before that they were a magnificent pair of eyes?
The earl lifted a gloved finger to lightly touch his jaw. “How enterprising of you, Lady Charity; I must admit I did not expect it. The trembling fingers were a nice touch to lower my guard.”
“It is only fair that I know your identity, of course.”
“Now that you have seen my face, surely I must do away with you,” he murmured, his expression unreadable.
A hard smile touched the curve of his mouth, and she took a wary step back. It was a menacing look she would have never dared attach to Jenna’s brother. The man was truly, awfully proper with nary a scandal attached to his name. The man had no devilish escapades. None. Once Charity had despaired for the lady who would eventually marry the man.
“You will hand over those letters.”
She bit back her gasp. “No.”
He advanced, and Charity stepped back in instinctive retreat. The earl who had seemed like a tame cat had transformed into a stalking panther, one who was unquestionably dangerous when riled. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves and lifted her chin. “These letters do not belong to you.”
“They belong to my sister,” he murmured, the glint in his eyes a tad calculating.
Drat. How had he come to know of them? Jenna had been terrified her brother would find out about the love letters she wrote to the viscount and would either force her to marry the man or banish her to the country. It still infuriated Charity that men were allowed indiscretions, but ladies should fear punishment for mistakes of the heart.
“On that, we agree, my lord, and I will hand them over to Lady Jenna and no one else.”
“So, you expect me to believe you are taking these letters to my sister and not for your own purposes.”
Charity sniffed, affronted. “I would never do anything to hurt Jenna. She is my dear friend, and the reason I risked my reputation was to get these back from the bounder for her.”
The earl contemplated her for a few tense moments. How Charity hated the tension that whispered through the room. It felt rife with peril.
“Then toss them in the fire. Destroy them right now. Then I will be assured you mean my sister no harm.”
Instead of obeying his command, Charity folded the packet of letters and pushed them down the front of her shirt, under the chemisette, so they rested between her breasts. His eyes flared wide before his expression shuttered. Unless Jenna had these in her hands and could see all her letters were accounted for, surely her friend would spend her days in despair worrying that the viscount still held onto one or two. No…Charity would ensure Jenna saw them and destroyed them herself.
“Do you believe I will not retrieve them from there, my lady?”
His tone was so mild and polite it took her a few seconds to unravel his meaning. “You are a gentleman, my lord. Of course, you would not improperly touch me.” It was that sense of gentlemanly honor she relied upon.
“You have mistaken the matter, my lady. It is not dishonorable to stop a thief from absconding with private letters that have the potential to ruin my sister’s reputation. You are forcing me to…go against my honor.”
Fustian!Charity was well aware of how much the earl loathed scandal to be attached to his family name. It was the reason he was so frightfully proper. And that proper man was now advancing on her, lethal grace infused in every step. Charity’s limbs went weak. The man intended to…to slip his hands between her breasts and retrieve the letters.
Instead of dancing from his reach, she nimbly glided forward, her hands held up in the boxing position.
“You are skilled at boxing?”
“Most certainly,” she drawled. “I am not at all afraid to plant a facer on you.”
That faltered his steps for the briefest moment, then a wickedly amused grin curved his mouth. “There is little in this world that has the power to amaze me, Lady Charity.”
Who was this man?
“Are you sure you are not the secret twin to the earl?”
That could be a logical explanation. She had read about such plot twists in her gothic romances before.
The earl danced forward, and she deftly twisted out of his reach, her footwork swift and sure.
“I am impressed.”
