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So had she, apparently, and that intrigued him all the more. Definitely, it deserved further consideration… after he completed his mission.
All too soon, the lady pulled away enough to look into his face. Her eyes had darkened and that desire he’d felt in her returned kisses lingered in those depths. She slid her hands to his shoulders as confusion flitted through her expression, quickly followed by annoyance. “Why do you keep doing that?” Her voice was decidedly breathless.
Hawk shrugged. There was absolutely no remorse in the gesture. “You seemed to need it.” Then he winked, and she frowned. “Additionally, you are a beautiful woman. Why should Inotwish to kiss you?”
A hint of a blush stained her cheeks even after they’d already indulged in two bouts of kissing. “Must you be such a rogue?”
“Oh, yes, and I can make a much better showing of it if you wish.” What the devil was wrong with him? He hadn’t come to Ravenscroft House to flirt with the widow. But to be fair, he hadn’t known she would be such a choice morsel. Nothing in the dossier had given him that hint.
For several long moments, they stared at each other. In that time, his length hadn’t calmed, not when he was still holding her in a loose embrace. Surprise reflected in her eyes. For what, he hadn’t a clue. Finally, she broke the silence.
“If you tell me your real reason for being on this property, I’ll let you kiss me again.”
A surprised chuckle pulled from his throat. Oh, the lady was wily and clever. “Now thatisa tempting offer.” An all too dangerous one, but tempting, nonetheless.
The annoyance grew more pronounced in her expression. Or was it frustration? Perhaps exasperation was the more correct description. “Fine. If you steal another kiss, though without my permission, Iwillsummon the constable and watch cheerfully as they haul you away.”
Oh, how very naïve she was!
As if he wouldn’t vanish before that happened. One of the tricks he’d learned while being a spy was the art of slipping away undetected even from the most dire of circumstances. Still, he was thoroughly delighted by her.
“Let me think about your offer.”
“Surely it doesn’t require pondering. You will either tell me the truth or you won’t. And if you do not, I’ll let the authorities have at you.” She shrugged. “That decision is yours.” In the process of struggling up and away from him, her knee brushed his engorged shaft, and a groan escaped him. She snickered. “You will need to relievethatyourself, but it is rewarding to know I can still inspire a man in that quarter.”
Of course she could. What sort of maggot had gotten into her brain that made her think any man in England wouldn’t desire her carnally? Regardless, Hawk chuckled, for her tart mouthed replies and responses to his kisses had well and truly hooked his interest. “While that is disappointing, the truth of why I’m here has much intrigue wrapped into the story.” Should he or should he not tell her? More to the point, did she know something of the missing treasure? She was familiar with the property and her knowledge therein might prove useful. Yet… could he trust her? Many people had searched for the valuables, but none had ever found them. Had her husband joined their ranks?
It was difficult to ascertain at the moment, but he would eventually.
“Doesn’t that make the telling all the better?” Lady Ravenscroft smiled, and he was immediately lost on a spinning tide as he maneuvered into a sitting position.
That hadn’t happened to him in a long time. He’d kept his dealings with the fairer sex to a minimum due to his lifestyle and the danger therein. They were fleeting and he had trouble trusting anyone. Not to mention he’d been betrayed by a woman once. Love had made him soft and stupid. Yet he had grown tired of being alone.
“Well, Mr. Hawkins? Will you not answer my question?” Victory lit her lake blue eyes as she stood at the bedside.
“What?” He gasped. Prickles of unease shivered down his spine. “How do you know my real name?” This was a terrible turn of events, and one he couldn’t extricate himself from.
“It only just came to me while we were talking.” When she narrowed her gaze on him, a chill wrapped around him. Would she kick him off the property? “Everyone assumes that because I have a pretty face and have hidden myself away on this property I am inept at things or frightened of my own shadow, but that is not true. I’mnotstupid. Beyond that, I never forget a face, and yours is quite arresting.”
Well, there was that. “I never said you were less than and neither would I ever assume to think you were stupid. From our brief interactions, that has not been my experience.” Never had he been more honest.
“I appreciate that.” The lady crossed her arms at her chest. “I met you years ago in London at a ball. You were in uniform and had quite the crowd about you. No doubt you were all too skilled back then at charming the ladies. It seems that hasn’t changed.”
A bit of heat went up the back of his neck. Not willing to let her go just yet, he stood up from the bed and closed the distance between them. “I apologize for not remembering you or the event. Why did you not join them?” He dared to skate his knuckles over her cheek and was rewarded by a slight shiver from her.
“And add to your already enormous ego?” She batted his hand away, but that only made him crave the connection more. “Besides, I was engaged.”
“To Lord Ravenscroft.” It wasn’t a question.
“Yes.” For a few seconds, her eyes took on a faraway look. Then she sighed and came back to the present. Remembering her husband with fondness? Wishing he were still alive? Though the questions burned on Hawk’s tongue, he uttered none of them. “All things end, I suppose.”
“Yes, but that only means you have room to usher in something equally grand.” Why the devil was he flirting with her? He couldn’t have a romance, not even if he wanted one, which he did not. Taking a mistress, possibly, but there could be nothing permanent in the relationship. Not while he still had ties to the Home Office and that world.
“I’m not certain about that. A person doesn’t truly move past heartbreak.” She stepped away from his touch. “Which makes them wary of extending trust a second time.”
“On that I quite agree.” But the moment of connection between them had been broken. Hawk felt the loss and acutely as if he’d been slashed with a dagger. “Trust is fleeting. Or so I’ve experienced.”
Her brow furrowed with either concern or understanding. “I want your story, Mr. Hawkins, else I’ll kick you off the property.”
