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I couldn't hide in the wardrobe. There was nowhere to go.
The bathroom? Under the bed? Oh, bloody hell, that would just be disturbing and awful.
I dove for the door to the right. His shoe wardrobe was my only option. I just prayed to God he didn't need anything in there. With a twist of the doorknob, I secreted myself away, and the only thing left to do was pray.
WESTIN
Nissa was up to something.
The entire drive over she’d been pensive, focused. I didn’t know on what, but I’d seen it through dinner too. She’d been far too eager for her father to head for his study.
So were you.
Yes, but I had bugs to plant. What was her game? I’d been dragged into the library to talk to him. He wanted to discuss more men for Nissa. It seemed like overkill. Which was what I told him.
Montgomery had gotten the full debrief of Nissa’s movements. He seemed satisfied and then excused himself to take a call, which left me free to do my real job. I’d already placed a bug in his office and one in the sunroom where I knew he liked to take coffee and calls in the morning. Just a few more to go and my team would have a live feed into the house.
I checked the security feed on my phone to make sure Montgomery wasn't coming back toward me in the living room, and I caught movement in the upstairs hallway. Nissa.
Bloody hell, what now?
She'd always had a knack for getting into trouble. How the hell was I supposed to keep her safe if at every turn there she was, doing something that was going to get her hurt… or worse?
You're too emotionally tied to her.
I swallowed hard, watching as she explored the house. Ultimately, no room was off-limits to her. After all, it was her house.
When I was a kid, the manor seemed like a castle. At the time, I'd been bitter that I couldn't live with my godfather. After all, my parents had just died. I needed him.
He told me, though, that he didn't have the time to spend with someone like me, but Mrs. Pembry would. And I couldn't deny it; she had.
Nissa had a different upbringing. She'd lived in this house, technically with access to my godfather, but ultimately, she was completely alone. She didn't have the kind of family that I had with the Pembrys. At least not until we’d become mates. But that was all so long ago.
I watched her make her way up the back stairs and toward Montgomery’s room, and I frowned.
Nissa was going to get herself into trouble. What the fuck was she doing in his room?
My heart started to gallop when I watched Montgomery, still on the phone, heading for the front stairs. He had a second study upstairs, so maybe there was no problem. But when he didn't turn right toward the upstairs study or terrace, my heart attempted to leap out of my chest.
With a muttered curse, I slapped my laptop closed, ran into the kitchen, and yanked open the door for the butler’s pantry. Once inside, I depressed the panel and the tunnel access door swung open.
Luckily, I knew exactly where I was going. Using my phone to light my way, I booked it upstairs along a narrow stairwell, hoping I wasn't too late.
Fucking hell, if he was going to his bedroom, she was going to be in trouble.
My brain tried to force my lungs to be calm, my heart to relax. At the top of the stairs, I popped out in the opposite hallway, dashing toward the master bedroom.
I made noise too. A lot of it. If she didn't find a hiding spot right now, fuck it, she could be caught in the act.
I could hear Montgomery's whistle coming down the corridor. As I let myself into his room, I glanced around for her. Where the fuck had she gone? She'd just been here a second ago.
I checked my phone and quickly rewound the scenes from the surveillance footage. Ah, the shoe cupboard. I could hear the jingle of keys coming my way. Fuck. Now I needed a fucking place to hide.
I didn't have any other choice, so I opened the shoe cupboard and stepped into the darkness.
There was a sharp intake of breath as she gasped. I could feel her heat in there. "Be quiet," I said, keeping my voice low.
Immediately I was surrounded by her scent. Vanilla and brown sugar. Not too sweet and overwhelming, but light and enticing, and I had to fight the urge to lean in and inhale.
