Damsel in Distress? (10 page)

The sway of the vehicle was hard to resist and Harriet had a hard time not succumbing to the pounding in her head and closing her eyes. But she couldn’t take her eyes off Philip. He was sitting next to her and once Cressandra closed her eyes, he laced his fingers with hers and held her hand upon his lap.

She was too tired to protest. Part of her didn’t want to anyway.

“You’re tired.” It wasn’t a question. “Here, lay your head on my shoulder.” He gently pushed her head onto his shoulder and for the rest of the ride home she breathed in his intoxicating smell and matched his rhythmic breathing with her own. She was surprised to find that by the time they reached his house, her headache was gone and although she felt boneless, she was revived as though she had had the best sleep in her entire life.

Cressandra roused herself enough to climb down from the carriage with the help of the footman and take herself off to bed, but Philip and Harriet sat there for a moment, not wanting to leave each other’s presence. Finally when the footman had cleared his throat, rather loudly Harriet thought, for the fifth time, they too followed his sister up the steps.

“I’ll see you in the morning then,” he said once they reached her door.

“Yes, of course. Although, I might lie in, if that’s OK? I haven’t had such a long day for a long time.”

“No, I don’t suppose you have. I do hope you didn’t overdo it tonight,” he said softly into the stillness of the corridor.

“My head was sore earlier, but it’s much better now. I think the emotion tonight was overwhelming. I forgot to say thank you for taking me out. Parts of it were lovely. I’ll have a good sleep. You do too.” Harriet stepped inside her room and softly closed the door. Her anger at Philip had waned to the extent that she now missed his presence. She leaned against the back of the door and listened but she didn’t hear his footsteps walk away as she thought she would. Strange.

She turned the doorknob in her hand and cracked the door open to take a peek. With her head pressed up against the door and her eye straining to see into the lamp lit hallway, she wasn’t prepared for his hand to push the door open.

“Ahh!” A scream escaped her lips before his hand clamped down onto her mouth.

“Shhhh. You don’t want to wake the household do you?” he whispered.

Chapter 21

Philip hadn’t been able to bring himself to move away from her door. He watched her slip safely inside, but still he couldn’t get his legs to obey his command and take him to his own bed.

To his disgust, his breath came out rough and harsh as he mentally joined her behind her closed door. He kept telling himself that she was not well, she was still angry at him and she still suffered from headaches and she hadn’t regained any of her memory. How could he even think of her in terms of lust? He was no better than Veronica, was he?

He was turning away from her door but when he saw the handle turn, his heart leapt in his chest and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching out and pushing open the door.

“Ahh!” A soft scream escaped her lips and he covered her mouth without thinking, but quickly removed his hand after she agreed not to scream.

“You took me by surprise. Why were you still here?” she asked, her breath coming quick.

He ignored her question. “Why did you open the door?”

“Because I hadn’t heard you move away and I wanted to see why you were still here.”

“I am still here because I was trying to convince myself to go to my own room and go to bed. But I couldn’t seem to get my feet to agree with my plan,” he said truthfully.

Harriet tipped her head back and laughed softly. “You are funny. Did you want to stay here tonight?”

His entire body stilled. He thought all his dreams had come true at once and took a step closer to her, but she turned her back and walked towards her dressing room.

“I’ll have you know I sleep a lot better when you are around and I’ve missed you the last week.” She came out of the room with her arms full of blankets and pillows. “I would think you would be more comfortable in your own bed, but if you want to sleep in the chair that’s fine by me. Like I said, I sleep better with you here.” Her face coloured with her admission as though she was deeply embarrassed to admit such a thing to him.

The need inside him was no longer as strong as it was moments ago but if she felt safer with him near, then he would once again endure the comforts of the chair next to her bed. He had just managed to work out the kinks left from his nightly vigils from the last weeks.

He sighed internally and set about making the chair as comfortable as he could while she went back into her dressing room and got into her night things. How was he not to get aroused when she came out in that, he thought to himself?

“Could you blow out the light, Philip?” she called.

He guessed that’s how. He bent over the lone candle on the nightstand and extinguished it. He could hear her moving across the room but except for the glow of her white nightgown, he couldn’t make anything out. He supposed it was for the best.

He settled himself in the chair and tried to get comfortable.

“Philip?” Harriet asked after a few minutes of him twisting this way and that.

“Yes?”

“Would you like to share my bed? There’s plenty of room and I promise not to touch you and if you bring your blankets from the chair you shouldn’t even have to get under the covers if you don’t want to.”

God was testing him. That was the only explanation he could think of.

“Harriet, I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Even to him, his voice sounded strained.

“Well, I’m not going to get any sleep with you tossing and turning all night and it’s clear to me the chair is not comfortable and you won’t get any sleep either.” She was quiet for a moment and Philip was about to tell her he would go back to his room where he belonged when she whispered, “I want you to stay with me tonight, Philip. After tonight at the ball, I um, well I don’t feel safe without you around.”

Against his better judgement he stood up, gathered his blankets and moved to her bed. “Where do you want me?”

She giggled and scooted over to the other side. “You can have my warm spot.”

He could hear her snuggle down into the covers and he gingerly climbed onto her bed. She was right, she had left a warm spot where she had been lying. The heat left over from her body did nothing to cool his growing desire.
Tonight was going to be a long night
. He rolled onto his side. If he couldn’t make love to her as he so desperately wanted, he was going to make sure she had a damn good sleep. He reached over and pulled her to his chest.

She let out a small squeak, but he shushed her and soon she was fast asleep with her head resting comfortably upon his shoulder. Her snores filled the air and he chuckled to himself and adjusted his arm. Who would have thought a pretty little thing like her would snore? Philip fell asleep with a smile on his face.

***

The bed beside her was cold the next morning. She squashed the disappointment that tried settling in her chest when her hand crept out on its own accord to touch the crisp, and empty, sheets on the other side of the bed. The warmth she had fallen asleep to was gone and although it was early summer there was an air of lingering coolness in the room. Feeble rays from the sun shone through the curtains she had neglected to close the night before. It was early when he left, then.

She rolled to a sitting position, bracing herself for the expected pounding in her head to start. But nothing happened. Instead of the usual hammering which had started her mornings since her attack, she was overcome with the silence of her thoughts. How could this be? She strained inside her mind, almost as though she was willing the pain to come back. But it stubbornly stayed at bay.

It couldn’t be because of the sleep she’d had in his arms. It couldn’t. Because if that was the case, then she would have to endure a lifetime with waking to a pounding head, because there wasn’t any way she could have his arms around her again. She knew he wouldn’t risk it.

The pull she felt for Philip was too intense. Too strong. She needed to keep her distance if she was to keep him safe. Because although she could pretend there was nothing wrong, there were still men out there who wanted her dead.

Harriet hurried from her bed and pulled the cord for Rebecca. She wasn’t going to sit here and wait for them to find her. She would remember, even if it killed her.

Chapter 22

Jesus Christ.
He couldn’t believe it. They mentioned his name. And what was worse, hers. And his house number. They might as well have included a map as to how to get here.

Philip threw the offending paper onto the table. It landed in his eggs, but his sister reached over and plucked it up, runny yolks and all, and started reading aloud.

It is with great trepidation, dear readers, that I bring you the latest exploits of none other than Lord Eaglestone and his new found
friend.
The evening started off as normal as any other at Lord and Lady Bingham’s ball, that was until Lord Eaglestone appeared with none other than the mystery lady who arrived in our midst several weeks ago. You, dear reader, are aware, I am sure, that Lord E does not escort anyone besides his sister anywhere. The significance of this was not lost on this author. But that is not the most shocking revelation of last night. No, my dear readers, it was the dance! The lady with whom he arrived displayed a rhythm the likes of which have never been seen before. It is of little wonder why Lord E has taken a shine to her.

So, dear reader, you along with me are under no illusions as to what kind of activities are being enjoyed at No. 7 Park Street this morning.

“Oh dear,” Cressandra breathed. “Oh dear, oh dear. What are we to do, Philip?” She looked up at him with large doe eyes. “We were lucky last time. Those men mustn’t have seen the paper. I don’t think we’ll be so lucky this time, do you?”

He pushed back his chair and rose. “This time, Cressandra, I have no idea.” He started pacing the breakfast room. The smell of bacon and sausages and coffee did nothing to distract him from his deliberating.

“My Lord, a word if you please?”

He turned towards the door and stopped still, mid-step. Later he would admit how ridiculous he looked with his foot raised in mid-air but at that precise moment he wasn’t aware of anything except for the beauty who stood in the doorway. Sunlight lit her silhouette, casting her in a golden glow, as though she had sprouted wings and descended from heaven just for him.

“Philip?” she questioned again, clearly waiting for him to acknowledge her request.

“Oh, yes, right. Come along, Harriet, you can speak to me in my office.”

She preceded him from the room and before he followed her, he turned to his sister and said quietly, “Burn that. She doesn’t need to see it.”

***

“I want to see the packet.”

Harriet barely waited for Philip to get through the door before stating her request. He closed the door behind him with a soft click. She watched as he turned the key in the lock. She waited, not at all patiently, for him to say something as he took his sweet time getting to his desk. She waited some more while he sat down. When he placed his hands on top of his desk and made no move to retrieve the packet she requested she decided she had waited long enough.

“Well? Aren’t you going to show it to me?” She stalked over to his desk and placed her hands on her hips. She felt her eyes slide into slits. “It is mine after all.”

“Yes, quite right, it is yours.” Philip leaned back in his chair, a smug little smile playing at his lips.

“Well? Where is it?”

“You don’t think I am foolish enough to leave it here, do you? If those men do happen to track you down, where exactly do you think they will look for the packet first?” He paused and she had to admit he did have a point. “Yes. Here.” He said, his smile turned bigger.

Harriet lowered herself to the nearest chair. “But you could take me to it.”

“No,” he said.

“No? That’s it? That’s all you have to say? End of discussion?” She leapt from her seat and advanced on his desk again. “I have a right to see what’s inside.”

“I can’t have you traipsing all around London after a package you obviously were hiding. I might add that it appears that package has almost got you killed before, I won’t let it succeed this time.”

Harriet collapsed into the chair again.
So much for not having a headache today
. The ringing in her ears indicated a full-blown migraine on its way.

***

Philip watched as Harriet rubbed her eyes and pressed her fingers against her temples. It was his fault she felt this way. He could understand her frustration with him, after all, she was right, it was her packet. If she had asked yesterday he would not have hesitated in allowing her to travel where it was currently residing, but after that damn gossip columnist’s report on last night, he didn’t dare let her poke her nose out the door, let alone lead whoever may be watching right to the thing they wanted most. At least not until they could figure out what the package contained and why the information was so coveted.

Chapter 23

“I found her, boss.” Charlie threw a paper on the table in the sparse room.

“What is this?” Peter asked. “Why are you bringing me a paper?”

“No Pete, here read this.” Charlie flipped the pages until he came to where he wanted. The heading leapt off the page:
Mystery Woman Revealed
, and both men smiled although neither of them noticed the other’s face. They were too busy reading the words of the article.

“She’s ours. Tonight!” Peter slammed his fist down on the table, sending the candlestick flying. The flame caught the paper and they laughed as the flames slowly ate the evidence of their meeting.

Harry watched the exchange silently from across the other side of the room. Something would have to be done.

Chapter 24

Harriet had gone to lie down, finally accepting she wasn’t going to see the package any time soon. She had left in a huff and managed to slam every door she could on her way up to her room. Quite a feat considering the headache she must have had. He noticed she only rubbed her eyes and temples when it was particularly bad.