The Secrets of a Lady (29 page)

The blood that had made her face so hot now drained away from her cheeks as Audrey lifted her face to Hannah’s again. There was no use denying the facts to her hawk-eyed friend.

“Does Noah know?”

“No. But it’s affecting his friendship with Griffin nonetheless.”

Audrey sighed as she closed her eyes with a nod. That much was obvious. In all the years the two men had known each other, Audrey had never seen them exchange more than a few playful jabs. Until this case. Until her. Since she’d come into the picture, they’d had several heated arguments and nearly come to blows.

She covered her eyes with one hand. “They’re strained when they’re together now. It’s all my fault. Noah is angry that Griffin continues to interfere with our case. Griffin is angry that Noah doesn’t keep me out of this or protect me like some china figurine. What a mess.”

Hannah was silent for a while, neither denying nor verifying that the tension between Noah and Griffin was Audrey’s fault. “What will you do then, Audrey?”

Shrugging one shoulder, she uncovered her face and rose to her feet. She paced across the room, stopping at the fireplace to take the poker from its position beside the mantel. Stoking the fire with its tip, she said, “I need to get away from here as soon as possible. I need to end this case.”

“Why?”

“Because if I stay,” Audrey’s voice faltered. “If I stay I may forget all the good reasons I have to turn down Griffin’s proposal. I may find it harder than I already do to resist him.”

“And why is that such a bad thing?”

Audrey sighed, her eyes returning to the burning embers. “Because I’ve loved him for so long, I couldn’t bear it if he didn’t love me in return. It would be too hard to look at him with all the love in my heart and see him looking back at me with only friendship in his eyes.”

Hannah rose and crossed the room to place an arm over her friend’s shoulders. “Oh, lovey.”

They were interrupted by the knock of the chambermaids, who came in with a tub and gallons of steaming water for Audrey’s bath. Once they’d gone, she undressed and sank beneath the waves behind a screen. On the other side she heard Hannah bustling around the room, picking up her clothing and tidying up.

From the other side of the screen, she was sure she heard Hannah utter a quiet curse, then she poked her head around the edge of the barrier.

“You cannot be serious.” She shook her dark head. “You told me the man attacked you. Surely you don’t mean to continue pursuing him.”

“What choice do I have? It’s the only way we’ll get the information we need. I’ll have the perfect excuse. My host tried to kill Ellison tonight, I’ll tell him I don’t want him to be in danger by visiting Griffin’s house.”

Silence was her only answer. Audrey could practically hear Hannah contemplating the notion. Finally, sure steps guided her friend back to Audrey’s side of the screen. Hannah’s face was stern as she looked her friend in the eye.

“Do you
really
think you could discover his secrets?”

“After tonight?” Audrey nodded. “Absolutely.”

“And you feel it’s worth the risk you’ll be taking?”

She contemplated that question for a long moment. “Griffin is completely out of control. The longer we play this game with Ellison, the worse it’s going to get. He could get himself killed if he continues on as he was tonight. Or at least destroy our cover. I’m afraid if I don’t go to Ellison’s and find out the truth in the next few days, I won’t get another chance. After everything I’ve gone through with the man, I couldn’t bear to have him slip through our fingers.”

Hannah pursed her lips. Finally she gave a resigned sigh. “Very well, missy. But if you’re going to Ellison’s tomorrow,
I’m
going with you.”

***

Griffin sat in Douglas Ellison’s sitting room rubbing his knuckles. They were still bruised from his well-placed punch the night before, but hitting the man had been worth any pain that followed. Griffin’s only regret was that his fears for Audrey’s cover had kept him from doing more damage to the traitor.

Still, he didn’t understand why he’d been summoned to the house next door to his own. The footman had brought the request that morning, just about the time Griffin was having his early cup of tea and Noah was stumbling home from a night of work and play. After much deliberation and argument, Griffin had convinced Noah he should take the invitation.

Now he sat in the drawing room of a man he despised, surrounded by an Oriental theme that almost made him laugh. After all of Ellison’s hatred for Prinny, he had something in common with him. Both men favored the rich fabrics and designs influenced by what the spice traders brought back from the Orient.

Tapping his foot impatiently, Griffin checked his pocket watch. He’d now been waiting for over a quarter of an hour. Though this was just a tactic to irritate him, Griffin couldn’t help but feel it had succeeded. He wasn’t a man accustomed to delay.

Just as he was about to get up and leave, the double doors to the sitting room opened and Douglas Ellison stepped inside. Griffin was pleased to see the man’s nose was bruised and painful looking. He kept himself from grinning with pride. Barely.

With a yawn, he stood.

“Ellison,” he said, using the practiced cold and distant voice of a displeased aristocrat.

“Berenger.” The other man shut the door behind him with a smug smile. He, too, would have sounded cold if his voice hadn’t been so nasal due to the injury to his face. “Thank you for coming. May I offer you a drink?”

Griffin returned to his seat. “No. It’s a bit early for me. Though I’d understand why you’d need one, you look a fright.”

“Yes.” Ellison’s eyes narrowed before he turned to the bar behind him. “Some animal attacked me last night.”

Griffin watched as Douglas poured his drink with trembling shoulders and took a long sip. Finally, he sat down across from Griffin with a hard stare. For a moment the room was silent as the two men sized each other up. Finally, Griffin broke the silence with another yawn.

“Not that I don’t enjoy spending time with a neighbor,” he said, leaning his elbows forward on his knees. “But I wonder why you’ve invited me here today of all days.”

The smug smile returned to Ellison’s cold lips. “I think you know.”

Griffin shook his head. “I’ve no idea, I assure you. It isn’t as if we’re friends, and we’ve seen far more than enough of each other lately for both our tastes.”

“Yes.” Ellison’s eyes lit up as he set his drink on the table beside him. “But never in private. What I have to say to you cannot be said in public.”

Griffin’s body lurched to attention, but he forced himself to maintain a bored exterior. “You’ve piqued my curiosity now. Whatever could you have to say to me that cannot be said in polite society?”

Ellison’s smile widened, though he winced with pain at the motion. Leaning back, he curled his hands around the arms of the chair, clutching them with enough force to whiten his knuckles.

“I brought you here to tell you that Audrey Jordan belongs to me.”

Griffin’s blood turned to ice in his veins. His initial reaction was to get up and finish the job he’d begun the night before, but then he calmed himself. Remembering that self-control wasn’t only noble, but intelligent, he took a deep breath.

Ellison waved a dismissive hand. “An innocent will always resist advances the first time. It’s in her nature and societal training to do so. Before I was finished with her, she would have been begging me for more.”

Griffin held back a howl of rage as every muscle in his body tensed. The thought of Ellison hovering over Audrey made him reel with fury.

Ellison ignored his guest’s reaction and continued, “For the past few weeks I have observed you watching her. You drag her off every time I get near. You’ve interfered with my plans more than once.”

Griffin blinked to clear his eyes, thanking his father silently for the calm he’d taught him. “Audrey is my best friend’s sister and is under my protection while she lives in my home.”

Ellison laughed, an unpleasant, grating sound. “Oh it’s much more than that. You want her.” Now he was leering, taunting Griffin. “You want to peel off all her layers and feel her writhe beneath you.”

“Enough,” Griffin breathed, surprised he hadn’t yet broken the chair with the force of his grip.

“No worries, friend,” Ellison chuckled. With a smug smile, he leaned back. “I understand completely. I feel the same way, but there is a difference. I
need
Audrey. And after all her troubles in the past, she needs me to need her.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Why the rumors surrounding her a few years ago,” Ellison explained with a smile. “They weren’t enough to truly ruin her reputation, but she’s past the flower of her youth so most men won’t look at her. I’m willing to overlook those flaws, to make her my wife. There’s much to be gained from a wife with a fortune
and
a mild reputation. Not so much as your Lucinda had, of course…”

“Why you…” Griffin flipped his chair over as he stood.

Before he could continue, the door opened and the butler stepped in. Though his eyebrows came up at the sight of Griffin’s overturned chair and Ellison’s raised fists, he made no mention of them.

“Excuse me, Mr. Ellison, Lady Audrey is here to see you. Shall I tell her you’re in?”

Ellison’s eyes widened with his smile as he laughed at Griffin. “You see, Berenger? She comes to
me
. Send her in, Kendrick.”

Griffin swallowed hard, thrown by this latest development. His rage was still just under the surface, fed by the fact that Audrey continued to put herself in danger. Even after last night’s near-tragic events she insisted on pressing forward.

“You look sick, Berenger.”

“Sick is a good word for one of us.” With a bang, he righted his chair just as the door opened again and Audrey and Hannah entered.

At first, her eyes were only for Ellison.

“Oh Douglas, it’s worse than I thought. Does it hurt very much?” she gushed, taking a step and holding out her hand, then drawing it back as if she’d thought better of it.

“Not much.” Douglas smiled as he motioned to Griffin. “And how pleased Lord Berenger and I are to see you.”

Audrey’s face fell as she turned to see Griffin standing beside his chair, clenching his fists at his sides. Her blue eyes widened, flashing a variety of emotions before she blocked them out with a false smile.

“L-Lord Berenger,” she stammered as she slanted a worried look over her shoulder at Hannah. “I didn’t realize you were here.”

“No,” he said, his voice cold as he began to understand her visit. Instead of playing it safe, keeping the hell away, she once again charged ahead. Damn her and damn this mission she seemed so bloody focused on finishing. At the risk of her body and her life. “I expect you didn’t.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Audrey shivered as Griffin looked at her, then through her as if she didn’t exist at all. The fury in his cold eyes was tangible, burning despite his icy exterior. Whatever had been happening in that room before she entered wasn’t a pleasant chat about boxing or racing.

She’d seen that look in Griffin’s eyes before. He was furious with Ellison, but also with her for coming here so soon after she’d been attacked. If only she’d known he’d be there, she would have waited to pay her call. Now his presence put her entire plan in jeopardy.

Ellison motioned to the chair Griffin had vacated. She took it, trying to ignore the warmth that still radiated from the cushion where Griffin’s body had been.

“It is very important to me if Lord Berenger was threatening you because of a misunderstanding caused by me,” she said as she leaned forward. God help her if she didn’t look earnest. “He didn’t harm you, did he?”

“Of course not,” Douglas scoffed with a roll of his eyes. “There’s little a man like that can do to harm me. A broken nose is secondary to what I can do in return.”

Drawing in a sharp little breath, Audrey glanced at Hannah. Though the maid kept her eyes down, Audrey could she that she, too, had registered Douglas’s threat.

“I don’t want you two to fight over me.”

Ellison let out a laugh. “Of course you do.
All
women want men to fight over them.”