The Time Keeper (The Guardians of Time Book 1) (7 page)

‘I can’t imagine why,’ Seb shared sourly.

‘Back then it was important to be seen at the right events and besides, a man of your age would have been eager to be in attendance so he could peruse that Seasons debutantes and select a wife from the best pickings!’

Seb shuddered but didn’t comment further.

Emilia smiled and couldn’t resist a gentle tease.  ‘What?  You don’t want the perfect wife?’

‘I don’t want a wife
period
,’ he bit out, his eyes unfriendly.  Emilia was dying to follow up that intriguing comment but his expression didn’t invite further discussion.  Sensitive to his mood, she opted to leave him be for the moment.

‘Not the marrying kind – duly noted.  Okay, so as we talked about the other day, we’re going to go with the brother sister relationship.  Don’t take this the wrong way, but I think you should use my surname,’ she said carefully and wasn’t surprised when his brow lifted in surprised query.

‘What’s the matter with Gates?’

‘Nothing, but for this era and the kind of wealth and status we’re going to be mingling with, I think Delcourt is more appropriate.’

‘Yeah, it does reek of excessive riches and snobbery…
Angel
.’  His eyes glinted with amusement and Emilia, relieved at his return to good humour, decided to let his unsubtle dig at her go.

‘I’m glad we’re in agreement,’ she replied loftily.  She leaned her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her overlapping hands, her face suddenly animated.  ‘And I’ve found our patrons.’

Despite his best efforts, Seb wasn’t immune to her excitement.  ‘Oh?’

‘It turns out one of my French ancestors married an English noble.  You and I are from the American branch of the Delcourt family.  We are cousins of the Countess of Wexworth!’

‘I’m thinking
Angel
might not be appropriate; maybe I should start calling you
Princess
seeing as how you’re practically royalty!’

‘Not quite,’ Emilia responded dampeningly.  ‘But this is the really good bit… the Earl and Countess were known to be absent from England during the entire 1811 Season.  They were touring the Continent with the Countess’ parents, so it’s extremely unlikely that anyone would be in regular contact with them.  Because they were moving around so much, letters wouldn’t have been able to reach them.  Which means –‘

‘We have an almost fool proof cover story,’ Seb finished in reluctant admiration.  ‘Good work, Em.’

‘Why thank you, kind Sir,’ she responded cheekily, with a bow and flourish of the hand.

Seb chuckled.  ‘Anything else I need to know?’

Emilia chatted on for a while longer, filling him in on some of the smaller details.  As she talked she watched him carefully.  He was lounging back in his chair, one arm hooked over the back, his long legs stretched out under the table.  On the surface he looked relaxed, but knowing what her father had said about him, she kept searching.  Sure enough, he couldn’t quite hide the tiny lines of tension around his eyes.  It made her ache to think of the strain he was under at the prospect of taking any kind of journey with her and she vowed to somehow make it easier for him.  The first opportunity she got to show him she could look after herself, she was going to take.  Then, maybe he would truly relax.

Time had passed more quickly than she realised and she started in surprise when she saw Justin wending his way through the tables.  Seb noticed him just seconds after she did and glanced at his watch.

‘I’ll see you Friday afternoon; rest up tomorrow, okay?’ he murmured quietly and rose gracefully to his feet. He slipped the manila folder inside his sketchbook and dropped his shades back over his eyes.

She nodded.  He ruffled her hair as he passed her, a gesture she was pretty sure he’d done to deliberately provoke Justin.  Judging by the tightening of Justin’s jaw, it worked.

Justin slid into the seat Seb had vacated and pushed aside Seb’s empty coffee mug.  ‘What was
he
doing here?’

‘I’m doing some work for Dad over the summer and Seb is helping me.’  It was a necessary lie; there was no way she could explain what she was really up to.  He would think she’d lost the plot!

‘What kind of work?’ he asked doubtfully, darting a suspicious look at Seb’s departing back.  Emilia followed his gaze.  Seb had crossed the road, but had stopped to talk with a young woman around his own age.  She had bleached blonde hair, makeup that even from this distance Emilia could tell was heavily applied and a skirt so short it only just covered her butt.  She was hot in a trashy kind of way, Emilia acknowledged, and she wondered if that was the kind of down and dirty girl Seb had referred to the night he’d rescued her and Stace.

She forced herself not to stare and returned her eyes to Justin’s handsome features.  ‘Just some background research,’ she replied, with what she hoped was a nonchalant shrug.  For once she was grateful Justin was generally uninterested in anything that didn’t directly involve him.

Justin scowled.  ‘I know you’d never go for someone like him – he’s too
rough
– but there’s something about him I don’t like.  He hasn’t tried anything on you, has he?’  He nodded over his shoulder.  ‘Mind you, if that’s the kind of girl he’s into, I don’t think you’ll have to fend off his advances.’

Emilia sighed.  ‘He’s like a big brother to me, Justin.  A pain in my butt and seriously over-protective!’

Justin shifted uncomfortably in his chair, his eyes no longer meeting hers.  ‘He’s big, mean looking and knows how to use a gun, Em… and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t like me.  I, uh, hope you didn’t mention our
misunderstanding
at the party.’

‘He’s the one who came and picked me up,’ she said quietly, seeing no point in lying about it.

Justin paled.  ‘Crap!’  His eyes strayed towards the other side of the road again, but Seb and the girl were no longer there.  His shoulders relaxed slightly.

‘That’s behind us now, Justin, and as long as it never happens again Seb will keep his peace.’  Emilia propped her chin in her hand.  ‘Can we please talk about something else?’

‘Absolutely!’  He shifted gears and turned on the charm with a cocky smile.  ‘Now that school’s over I want to spend more time with my number one girl.  How about a trip to New York City on Friday?  We can go shopping, take in a show and then stay overnight at my parents’ apartment.  They’re not going to be there, so we’ll have the place to ourselves.’

Yeah, like she was going to let that happen so soon after last Friday night’s events!

‘I can’t, Justin.  Dad’s sending Seb and I to do some field research upstate on Friday.’  The grin died on his face and Emilia felt a little guilty she was more excited about her trip to Regency England than spending time with her boyfriend.  ‘Maybe we could do a
day
trip next week?’

He looked annoyed and Emilia knew how badly he coped with having his plans thwarted, so she braced herself for an explosion.  But then Justin glanced apprehensively over his shoulder again and she realised he was actually wary of upsetting her for fear of what Seb might do.  Emilia hid a naughty smile – Seb was inadvertently proving to be useful.

‘Sure,’ he said instead, his voice calm.  ‘Fancy going for an ice cream sundae now?’

‘I’d love to.’  He knew how much she loved ice cream.  Emilia grinned and slid her hand into his as they both rose from the table.  This was the Justin she liked.

*

‘Hey Rebecca.  What are you doing here?’ Seb glanced back in the direction of the café, his narrowed eyes giving Emilia’s boyfriend the once over.  He didn’t trust Justin, not after the way he’d attacked Emilia – because that was exactly what it was, no matter what she said.  The guy looked a bit uncomfortable, which was good.  He hoped Emilia was getting her pound of flesh from him. 

‘Looking for you,’ Rebecca said, following the direction of his gaze.  ‘Who’s that?’

Seb ignored the question, unwilling to discuss Emilia with her.  ‘Why?  Is everything okay?’ 

His gaze swept over her; she’d bleached her hair since he’d last seen her, which made her face look harder… older.  He’d grown up in the same neighbourhood as Rebecca and gone through most of high school with her.  They’d been friends of a sort, although she’d wanted to make it something more for a while, back before they’d both become mixed up in things they should have left alone.

She shrugged carelessly, but then gnawed on her bottom lip, inadvertently revealing the anxiety she was trying to hide.  ‘It’s Max.  I’m probably blowing things out of proportion, but I found some powder in his room.’

‘Damn,’ Seb murmured.  Max was Rebecca’s younger brother, just barely sixteen and a good kid.  But as Seb knew from experience, that didn’t mean anything when it came to the forbidden lure of drugs.

Rebecca leaned against the fence, her eyes worried.  ‘We used to be close, but now he keeps everything to himself and he won’t tell me anything.’

Seb sighed.  Why did it always have to be drugs?  ‘That sucks, Bec, but why are you telling
me
?’

She looked at him sideways.  ‘He’s always idolised you.  I was hoping maybe you could talk to him.  I just don’t want to see him…’

‘I know, but I’m not the best person to do it.’  He swallowed, looked away.  ‘I don’t have a good track record in this area, Bec.’

‘None of that was your fault, Seb.’  She rested a hand on his arm and he had to fight the urge to pull away.  Encouraging intimacy with Rebecca was a bad idea and he wasn’t wild about getting involved in any part of her life again.  Except, he had a soft spot for Max.  Maybe he could try one more time.

‘Where is he?’

‘At home.  At least he was when I left, but it’s taken me a while to find you, so…’

Seb grimaced, the thought of going back to his old neighbourhood a bitter taste in his mouth.  When he left to join the Army he swore he wouldn’t go back and he hadn’t… until now.  ‘Alright.  If he’s there, I’ll give it a shot.  But I can’t promise you anything.’

She nodded gratefully.  ‘Thanks.’

He led the way to his SUV and gestured for her to get in.  He glanced one last time at the café.  Emilia was deep in conversation.  He made himself look away; he couldn’t hover over her like a mother hen – that was just pathetic.

‘You’ve got yourself a sweet ride these days,’ Rebecca commented from inside the vehicle.

Seb wrapped his hand around the rim of the doorframe and hauled himself up into the driver’s seat.  ‘Yeah.’

As he pulled away from the curb, he shot a quick look in Rebecca’s direction.  ‘What have
you
been doing with yourself for the last few years?’

She shrugged and twisted a lock of hair around her finger.  ‘The first couple of years are a bit of a blur, which is exactly why I don’t want Max to go down the path I did!  But I’ve cleaned myself up, Seb.  It wasn’t easy and I couldn’t have done it without help.  A few months ago I started a hairdressing apprenticeship and it’s going really well,’ she said proudly.

‘That’s great, Bec.’

They drove in silence for a while and then Rebecca broached a subject he’d hoped to avoid.

‘I’m sorry you got sent to the Army,’ she said abruptly.  ‘That wasn’t fair.’

‘It was better than the alternative and I didn’t mind it.’

‘Zeke was a real jerk to leave you behind.  I thought about dobbing him in, but I couldn’t do it.  I’m sorry,’ Rebecca said in a small voice.’

‘You don’t have anything to apologise for.  He’s your big brother, Bec.  Family comes first.’

‘Yes, but you –‘

‘It’s all in the past now,’ Seb interrupted.  ‘In a way Zeke did me a favour.’

‘How so?’

‘I wouldn’t be where I am now if I’d continued on the way I was going.’

Seb tensed as he rounded the last corner into his old street.  The small, dilapidated house he’d lived in until he was fifteen was long since gone, but where it had stood remained empty.  Stopping the SUV in front of Rebecca’s home, he looked across the road at the bare lot.  The earth was still black, although there were patches of green emerging in a few places where a few brave blades of grass had poked through.

‘Seb!  Are you coming?’  Rebecca’s voice jerked him from his introspection.  She had already gotten out of the car and was standing on the concrete steps leading up to her house.

Seb slid out, locking the SUV behind him, and followed her into the house.  It was completely quiet and Rebecca’s face dropped.

‘I don’t think he’s here.’  She walked swiftly down the shabby hall and into the bedroom at the end.  Seb followed reluctantly, not wanting to invade Max’s space.  He watched as Rebecca riffled through the creaky, old desk.  ‘The powder is gone too.’

She sat down on the bed with a defeated sigh and dropped her head into her hands.  Seb stood uncomfortably in the middle of the room, his big frame filling the space and making it feel small and almost claustrophobic.

‘I should go,’ he said awkwardly, desperate to get away from the shabby little house, a vivid reminder of what his own had been like.  ‘I’m going to be away for a bit, but let me know if Max gets into any trouble and I’ll do my best to help.’