Page 64 of His Wicked Charm

Lilah came up with a few pleasantries about Sir Jasper’s journey, to which he responded in far greater detail than she would have wished. After that, conversation lagged. For once, Con and even Aunt Vesta said little, leaving an awkward silence.

“Barrow House is quite, um, interesting,” Sir Jasper said finally. “I should enjoy seeing more of it. Delilah, perhaps you could show me about the place after tea.”

“Well, um, I—”

“Oh, but surely you would rather take a rest first, wouldn’t you, Sir Jasper?” Vesta put in sweetly.

“After that arduous journey,” Con added.

Sir Jasper gave a forced laugh. “It takes much more than that to tire me, sir.” He gave Lilah an admiring look. “And no journey is too long with such a reward as Delilah at the end.”

Con choked on his tea and gave way to a long fit of coughing. Lilah swallowed a laugh, feeling obligated to send Con an admonitory look. She hoped that the subject of a house tour was over, but unfortunately, when they stood up later, Sir Jasper said, “I believe you were going to show me the house now, Delilah.”

“Yes, of course.”

She had the unpleasant fear that Con would desert her to continue their search alone, but Con said cheerfully, “A tour of the house sounds delightful. I’ve a mind to join you.”

Sir Jasper glared at Con, but before he could say anything, Lilah gratefully accepted Con’s offer. She led the way out the door, pretending not to notice the arm Sir Jasper extended for her. Con, sauntering along behind them, said, “We should see the kitchens, don’t you think?”

“The kitchens!” Sir Jasper turned to stare at him. “Good Gad, why would we go there?”

“I always find the servants’ areas interesting. One can tell a good deal about someone from the kitchens. The laundry, the stillroom.”

“I’m surprised you don’t want to see the smokehouse,” Jasper grumbled.

“Oh, the smokehouse would be much too hot in the summer,” Con replied earnestly.

Lilah swallowed a giggle. “I believe we’ll stay with the main area. It’s a large house.”

“Yes, difficult to heat, I’ll warrant,” Sir Jasper said.

They moved along the corridor, slowed by Sir Jasper’s thorough perusal of each room. He interspersed his frequent and flowery compliments to Lilah with didactic pronouncements on the many defects of Barrow House: the stairs were oddly placed; there were too many windows, which, of course, was the reason the carpets were sadly faded; this room was too small, that one too large, and the smoking parlor would do well turned into a billiards room.

Lilah began to think it would serve the man right if she did drag him through the kitchens and laundry. But she couldn’t risk the cook leaving when Jasper began to correct her method of baking.

“You certainly have a lot of plans for a house that isn’t yours,” Con commented acidly.

Sir Jasper preened, Con’s sarcasm sailing past him. “Yes, well, I have a bit of an architectural bent.” He surveyed the library in which they were now standing. “This room, you see, has far too many books.”

“It’s a library.” Lilah looked over at Con, who had let out a snort and turned away, his shoulders shaking with muffled laughter. She wasn’t sure which was more exasperating, Sir Jasper’s presumptuous statements or the way Con tempted her to laugh at every turn. “Gentlemen, I’m sorry, but I think that’s enough of a tour for one day. I believe I must rest before supper. I have contracted a headache.” That was certainly true.

She gave Sir Jasper a brief insincere smile and walked away. She didn’t dare even glance at Con.

The evening passed in a similarly annoying manner. After supper, Aunt Vesta decreed that Lilah should entertain them by playing the piano. Sir Jasper was quick to offer to stand beside her and turn the pages, and the piano turned out to be sadly out of tune. But at least there was no need for conversation.

None too soon for Lilah, Aunt Vesta, her eyes glazing over in boredom, announced that she was retiring. Lilah seized the opportunity to go to her room, as well. In the end, all four of them tramped up the stairs together. Sir Jasper said a prolonged good-night to her, bowing over her hand and holding it far too long. Lilah snatched her hand back and hurried into her room. Sir Jasper’s visit could not end soon enough.

* * *

CON OPENED HIS door a crack and, positioning a chair where he could see Lilah’s closed door, settled down to wait. He hadn’t believed Lilah’s denials this morning for a second. He was certain that the figure he had seen was Lilah.

Lilah would have his head if she found him spying on her. It made him feel a little guilty; she was entitled to her privacy. But whatever she was doing was dangerous. The escaped kidnapper could be lurking out there in the dark, waiting for an opportunity to grab the right woman this time. Or Niles Dearborn. He might very well still be around. And there had to be something wrong with whatever Lilah was doing or she wouldn’t be this secretive about it.

The click of a door opening brought Con out of his thoughts. He leaned closer, watching Lilah, clad in her nightgown, walk down the hall away from him. Con waited until her head disappeared down the stairs, then eased out of his room and followed her. He crept down the stairs, careful to avoid each spot where he had discovered a board would creak. His heart was beating faster, the atmosphere of mystery heightened by the dark silence all around him.

When he reached the foot of the staircase, he hung back in the shadows, watching Lilah. He expected her to turn down the cross corridor leading to the rear door, but to his surprise, she walked past it without a glance. Now he was even more intrigued.

She passed the library and the dining room in the same unhurried way, neither dawdling nor rushing. It was riskier to follow her here, where he would be exposed if she glanced back, but she had not looked around her yet, and the hall was dim, the only light the moonlight coming through intermittent windows. Con kept in the shadows well behind her, matching his pace to hers. When she reached the end of the corridor, she turned, clearly heading into the oldest wing of Barrow House.