Page 35 of His Improper Lady

“Of course not. But they’re good people. You’d understand if you knew them.”

“I’d like to know them,” Desiree pointed out.

They had reached the benches in the square, and they sat down, Tom angling toward her. Not looking at her but keeping his eyes trained on the street behind them, he said, “The Morelands are the closest thing I have to a family.”

“You really don’t have any family?”

“No. You have the better of me...at least you knew your mother.” Tom meant to say it lightly, but somehow the words didn’t come out that way. He shrugged. The last thing he wanted was pity. “The Morelands saved me. Reed plucked me out of that life and put me in an orphanage the duchess founded, where they fed us and educated us. And when Falk snatched me back a year later, Reed came and got me and thrashed Falk in the bargain.”

Desiree stiffened, her eyes widening, and stared at him for a long moment. “Oh, my God! You’re the Apple Boy.”

“The what?”

“Brock said he remembered you, and I thought I didn’t. But I do. I was little, but I remember this—once Falk had a boy tied to something.”

Tom stared at her, astonished. “It was that great, heavy table.”

“And I knew he was hungry, so I gave him the apple I’d swiped off the vendor’s cart when Falk wasn’t looking.”

“I remember.” And he did. “You had blond curls, and I thought you looked like an angel.”

Desiree laughed. “Looks can be deceiving.”

“I didn’t recognize you when I saw you again.”

She shrugged. “I was only four or so. My hair darkened as I grew older, and unfortunately most of the curl left, too.”

Tom had not, would not, ever forget that moment. He had never been closer to despair—taken from the comfort and security of the orphanage, without any idea that anyone would come to rescue him. He’d been viciously hungry, made all the worse by being tied to the table where others were eating. Then the little girl had come up and gazed into his face for a long moment. She’d reached into her pocket and, after a quick glance around, slipped the apple into Tom’s bound hands.

“You turned back around and stood so that you blocked me from sight,” he said.

“There wouldn’t have been any point in giving it to you if the others could see you eat it. They’d have grabbed it in a second. I knew to keep my extras for when I got home.”

“Home? That was before you lived with Falk?” Tom grabbed the diversion. He felt such a strange mix of emotions; he had to shove it aside. He’d think about it later, when he was alone. When she wasn’t watching him with that same unwavering gaze.

“Yes. We were still with Bruna and Sid then. We only worked for Falk when our act didn’t have a job.” She paused, then said, “We got one after that, so I wasn’t there for a while. Then I never saw you again. Is that when you ran away?”

“That was the second time I left Falk. The first time, I tried to hook Reed Moreland’s watch—that’s one of the duke’s sons—and he caught me.”

Desiree drew in her breath sharply, and Tom saw in her eyes the knowledge of what happened to those who were caught.

He shook his head. “He didn’t call a peeler on me. He took me back to their house and gave me food and clothes, made me take a bath. I thought he was right barmy. And he talked to me. I didn’t know what to think. I was scared and cynical and mouthy. I knew there must be some trick in it. I thought maybe he was one of those men that would pay Falk for a boy, you know, but I wasn’t pretty enough for that.”

Beside him, Desiree shivered. “Yes, some of them wanted Wells. Me, too, sometimes. But we were too valuable to Falk for him to do it.”

“That’s good.”

“So what happened with this Moreland man?”

“He took me to an orphanage, one his mother funded. I learned to read, and I had three good meals a day and milk and biscuits before bed.” Tom smiled faintly, remembering his astonishment. “At first I’d steal a roll or two at dinner to hide away for later. Finally I realized I didn’t need to. I got to like it there. The food and the beds. And the books...the books were grand. But I did hate the rules.”

Desiree chuckled. “Of course.”

“I’d sneak out sometimes. Maybe I was testing them, seeing if they’d catch me. Or keeping my hand in, just in case it all went away. I’d steal a wallet or grab something from a food vendor and run. I always liked the running. Getting away. Outwitting someone.” He looked at her. “You understand.”

“Yes.” Desiree smiled. “I do.”

“Anyway, one day I went too far away from the orphanage, and one of Falk’s men saw me and nabbed me. That’s the time that you gave me the apple.” He looked down, picking at a loose thread on his jacket. “I thought I was done. But then Reed showed up. The people at the orphanage told him I’d left and he tracked me down. I couldn’t believe it. Reed took Falk down, beat the hell out of him. And he hauled me back to the orphanage. I got smart enough after that to stop sneaking out.”