Page 56 of His Duchess' Mischief

Could I use this, I wonder? Will the Duke think I have lost my senses, wandering around the house at night? I should have worn something odd, in case I come upon him.

The floorboards were surprisingly quiet underfoot, and she passed only one other door until she came to the end of the passageway.

The kitten was very still in her arms, looking around curiously but not trying to escape.

Finally, she came upon a narrow staircase that rose to what must have been the attic. Considering the many wings in the house, Alicia could imagine there were several such rooms.

It was clear this one was not used regularly. There were fresh footprints in the dust, and she felt a thrill of excitement.

“Perhaps we will stumble upon a ghost,” she whispered to the kitten.

She made for the staircase but struggled to keep holding up her nightshirt to prevent herself from tripping.

She had a choice to put down the candle or the kitten, and she decided that she would prefer the companionship.

Placing the candlestick at the bottom of the steps, she made her way up.

There was light coming from beneath the door at the top, and Alicia was now certain it must be a servant. No self-respecting thief would light a candle to see by when he was robbing a house.

The door was ajar, and she pushed it open, her eyebrows rising at the sight before her.

The room was covered with storage boxes stacked haphazardly, with trunks, cases, and old bags piled high on each side.

There was a path through them, however, and on the other side of the room, there was a flickering flame and a man bent over what looked like a trunk.

Alicia did not know what it said about her that she immediately recognized the Duke by the breadth of his shoulders.

A tendril of excitement unfurled within her as she watched him place the papers behind him meticulously but angrily, as though he were looking for something.

And why should I care? It is nothing to me. I am nothing to him.

Despite that thought, something pulled her forward. She had expected him to hear her approach, but in case he had not, she opened her mouth to call out to him.

But the Duke seemed to sense her presence before she could alert him.

He spun around with a cry of shock, his hand grabbing the candle beside him and holding it out like a weapon. In his haste, the candle teetered in its holder and toppled into the trunk.

“Blast it all!” the Duke shouted, lunging forward and snatching the candle out of the box. But the damage was already done.

Fire flared inside the trunk, and Alicia cried out, rushing forward.

She placed the kitten on a box and pulled a heavy set of covers from the top of another.

Dust cascaded everywhere, and she coughed, holding the covers out to the Duke, who snatched them up and threw them into the box. He then stomped out the small flame that had sparked in the corner.

After only a few seconds, the fire was extinguished. But the candle still burned beside him, illuminating the sweat on his face and the fury in his eyes as he looked up at Alicia.

He was in his waistcoat and shirt sleeves, his long hair twisting neatly to his shoulders, the curls oddly endearing in the halo of light behind him.

But his expression was one of pure rage.

“What the hell are you doing?” he barked, making her flinch. “Wandering the house at night and giving me no warning. Why did you come up here?”

Alicia’s indignance flared. “Why didyou?”

“This is my goddamn house; I can do as I please.”

She ground her teeth, putting her hands on her hips as she glared at him. “It is my house too.”

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