Page 44 of Halstead House

The unexpected momentum caused my arms to flail around looking for purchase. They found it around his neck. My surprised eyes met his angry ones before skirting away in discomfort.

“What are you doing?” I asked in a high-pitched voice.

“I’m offering my services as a pack mule,” he stated, in my opinion, sarcastically. I could feel the vibration of his low voice where my side pressed to his chest. It tingled.

The fact that it tingled brought me up short. I didn’t want tingles with this man. I wanted nothing to do with tingles. Yet here I was, noticing the smell of his laundry detergent, the way his dark hair and beard were swallowed up in the moonlight, the fluid way he walked that kept me from bouncing around in his arms.

Clumsy warmth began to gather in my limbs and work its way up to my face. While romantic comedy movies everywhere told me I should be rejoicing over this moment, it was the single most awkward thing ever, and I had caused it by speaking my mind. It had been a gamble and I had lost. I was never doing it again. At least with Lucas.

“I’m sorry. You can put me down,” I whispered, humbled. Yeah, the pack mule comment had crossed the line.

Lucas’s rigid posture relaxed as he shook his head. “You’ve probably done some damage by walking as far as you did. Let’s just get you back to the house and Ana can take a look at it.”

“I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”

His mouth twitched a bit, but he kept looking straight forward. “Maybe.”

In all fairness, when he relaxed there was a tiny second where being held close to a man wasn’t quite as terrible as I’d initially thought.

It didn’t take Lucas long to stride across the yard to the small basement door that the staff used for coming and going. It made sense that he’d go to that door. There were no stairs to climb here, and Ana’s room was on this floor.

When we reached the door, Lucas set me on my feet but instructed me to not put weight on my injured foot. I balanced myself on the door frame while Lucas unlocked the door and let us in. This time he didn’t pick me up, but he put an arm around my waist and supported me while I hopped down the hall with my own arm around him.

“Do you know what time is it?” I asked when we reached Ana’s door. “I hope she’s not asleep.”

“It’s late,” was his reply. Helpful.

We released our holds on each other, and he decisively knocked on Ana’s door. I used the door jamb for support as I balanced on one foot. We waited in silence for her to answer. It took a moment, and when the door did finally open she blinked and raised her hand up to block the light.

“What’s going on?” she asked after it became obvious the Silent Twins weren’t going to say anything.

“Grace hurt her foot,” Lucas finally replied formally. Gone were the flashing eyes and annoyed tone he’d used with me. He sounded almost disinterested.

Ana opened her door wider and reached for the light switch. After spending so much time in the moonlight, the light felt jarring. I glanced to Lucas as he turned to leave. His face had slid back into that self-contained mask he typically wore.

“Thanks,” I said through numb lips, even though his expression didn’t invite my gratitude. He nodded and turned to go back out the way we’d come. He’d left his perfect tackle box near the stairs and probably went to retrieve it.

“Tell me everything,” Ana said as she ushered me into her room. “Don’t leave out one single detail.”

I took her outstretched hand and hobbled toward her bed. “Not much to tell.”

“Oh, please. John Lucas Halstead delivers you to my room late at night with an injured foot and you want me to believe there isn’t a story there?” Ana pursed her lips and cocked her head. “Uh-uh, no way. Spill it.”

I couldn’t help the laugh that sprang out. Oh, it was good to be back with Ana. “I’m afraid you’ll be terribly disappointed at the truth.”

“I doubt it.”

So, while Ana doctored my foot, I told her about my rough day, my walk on the beach, my running away from the strange man, and our uneasy journey back to the mansion. She was silent for the entire story. When I was done, she patted my newly bandaged foot and grinned.

“You like to act all stiff and proper, but I knew under the mask was someone ready to shake things up.” She stood and opened her door. “Let’s get you on up to bed. You should probably go to the clinic when it opens in the morning to see if you need stitches. I can drive you once the staff has their assignments.”

“Your driving might make it worse,” I teased, rising to stand on my good foot.

She wrapped an arm around my waist as we made our way to the elevator. “I can’t wait to see what will happen next.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean around here. With you. With Lucas.”

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