Page 64 of The Paid Companion

But as amusing as it was to see her flustered and amazed, the sensation was nowhere near as satisfying as had been the touch of her fingers on his thigh a moment before. It seemed to him that he could still feel the warmth of her hand through the fabric of his trousers.

Elenora’s shock turned to wonder. “Of course.” Her lips twitched and then curved into a laughing smile. “You were the one who drew up that infamous escape plan, not Roland.”

“Someone had to do it for him. It was obvious that young Burnley was quite passionate about rescuing his lady from the doom that awaited her. And an elopement was the only way I could escape the tangle without humiliating Juliana and her family.”

“How on earth did you convince Roland to accept a plot that you had crafted? He must have considered you his arch enemy.”

“Quite true. I believe that I was very much the devil incarnate to him. I still am, for that matter. Bennett Fleming was my assistant in the matter.”

“Of course.” Her eyes sparkled with delight.

“He was the one who took Roland aside and convinced him that the only way to rescue Juliana was to run off with her. When Roland appeared enthusiastic but bewildered about how to go about it, Bennett gave him the strategy I had concocted.” He thought about the entire day and a half he had been obliged to devote to creating the plan. “I wrote out every instruction. Do you have any notion of how complicated it is to stage a successful elopement?”

She laughed. The sound tugged at his insides. He had an almost irresistible urge to reach across the narrow space between them, pull her into his arms and kiss her until her amusement was transformed into desire.

The words she had spoken a short while before echoed again and again in his head.Juliana was very young, very sheltered and, I suspect, somewhat lacking in common sense. She did not realize that you would make an excellent husband.

“I must admit, I have never had occasion to consider what would be required in an elopement,” she replied cheerfully. “But now that I stop and ponder the subject, I can see that it could get complicated.”

“You may take it from me, it is not a simple task. Roland clearly had no notion of how to go about the business. I had a nasty feeling that if I left it in his hands, he would make such a complete hash of the business that Juliana’s father would get wind of it in time to stop the pair before the, uh, damage was done, as it were.”

“You mean before Juliana had been compromised to a degree that left no alternative but marriage.”

“Yes. In the end it was a near thing, in spite of all my careful planning.”

“The storm.” She chuckled. “In spite of all your foresight, you could not anticipate such a dramatic change in the weather.”

“I assumed that Roland would have the good sense to postpone the elopement until the roads were passable.” He sighed. “But, no, the young hothead insisted upon sticking to every single detail of the scheme, including the time and date. You cannot imagine my dread when I got word that the pair had fled into the teeth of the gale. I was certain that Juliana’s father would find them and drag his daughter home before she and Roland had thoroughly compromised themselves.”

“That concern no doubt explains the reports that you played cards until dawn.”

“It was one of the longest nights of my entire life,” he assured her. “I had to do something to keep my mind off the possibility that my plan would fail.”

He felt the carriage rumble to a halt. They could not possibly be home. It was much too soon. He wanted a little more time in the close confines of the carriage; a little more time to be alone with Elenora.

He glanced out the window and felt a whisper of unease when he realized that they had not halted in Rain Street. Rather, the carriage had stopped near a park. Another vehicle had drawn up alongside.

Arthur raised the cushion beside his leg and reached into the hidden compartment for the pistol he kept there. Across the way, Elenora’s brows drew together in a concerned frown. He felt her tension, but she did not ask any bothersome questions.

The trap door in the roof opened. Jenks looked down from his perch on the box. “A hack just hailed me, sir. Says his passenger spotted this carriage and wishes a word with ye. What do ye want me to do?”

Arthur watched the door of the hackney fly open. Hitchins jumped down to the pavement and strode toward the carriage.

“It’s all right, Jenks.” Arthur put the pistol back into the compartment and lowered the cushioned lid. “That man works for me.”

“Aye, sir.” The trap closed.

Hitchins opened the door of the cab.

“M’lord,” he said. Then he noticed Elenora. A broad grin crossed his rugged face. “A pleasure to see ye again, ma’am. And looking very fine, indeed.”

She smiled. “Good evening, Mr. Hitchins.”

“I told his lordship yesterday when he came to Bow Street to hire me that I remembered you well. I knew that day I escorted you out of your house that you would come about. You’ve got spirit, ma’am. And now look at ye, riding in a fine carriage and engaged to an earl.”

Elenora laughed. “I can hardly believe it myself, Mr. Hitchins.”

Arthur thought about the rest of what Hitchins had told him the day before, when they had talked about the time he had been hired to assist in the eviction.“It was an amazing thing, sir. Amazing. There she was, sir, about to lose everything she possessed, but Miss Lodge’s first concern was for the servants and the rest of ’em that worked on the farm. Not many people in her situation would have worried about anyone else at a time like that...”

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