Page 54 of The Earl's Secret
She had to stifle a laugh but leaned in toward Devon, lowering her voice as she placed her lips by his ear. “Should we put ink on his face for him to be discovered come morning?”
Devon chuckled lowly, but instead of answering linked his arm through hers and drew her away from the sitting area to a farther part of the library, which was cooler away from the fire but also quieter.
“What are you doing wandering the halls at this hour, dressed in such tempting clothing?”
Cassandra’s lips quirked at that. This red silk wrapper had always made her feel rather sensual, but she had never thought she would actually wear it for a man.
“I came for the riddle,” she said, her excitement continuing to grow as she remembered just what had risen her from her bed. Devon had distracted her from her purpose tonight. “I had a thought.”
“Did you now?”
“About the way the words are laid out,” she clarified. “I think we have been reading it all wrong. What if it is not the words themselves that are leading us to the clue, but the words within it?”
Devon frowned at her. “I am not sure I understand. Can you clarify for the uneducated?”
She reached into the book sitting on the desk and pulled out the riddle, the paper crinkled from her folding it and re-folding it over and again. She led Devon toward the small desk in the corner of the room and picked up the quill pen, dipping it in the ink before she began to make circles on the paper.
“What if it’s not a riddle but a code?”
“A code?”
“Yes,” she said, her excitement building. “I think it is actually telling us what we should be looking for in the rest of the document. You see here? I think it is a code of which words to look at.”
She continued, circling the pattern as she had tried to describe to him. He leaned in, and a shiver of anticipation shook down her spine when his breath brushed across the back of her neck, his deep voice in her ear.
“I think you’re on to something,” he said, and she nodded.
“I believe we were correct in coming here to Castleton,” she said. “It’s in a building on the grounds.”
“It’s not referencing just any building, though,” he murmured, his finger running over the paper, and she had to shake her head as all she could imagine now was his finger running over her body.
“A horse,” she said, her voice just above a whisper. She looked up, her gaze meeting Devon’s as they came to the same conclusion at the same time. She loved the spark that filled his eyes, even though finding such a treasure would make no difference to his own life. He loved the thrill of the chase as much as she did.
“The stables!” they said together, and Cassandra grinned wide. “I cannot wait to tell Gideon that we’ve solved it.”
“You’re giving me some credit, then?” he asked, before shaking his head. “You shouldn’t. You solved this yourself. I was just here to watch.”
He leaned in, then, framing her face between his hands. “You are something else, do you know that?”
“I believe I do,” she said, “but it is still nice to hear it from your lips.”
“You do know there is much more I can do with these lips.”
“I am well aware,” she said, her breaths coming quicker as he captured her mouth with his. He reached out and framed her hips with his hands, drawing her in closer toward him, his pelvis pressing against hers in a promise of what he had to offer her. Cassandra felt utterly wanton and loving it as she accepted him, not backing up but eagerly returning offering her body toward him.
“Perhaps we should go elsewhere,” she murmured against his lips as she lifted her head for a moment, loathe as she was to tear herself away from the teasing and tempting of his tongue. “Gideon could wake up at any moment.”
Devon blinked a couple of times. “Gideon. I had forgotten about him.”
“Youforgot about Gideon?” Cassandra said incredulously. “I can hardly believe that to be true.”
“It is hard for me to think about anything or anyone else when you are around, luv,” Devon said with a wicked grin that had Cassandra rolling her eyes at him, wondering how much of what he was saying was truth and how much was his usual charm that he made available to everyone.
“Should we go to the stables now?”
“It is the middle of the night!” he exclaimed. “We’ll go first thing in the morning. I promise. We can rise before anyone else and greet the day with the horses and the grooms.”
“You are not known to be an early riser.”
