Page 39 of The Lord's Compass
She was the one who had taken the next step forward, however. He had only followed her lead – meaning she had only her traitorous body to blame.
Although she must admit that she had liked the result of her little experiment. Guilt nibbled at her, telling her that this was wrong, that it was nothing a young lady should be doing.
But perhaps, for once in her life, she was allowed a little bit of fun.
Eric, of course, took everything in stride, acting his usual jovial self – albeit slightly subdued due to their current whereabouts.
“There is no such thing as ghosts,” she turned and whispered back, her breath on his neck causing his shoulder to rise as he shivered, and she smiled smugly.
“You did that on purpose,” he accused her.
“Did what?” she asked innocently.
“You know I am ticklish there,” he grumbled. “I will find your ticklish spot.”
“I don’t have one.”
“You must.”
She lifted one shoulder. “Try all you’d like.”
“Oh, I will,” he said, grinning at her now before he leaned in close and lowered his voice. “And I will have great fun doing so.”
Faith was both scandalized and…excited. Flushed.
Oh, this man was a problem.
“There you are!”
They turned to see their host walking out of the breakfast room, his hands clasped together. “Come, join me.”
They followed him in, taking a seat at the small, round breakfast table. Faith was used to large spreads on side tables, but here there were just a few loaves in the middle of the table with different types of fruit spreads, as well as a pot of coffee. She would have loved a cup of tea but knew better than to ask. That would all but label her British.
“I assume you are making yourselves at home?” he asked.
“We appreciate your hospitality very much,” Eric said. “How was your engagement yesterday?”
DonRaphael’s smile broke just for a moment – long enough for them to see what was underneath the mask. It was dark. And frustrated.
“All went well. Thank you for asking,” he said as his façade was reconstructed, though he did not share anything further with them. “Now, are you prepared for our tour today?”
“Very much so,” Faith said with a nod.
After their brief breakfast, the tour started, their host walking in front of them, not having a particularly great deal of information on the history of the home. He shared the perfunctory details of each room, but when Faith asked about some of the paintings, he said only that they had been upon the walls long before he had been born.
“You must understand that this is not our primary residence,” he said. “It is a country home, one which provides a respite from the larger cities. We have, perhaps, neglected it in the past.”
“I believe my great-grandmother spent most of her time here,” Faith said, recalling what Cassandra had told her.
“For the short time she was married to my great-grandfather’s brother?” he said, a slight, nearly imperceptible edge to his voice.
“Yes,” Faith said, her voice firm.
Eric looked over to her with a hint of a smile on his lips, and she wondered just what he thought of her forwardness.
Not that it mattered.
They had just entered the drawing room whenDonRaphael stopped, staring straight ahead of him, and then circled, looking around the room.
