Page 16 of The Duke and Lady Scandal
For a moment, Allie stood speechless. Stunned. He stated so simply what she struggled to make her siblings understand. Nothing about the inspector led her to believe he might understand her in the slightest. Indeed, he possessed a coldness she’d expect of a man with blood on his hands. And his jaw was rigid whenever she spoke, as if he was biting his tongue to repress the urge to toss her from his office.
“I appreciate that you don’t think me foolish,” she finally managed when her shock began to wane. “But is there anything that can be done?”
He’d just pointed out that she wasn’t a fool, and she quite agreed, so she already knew the answer to her question. She’d given him very little to go on and could not identify any of the men. Inspector Drake seemed to imply that the tallest man may have been purposely obscuring his appearance.
“Never mind,” she put in before he could answer. “I’ve given you no thread to chase, have I?”
“I can’t imagine the men you overheard will make a habit of discussing such a plot in the same coffeehouse.”
“No. In fact, two of the men didn’t want to discuss the matter at all.”
Drake nodded slowly, as if pondering that fact. “Then perhaps what you witnessed was a proposed plot falling apart. Such a venture would be the greatest of risks and only the most committed of confederates could carry it off.”
“Yes, that makes sense.” Allie felt a bit of relief and an odd flare of luck that she’d been directed to Inspector Drake rather than Sir Felix.
“I’m glad you think me sensible,” he said with utter seriousness.
“Detectives must be, mustn’t they?”
“Ideally, yes.” His square jaw shifted and for a moment Allie thought he might smile.
She was breathless for it to happen. What might this imposing force of a man look like with a smile softening his features?
But the moment dissipated like smoke from a doused candle flame, and he tightened all his hard edges, squaring his jaw, rising impossibly taller, and hardening those eyes that were so dark in the low light that she couldn’t discern their shade.
“I have a good deal to be getting on with, Miss Prince.”
Allie couldn’t resist a glance at his injured hand and her imagination conjured wild possibilities of what Inspector Drake’s workday might entail.
“I won’t take up any more of your time.” Allie offered the man a nod. “Good day, Inspector. I hope those cuts don’t sting too much.”
He shot a look down at his hand, almost as ifhe’d forgotten the appendage was attached to his brawny arm.
She turned on her heel, headed to the door, and felt an odd sense of disappointment. Just as Dom claimed she had a terrible propensity to do, she’d rushed in. Logically speaking, she had no real cause to involve the police when the trio might have merely been chattering with no real intent beyond their bluster.
And yet something in her gut told her otherwise. She sensed that somewhere in London, a plot was unfolding. If not involving all three men, then at least the tall one. The menace she’d felt when he’d stared at her in the alleyway made her shiver even now.
“Miss Prince.” Drake had followed her out into the hallway.
“Yes?” When Allie turned, he loomed just beyond the frame of his office door, and a sconce lit all the features of his face. She swallowed hard because she could tell now. His eyes. They were moss green but laced with streaks of amber.
“I must warn you—”
“Green amber,” she heard herself say.
Out loud.
Good heavens, she’d blurted the words, and of course he hadn’t a clue what she meant. Actually, it was probably less mortifying if hedidn’tknow that his eye color had inspired her outburst.
He glowered and tilted his head a fraction in confusion. “I beg your pardon.”
“It’s very rare,” was all she could manage before her cheeks lit on fire and she spun and rushed away from him as fast as her legs could carry her.
She exited the building and kept walking, rushing so quickly she inspired a few shocked looks from passersby.
Across the street and around a corner, she finally stopped to catch her breath. To lean against the chilled stone of the building at her back and will her cheeks to cool.
She closed her eyes and wished for the thousandth time that her tongue didn’t occasionally mumble whatever popped into her head.
