Page 34 of The Duke and Lady Scandal
No man had ever overwhelmed her senses the way he did.
When she didn’t answer his question, he stepped closer. The toe of his boot brushed the edge of her skirt.
“Miss Prince?” His gaze traced her features, then settled on her lips.
Her breathing quickened and she searched her addled brain, trying to focus on the question he’d asked rather than the effect of his nearness.
At the distant chime of the bell, they both stilled. Allie strode toward the half-open door, expecting to see Lord Holcroft. Instead, she recognized the postman who delivered their afternoon mail each day.
“Not him,” she told Drake. He’d positioned himself behind her, a spice-scented wall of masculine heat at her back. She held still a moment, savoring the warmth of him, then tipped her head back. “Not long now.”
They both glanced at the clock on the wall. It would be four in less than a quarter of an hour.
“Will you follow him?” Allie asked, finally turning to face him.
He stepped back, giving her space that was entirely appropriate.
“That is my intention,” he told her. “Though it may take others to maintain watch and days to determine anything of use.”
“I suppose there’s nothing to confront him with at this point.”
“No, and if I did, he’d simply issue a denial.”
“Yes, he would. This gem he’s bringing Mr. Gibson to cut. What if it’s stolen? If they were plotting to steal the Crown Jewels, perhaps jewel theft is their stock-in-trade.”
“Once I’ve seen the gem and know the details, I’ll make inquiries to see if it matches any reports of stolen gems.”
Allie began pacing. It was her usual method for working off agitation when she had nothing else to do.
In contrast, Drake settled into a straight-backed chair. “Is that an antique or used for play?”
He’d chosen a chair in front of the chess set that their mother had used to teach Allie and her siblings how to play. It had been Allie’s idea to put it in the back room, where she could play Mr. Gibson on the long days they spent in the shop.
“It’s both. My mother used it to teach me and my siblings. Do you play?”
“Occasionally, though my sister is a fierce competitor and has an unchallenged string of victories against me.”
Allie laughed. She found herself intrigued by his chess master sister. “Perhaps you need a few pointers.”
“Teach me how to beat her, and I’ll be forever in your debt.”
Allie gulped down the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat at the thought of having Detective Inspector Benedict Drake indebted to her, and she pushed away the notions that came to mind of how he could repay her because they involved intimacies she had no right to.
In repayment, may I trace your dimples with the tip of my finger?
Good grief, less than an hour alone with the man and she was becoming a wanton.
The multiple clocks on the shop’s shelves as well as the pendulum wall clock in the back room all dinged in near synchrony, indicating the four o’clock hour.
Allie peeked through the door, which stood ajar by a few inches.
Mr. Gibson shrugged and glanced at his watch. “Perhaps he’s running late.”
“Perhaps he is.”
Allie turned back to find Drake had picked up the white queen and was examining the intricate details of the marble piece.
“I suppose I have time to teach you a few tricks.” Allie settled into the chair across from him and reset the board. Though she usually took white, Drake sat on that side today, and she quite liked the notion that he’d move her usual pieces around the board.
