Page 89 of The Secret Love of a Gentleman
Rob’s eyes were pools of concern. She could see from his expression he longed to hold her.
‘I will fetch you and Mary something to eat.’ Drew touched Caro’s shoulder.
‘If you sit, Ellen, I will fetch you something too.’ Edwardencouraged Ellen to sit on Caro’s other side, then the men walked away.
Sipping the champagne, her fingers gripping the stem of the glass, Caro watched the entrance to the room. Albert did not come in, nor did his wife.
When the men returned, Drew put a full plate down in front of Caro, then sat beside Mary. Rob gave the extra plate he held to Mary then sat opposite Caro and Edward took the seat on the other side of Ellen, filling up the table. They did not talk as normal, it was as though they had all been shaken up.
Towards the end of the supper period, Rob’s Uncle Richard strode across the room to their table and leaned across Rob’s shoulder. ‘Kilbride has gone,’ he announced, as though he had a part to play in Albert’s leaving.
Caro looked at Rob. He smiled, his eyebrows lifting to say,are you well?
She shook her head. She wanted to leave and if Albert had gone it would not matter if she did. She turned to Drew as the notes of a country dance began. ‘Would you dance with me now to show these people I have not let Albert shame me, but then Rob can take me home?’
‘I will dance with you, and I will take you home, Caro.’
‘No. You stay. I do not wish to spoil Mary’s evening; she rarely has the chance to see her parents. Rob will not mind.’
Drew’s eyes gained a dozen leagues in depth and he turned to Rob, pressed a hand on Rob’s shoulder and leaned to his ear. Then he stood and offered his hand to Caro. As he led her through to the room to dance, he said, ‘You cannot leave with Rob. Mary and I will come with the two of you. If you left alone with Rob, people would draw their own conclusions.’
At the end of the dance, they rejoined Rob’s family, but Rob was not among them. They said their goodbyes, and Drew tookher and Mary across the room to say goodnight to the Forths. She curtsied and told them not to worry when they apologised about Albert. Then, at last, she walked beside Drew and Mary out into the hall and breathed as though she had been holding her breath for an hour.
Rob waited there, already dressed in his outdoor clothes. He held her cloak over his arm. As a footman held Mary’s.
Caro turned so he could lay her cloak over her shoulders, and she answered his earlier question in her thoughts –better now I am closer to you.
His forearm trembled beneath her hand as they walked outside to the carriage.
46
Caro sat beside him in the carriage, her thigh close enough that Rob could feel her trembling as much as he was.
‘I am sorry, Caro,’ Drew stated. ‘I should have been looking and ensured you came back to Mary.’
‘I’m sorry too,’ Rob said. ‘If I had seen him approach you, I would have stopped him.’
A low sound of frustration growled in the back of Drew’s throat. He looked at Rob. ‘May we take you back to your apartment?’
‘No. I will come to John’s, my curricle is there.’ Rob’s heart still hit against his ribs in a sharp rhythm. He would not be able to sleep unless he had a chance to speak with Caro. It was difficult not to clench his hands into fists. He wished he could have walked onto that floor and punched Kilbride, more than once. Yet he was angry with himself too, because he had not been watching Caro.
‘How did he get hold of you?’ Drew asked.
‘I left Peter to use the retiring room and when I returned, as I passed through the crowd, he caught a hold of my arm. I couldnot extricate myself without causing a scene, and neither of you could have gripped my other arm and begun a tug of war.’ She glanced at Rob, then looked at Drew.
‘I could have waited in the hall for you,’ Rob said. ‘Then he could not have ambushed you.’
‘And the entire place may have noted such a thing and rumours would have begun,’ Drew snapped. ‘I need to escort Caro, Rob, she is not your responsibility.’
Yet she ought to be.
‘What did he say?’ Rob asked. ‘Did he threaten you?’
She shook her head. ‘Threats are not Albert’s way of doing things.’ A shaky breath pulled into her lungs. ‘He asked me to become his mistress.’
‘No!’ Shock and horror spurred Rob’s anger.
‘Goodness, Caro.’ Mary sounded horrified too. She leaned across the carriage and briefly squeezed one of Caro’s hands.
