Page 14 of Worth Any Price
“At least let me walk with you to the house,” Lord Sydney urged. “If we are seen together, you can explain it as a chance meeting.”
Lottie hesitated, then nodded. “And we’ll part company at the back terrace?”
“Yes.” Offering her his arm, Lord Sydney accompanied her to the double-sided stone staircase at the back of the manor. They were both silent as they ascended to the terrace that overlooked the main gardens. Abundant light from the great hall shone through the glittering multipaned windows and French doors. The terrace, often the location for guests to smoke and drink port, was unoccupied, as nearly everyone was either in the village or playing cards and billiards inside.
A lone figure relaxed in a chair by the railing. He drew lazily on a cigar, exhaling a thin stream of smoke that drifted in the air like a vanishing wraith. The scent of expensive tobacco tickled Lottie’s nostrils as she reached the top step.
Her stomach flipped uneasily as she realized who the man was.
“Lord Westcliff,” she murmured, curtsying automatically. Uneasily she wondered what he would make of the fact that she was accompanied by Lord Sydney.
The earl remained seated as he surveyed the two of them. The refracted light from the windows gleamed on his coal black hair and cast angular shadows across his blunt, strong features. “Miss Miller,” he said in his gravelly voice, and nodded coolly to her companion. “Sydney. What convenient timing. There is a matter that I wish to take up with you.”
Certain that her employer was displeased with her, Lottie lowered her gaze to the stone flagging of the terrace. “My lord, forgive me. I went to watch the festival in the village, and—”
“You did more than watch, it appears,” Lord Westcliff observed mildly, his keen gaze sweeping over her rustic attire.
“Yes, I took part in the Maypole dance. And Lord Sydney offered to escort me home—”
“Of course he did,” the earl said sardonically, taking another pull on his cigar. Blue-gray smoke whirled and eddied upward. “There is no need to look so distressed, Miss Miller. As far as I am concerned, you are not prohibited from seeking entertainment in the village—although it would doubtless be wise not to mention such activities to the dowager countess.” He gestured with his cigar. “You may go now, while I discuss a few things with Lord Sydney.”
Lottie nodded in cautious relief. “Yes, sir.” As she began to depart, she was astonished to feel Lord Sydney’s light, restraining hand on her arm.
“Wait.”
Lottie froze in utter confusion, her face flooding with color. She could not believe that he had dared to touch her in front of the earl. “My lord,” she murmured in protest.
Sydney did not return her glance; his gaze was fixed intently on the earl’s harsh features. “Before Miss Miller takes her leave, you had better tell me what this is about.”
“This is about your so-called family,” Lord Westcliff said softly. “And your so-called past.” The quiet words rang with condemnation. Lottie realized from the earl’s expression that something was very wrong. If any warmth had lingered from the enchanted moments in the forest, it vanished abruptly.
Bewildered, she stared at Lord Sydney. His face had changed somehow, no longer quite so handsome, but suddenly hard and cold. To behold him now, one would believe that this man was capable of anything. Suddenly, she could not believe that a few minutes ago she had kissed that stern mouth, that his hands had caressed her intimately. When he spoke, even his voice sounded different, his accent a bit coarser. The aristocratic veneer had been stripped away, revealing the stony layers beneath. “I would prefer to discuss this in a more private setting,” he said to the earl.
Westcliff inclined his head with icy courtesy. “There is a study in the family wing. Will that serve?”
“Yes.” Sydney paused deliberately before adding, “Miss Miller will accompany us.”
Lottie stared at him blankly. His request made no sense. Suddenly she felt cold all over, and a shiver chased down her spine. “Why?” she asked through dry lips.
“She has nothing to do with this,” Lord Westcliff said curtly, rising from his chair.
Lord Sydney’s face was dark and still. “She has everything to do with it.”
Lottie felt herself turn white. The entire surface of her body seemed to prickle and burn, as if she had fallen into a frozen pond. She found it difficult to speak or move as a paralyzing suspicion crept over her.
The earl dropped his cigar to the terrace and crushed it with his foot. A touch of uncharacteristic impatience edged his tone. “Miss Miller, will you be so kind as to join us? It seems that we have a small mystery to solve.”
Nodding in a puppetlike fashion, Lottie followed the earl into the house, while her instincts screamed for her to flee. She had little choice but to play the scene out, however. Forcing herself to behave calmly, she went with the two men to the private study, its rosewood paneling glowing ruddily in the lamplight. The room was hard and uncompromising, with minimal upholstery and sharp angles, and no ornamentation save for a pristine row of stained glass windows.
As Lord Westcliff closed the door, Lottie took care to keep as great a distance between herself and Sydney as possible. A sense of foreboding nearly made her ill. She could not bring herself to look directly at Lord Sydney, but she was intensely aware of him.
Lord Westcliff spoke. “Will you have a seat, Miss Miller?”
Lottie shook her head dumbly, afraid that if she moved at all, she might collapse.
“Very well.” The earl’s attention moved to Lord Sydney. “Let us begin with the information I received today. Immediately upon your arrival at Stony Cross Park, I undertook to make certain inquiries about you. I suspected that you were not being entirely truthful in some regard, although I could not quite put my finger on what it was.”
Lord Sydney appeared relaxed but watchful, his blue eyes hard as he returned the earl’s stare. “And the results of your inquiries, my lord?”
