Page 29 of The Last Chance
Aramis nodded.
“We’ll not meet tomorrow.” Mr Chance paused when Eloise returned with the pastries and fresh pots of tea and coffee.
Joanna took the opportunity to eat one of her own delicious treats. It took effort to use a napkin and not lick sugar off her lips. Her eyes kept fluttering closed as she savoured every bite.
Mr Chance watched her.
She smiled and mouthed, “They’re so good.”
His gaze dropped to his coffee, though she was convinced she saw the beginnings of a smile grace his lips. Why the action should cause a flush of heat in her core was anyone’s guess. Why she had a sudden desire to make him happy proved confounding, too.
“We need to vary our usual routine,” Mr Chance continued. “We’ll meet at Daventry’s office on Monday at noon. Any notes we exchange via the penny boy must contain the sacred rule and the symbols of our monikers in order of our birth. That way, we cannot be drawn into a trap.”
“The sacred rule?” Joanna said, amazed at his thoroughness.
“There must be no secrets between us, no lies,” Christian said, gazing upon his brothers with abiding love and loyalty. “It’s a rule we’ve lived by since our stepmother threw us out on the streets.”
Joanna’s home had been ripped from her, too. Unlike the Chance brothers, her grandfather had ensured she always had somewhere comfortable to live.
“Honesty is always the best policy,” she said but did not look at Aaron Chance. “Secrets rarely remain hidden forever.”
The last statement did not reflect her own personal journey. Her brother’s fate would always remain a mystery. A mystery that would haunt Gabriel beyond the grave. The same might be said for her father, but she suspected he would reappear once his creditors had grown tired of looking for him.
“Perhaps you would like to stay with us, Miss Lovelace,” Aramis’ wife Naomi said. “An unmarried lady should have female company.”
As Naomi had kidnapped Aramis at gunpoint and married him the same night, she was hardly one to worry about society’s strictures. Indeed, Joanna wondered if the comment was made to test Mr Chance’s resolve.
“As Mr Chance explained, we’re bound by a curfew,” Joanna said. Something else bound them together, too, an unnameable something she felt deep in her bones. “I’m not sure I’m permitted to reside elsewhere.”
The constable had called at eight o’clock last night to ensure they had not absconded. She had seen Mr Chance for all of five minutes before they parted ways in the hall, bidding each other good night.
“It’s more practical for her to remain here,” came Mr Chance’s logical reply. “Focus on looking after each other. I shall protect Miss Lovelace should any problems arise.”
He was alluding to the escape plan. The plan to bundle herinto a carriage during the early hours and set her on the first ship bound for France. Might he have an ulterior motive for playing the errant knight? In his battle to keep her at arm’s length, would he seek to send her miles across the sea?
“No one can protect her better than you can,” Theodore said with glowing pride. “One might think you’ve spent your whole life preparing for this moment.”
“I’ve spent my life fighting to survive,” he corrected before returning to the arrangements to meet in Mr Daventry’s office on Monday.
They finished their beverages, and his brothers left Fortune’s Den fifteen minutes apart. Each man assured Mr Chance they had survived worse and would survive this setback, too.
Naomi drew Joanna aside to deliver a cryptic message. “Most men have a gambler’s instinct. They keep their cards close to their chest and master the cool expression that confuses their opponents. The trick is to call their bluff and force them to play their hand.” She looked Mr Chance’s way. “I’m confident the prize is worth the wager.” With that, she hugged Joanna and left.
Then it was just her and Mr Chance again, just the two of them standing awkwardly in the hall. She searched his face, looking for the telltale sign Eloise mentioned, anything that might suggest a hunger to have her.
Nothing.
She would have convinced herself Eloise was mistaken had his brothers not mentioned the wordscrumptioustwice during the meeting.
“I’m ready to leave if you are,” she said.
His brow furrowed. “Leave?”
“To question Mr Parker and the Fitzpatricks.”
“Yes, let me fetch my coat.”
“The coat you fill so well?” she teased.
