Page 2 of The Last Chance
“Mr Chance.” She was panting so hard she failed to utter anything but his name. “Mr Chance.” She spoke like he was a crutch she could lean on.
“Sigmund, fetch Miss Lovelace a nip of brandy.” Aaron studied her, praying she was cold and not shaking because of a horrible encounter with a patron.
“I—I need you,” she cried, the words waking something primitive in him. “I need you to come to The Burnished Jade. I need you to come now.”
She had never needed him before.
The thought could drive a man to behave recklessly.
She had never shown herself to be this vulnerable.
“Why?” he snapped. Although she had saved his sister’s life and could be trusted, most people were capable of betrayal. “Your patrons left hours ago.” He never went to bed until she’d closed for the night. “Do you have rats?” He prayed rats were the only vermin occupying her premises.
“I have a much bigger problem than rats.”
Sigmund returned with the liquor.
Miss Lovelace snatched the glass and tossed back the brandy, hissing as the amber liquid scorched her throat, determined its potency would not overwhelm her.
Aaron found her reaction strangely charming. “Now you’ve gathered your wits, you will tell me what the hell this is about.”
She grabbed his forearm as if drowning from the weight of her burden, unnerving him as her fingers firmed over the corded muscle.
“Can I trust you? You must believe me. I had nothing to do with what happened at The Burnished Jade tonight.” She shook her head in confusion as her ramblings took a worrying turn. “Perhaps my mind is playing tricks and I have imagined thewhole thing. Perhaps past fears have returned to haunt me. Please say you’ll come.”
He held his temper. Now was not the time to gloat or remind her she’d acted against his advice and invited men into her club. He was having a hard enough time trying to imagine what wickedness had occurred.
“Did someone threaten you?”
Much to his relief, she released him and thrust the glass at Sigmund before gesturing to the door. “I’ll explain once you’ve examined the scene.”
The scene!
The comment sent a shiver shooting down his spine, but her bare feet stole his attention as she crossed the threshold. “Where are your shoes?”
“I left in a hurry.”
“It’s raining.”
“Rain is the least of my concerns.”
For a heartbeat, he considered carrying her but banished the thought instantly. “The slightest cut may lead to infection.”
She pointed to his bare feet. “Then we’ll die together.”
Those words had a strange appeal for a man who expected to die alone.
Focusing on his current predicament, Aaron had Sigmund lock the door and accompany them to The Burnished Jade. The street was deserted except for an alley cat, a drunkard asleep in a shop doorway, and the relentless pounding of rain on the pavement.
Aaron had stood outside her club many times these last few months, contemplating why a young woman would assume control of her father’s failing business. What had happened to Arthur Lovelace? Why had he upped and moved abroad, leaving a vulnerable woman in charge of his affairs? Discreet enquiries confirmed the bank had seized his Cheapside home.
Aaron knew one thing for certain.
Miss Lovelace had a secret.
One he was determined to discover.
“Follow me,” the lady said, shaking off the rain before escorting them through the dim hall, painted an elegant shade of blue now she had stripped away the shabby wallpaper. “The problem lies upstairs.”
