Page 7 of A Wish Upon an Earl
Aubrey answered for him.“You can’t go back in there, Sarah.Not with your leg like that.”
“Precisely.”Then he turned and headed not for the ballroom, but toward the kitchen.Best for no one to see Sarah in this state.He could at least protect her in this.His sensibilities smarted again.What a mess he’d made for her.“And it would be best if you’re not seen.No one need know you’ve been injured.”
“Oh, but…” Her arms had circled his neck and she grasped his shoulders with each of her hands, giving them a small squeeze.“But Ash needs my help tonight.I planned this party for his benefit.”
He smiled down at her.How was it that she felt so much lighter than that suit?She was a fair bit prettier too.Her green eyes sparkled in the moonlight even as her skin glowed in its pale light.Funny.He’d never noticed before that Sarah’s beauty was made for the night.The length of her arm not covered with her glove tickled his neck.“While I appreciate how selfless you are, I’m sure Ash will be fine without you.You need to put up that foot and, honestly, we should send for the doctor.”
“I agree,” Aubrey called from behind Sarah.Jack could only assume that the silent duke had followed as well.“Don’t worry about a thing.Camilla can take your place tonight, and we’ll help her.We’ll tell everyone that you have a terrible headache.No one will be the wiser.”
“And what about tomorrow?”she cried, squeezing his shoulders even harder.He grimaced.He’d done this to her.Now she was going to miss her entire party that she’d likely spent weeks planning.Guilt washed over him again.“I’ve planned a multiday house party full of activities.I have duties and obligations.”
“We’ll find a way to make it right,” he answered, low enough that only she could hear.Inwardly, however, he winced.What had happened to the girl who dreamed of wild adventures?All he’d heard from her was duty and responsibility.“We’ll make all of it right.”
3
Sarah could confess, at least in her own private thoughts, that being carried by Jack was delightful.
One had to first suspend embarrassment, but considering he’d just knocked her over with a lance, she found her own feelings of insecurity had diminished.
He’d had his own rather embarrassing incident with a costume, and she was sure, at some point, she’d find this entire evening wonderfully comical.And though her ankle still throbbed terribly, she was tucked so comfortably in his embrace that her worries melted away.
Which left her free to remember all the reasons she’d had an infatuation with him in the first place.
It started with the breadth of the shoulders under her hands.The ease with which he carried her now had something to do with it as well.
She snuck a glance up at his profile.His strong square jaw was even more pronounced as he frowned.His straight nose led her gaze up to his piercing brown eyes.His normally perfectly coiffed brown hair had been mussed by the helmet in a way that was somehow more attractive because it was more…intimate.
She had the distinct urge to brush the locks back, let her fingers run through them.Were they silky?Coarse?
Then she shook her head.What was she thinking?
“Sarah.”Jack’s voice cut through her musings as she blinked several times.
“What?”she asked as she looked up at him, realizing he was glancing down and that they were rather close as they angled toward one another.Her breath caught as she stared up at him.
She’d never kissed a man before, but in this moment, she wondered what it might be like.Was he thinking the same about her?
She gave herself a mental shake.Of course he wasn’t.
“Which way?”he asked, his eyebrows rising.They stood in the hall, and she realized he’d negotiated her through the door in his arms, all while she’d been dreaming of kisses in the moonlight.
“To the left, up the stairs to the third floor,” she squeaked out, her face heating.Hopefully the low light hid the bright red color that had surely filled her cheeks.
“Aubrey, why don’t you return to the party,” Drew rumbled from behind them.“I’ll chaperone Sarah upstairs.And let Ash know what’s happened.”
“Of course,” Aubrey answered.“I’ll be up to check on you later,” she said to Sarah before she started down the hall to the main entry and the ballroom beyond.
Jack started up the stairs, carrying her up the first flight without a word.
“I can help if you need,” Drew called from behind them.
Jack’s jaw tensed.“I’m fine.”
“Drew can help,” she repeated.She’d not spoken to Jack in years.Not even at Malcolm’s funeral.He didn’t have to help her now.Yes, he was friends with her brother, but that didn’t mean he needed to care for her.A sentiment he’d been more than clear on the last time they had talked.“The duke is like family to Ash and to me, and I’m sure he doesn’t mind, do you, Drew?”
“I don’t,” Drew answered.
Jack looked down at her as he started on the next flight of stairs, a muscle ticking in his jaw.“At one point, I was like family too.”
