Page 7 of A Wicked Viscount's Stormy Affair
Everything seemed to come rushing back to Sophie the moment her body slammed against the cold wet floor of the deck once more. It winded her, and she could not get enough air into her lungs no matter how hard she tried, but there was one word that she needed to get out.
“… Douglas…”
“Your dog?” the man asked in a chocolaty smooth voice. “Because I already have him. I scooped him up earlier, so he did not get hurt…”
Sophie’s eyes widened in joy. “You have him?”
The man had tied Douglas’ leash to secure him, then lifted Douglas in front of him, which caused her to break down into body wracking sobs. But not because she was sad this time, because she was overwhelmed and happy to have her baby back. It was also heart breaking to see how shaken up the poor creature was, knowing that she must look the same way.
“I think we should get you out of the rain,” the gentleman said quietly to Sophie. “I do not think it will do you or the dog any good to become any more soaked than you already are.”
Sophie scooped up Douglas into her arms and allowed the man to lead them, albeit staggering, back inside. The rain fell so violently on her face that she could not see a thing, but her powerful shudders as the cold impacted her was impossible to avoid. She did not know if it was ever possible to get dry again…
“Sophie, oh my goodness, there you are.”
Her mother was out in the hallway, seemingly looking for her. Something must have woken her up, the storm perhaps, and she had realized that both Sophie and Douglas were missing.
“You are soaking wet,” her mother cried out in horror. “What happened to you? Why have you been outside in the storm. I told you, the captain said we must stay locked up.”
“The… the door,” Sophie blurted out through her chattering teeth. “It bl… blew open and Douglas…”
Her father appeared with a blanket and concern in his eyes. He enveloped Sophie in an embrace which nearly had her collapsing in to tears all over again. How would her parents feel if they knew that they’d almost just lost her? That she was flung overboard in her desperate search for her dog? They almost lost her, and her parents had no idea about it.
Her father was going through enough at the moment with his worries about his mother. This was the last thing that he needed. Silently, she vowed to always be more careful in the future.
“What happened?” Sophie’s mother asked, only she no longer had her attention on her daughter. She was looking at Sophie’s rescuer. “How did you find her?”
“I was simply exploring the boat myself, trying to make sure that everyone was alright because I could not sleep, and I happened to see the dog sprinting up on deck. Scared, I figured. But before I could run after him, I saw a woman in a night gown…”
Sophie swallowed hard.
It was a little strange hearing herself and her actions talked about like this.
Her father tried to lead her out of the hallway, whispering something about needing to get her dry, but she was not about to move right now. She refused. She needed to hear every word that the stranger said about her.
“Well it is a miracle that you were there,” her mother chuckled. “Thank you for bringing her back inside before something bad happened.”
“But something bad did happen,” Sophie insisted, before she even realized what she was saying. “It was not as straight forward as that. A wave knocked the boat sideways, and I tumbled over the edge. I almost fell into the water.”
The last thing she wanted to do was worry her parents, to make this worse than it already was, but at the same time she absolutely needed them to know how far this gentleman had gone to save her. She might have been a little in shock, but she knew that he had saved her life.
“Oh my.” Her father stepped in front of her, shock radiating off of him. “Well then, we must find a way to thank you for this. We must pay you… you deserve it. I do not even want to think about what might have happened had you not been there to save her.”
“Oh no, it is fine.” The man smiled and waved his hand dismissively. “That is unnecessary.”
“Lord Harrington, is that right?”
“Yes, George Harrington. But you do not need to worry about any sort of reward. It is reward enough to know that everyone is alright.”
“Thank you,” Sophie whispered, desperately wanting this gentleman to know that she appreciated everything.
But her thanks were drowned out by her parents, who also wanted to express their praise to this man. They could not stop expressing their gratitude, so Sophie’s voice could not be heard. Plus, Douglas was getting irritated again, and the last thing that she wanted was for her pet to make an escape a second time.
So with deep regret, she slid into her room and closed the door behind her, making sure to push a dresser up in front of it this time around so it would not swing open again. Once she placed Douglas down on the sheets, she let out a breath of relief, and a little confusion as well.
This had been such a strange night, and she was not sure what to make of any of it.
“Let me dry you, baby boy,” she cooed as she took the blanket to Douglas. “Oh, bless you darling. I am so glad that you are alright.”
