Page 64 of Dangerous Games of a Broken Lady
Jasper stared at him. “I did not think it my place to ask her.”
“Who else could have such a place but you?”
“Men of better breeding, of greater wealth, of higher position.”
“Nonsense! You would have been a welcome choice.”
He smiled wryly. “She would never have accepted me. It is true that I adore her, and I once thought about a romantic attachment. However, she has made her feelings quite clear. We are friends, and that is all there is to it.”
“Have you asked her?”
“Asked her what?”
Ephraim grimaced. “If she has ever held romantic feelings towards you?”
“Of course not. I value my pride too greatly to receive such a mocking rejection.”
“And you are certain she would have rejected you?”
He paused in thought. “I imagine so.”
“Then you are both fools, for you might have been happiest with one another. Have either of you ever discovered a person who cheered you in the same way? Have either of you ever found someone you wanted to share your secrets with, as you do with one another?”
Jasper gaped. “No.”
“Then, you see, you are both fools. You have been right beside each other, all this time, and you have been too stupid to see it.”
Jasper was about to defend himself when a knock at the door split the silent air. They whirled around to face the sound. A moment later, the door flew open and a figure entered. Dressed in a dark cloak, their face shrouded from sight, Ephraim feared the Bow Street Runners had come to take them away.
“My Lord, Lord Gillet, are you in here?” a voice asked. A stranger’s voice.
They crouched lower, for fear of being seen.
“I do not wish you any harm,” the voice continued. “I have a message from Lord Rowntree that cannot wait. Please, if you are in here, show yourselves. I have followed you from your homes. I know you came into this room.”
The two men looked at one another in the shadows. They had been caught in the trap before they had even begun. They had been followed, and now they would be discovered.
“I must insist that you come out,” the deep voice repeated, resounding with urgency.
How can we escape this?Ephraim asked himself. For now, there was nowhere to hide.
Chapter 25
“Please, will you both come out?” the voice repeated. “I have urgent news from Lord Rowntree.”
Jasper frowned and cast another look at Ephraim. There was no way to escape the room without passing the cloaked figure. Solely from the voice, it being low and husky, one could hardly figure out the identity or the gender of the person talking. A fact that only added to the uncertainty of the moment...Jasper hesitantly assumed the cloaked figure was a man.
If it was one of the Runners, they would have moved to arrest them by now. And, considering the fellow said he had news from Lord Rowntree, Jasper doubted he had anything to do with the authorities.
He swallowed, making a decision. “Who are you?”
“That is of no consequence, Jasper,” the figure replied. “It is you, is it not?”
“It is.”
“Good, then I have not happened upon the wrong individuals.”
“What news do you bring?” Jasper continued. He was determined not to move until he could be certain they were in no danger. Otherwise, they were going to have to fight their way out of this mess.
