Page 58 of A Duke's Scandalous Obsession
Timothy nodded. It seemed that both men pondered the same thing, but Dominic was the first one to speak. “Do you think it is possible he was involved in their disappearance?”
“Possible and even probable,” Timothy said gravely. “I see no other reason for kidnapping a mother and a young child. Maybe for ransom, if they knew that she was involved with Lord Stanhope, but it’s been three days and no ransom note has been delivered yet. Whatever happened to the girls, we need to find them and quickly. Time is of the essence.”
“I know,” Dominic sighed. He knew that every moment spent searching for answers brought them closer to uncovering the truth.
“Keep digging,” Dominic instructed, his voice resolute. “We need to find the girls, and then we need to find George. Let’s hope that one will lead us to the other.”
Both men got up at the same time, and Dominic patted Timothy’s shoulder in a friendly manner. “I really appreciate all your help, old boy.”
“Always,” Timothy nodded with a smile. A moment later, he was gone, leaving Dominic to deal with the aftermath of a revelation that brought no news.
He was to see Reginald that afternoon, and he was sincerely hoping that Timothy would have some good news. Three days was enough to investigate and find out something valuable, something that might lead them a step closer to finding either the girls or George. However, that was not the case.
Dominic hoped that would not make Reginald despair. He could see him falling into that dark abyss day after day. Dominic knew how that felt, but he didn’t feel close enough to Reginald to truly speak his mind.
He could only do that through Catherine, and for the time being, that was enough. Reginald had come to accept the fact that they were all on the same side, fighting for the same cause, but that didn’t mean that Reginald had forgiven him for what he had done. Dominic knew that he would need to earn both Reginald’s as well as Catherine’s trust, and he decided to do it little by little.
***
It had been three days since Catherine could sleep properly. She kept thinking about Annabel and Rosie. Where were they? Who were they with? Were they all right? All those questions had the potential of frightening answers. It was better not to think about them at all, but that was an impossible feat.
That evening after dinner, Dominic had bid her goodnight. She realized that in all of that commotion, she still hadn’t spoken to him about the way he ended their last kiss so abruptly. It just seemed inappropriate to discuss something so small in comparison to what was happening to her brother. Still, in light of everything, she couldn’t sleep, and that night was no different from the two before.
She decided to go to the library. She tried to convince herself that it was because a book was an insomniac’s best friend, but the real reason was that Dominic was also in the habit of spending sleepless nights there. Secretly, she had been hoping to stumble upon him.
The corridors were dark, barely illuminated, but Catherine knew the way well. Her footsteps echoed softly against the polished wooden floors. As she entered the library, her heart skipped a beat at the sight of Dominic’s silhouette outlined against the dancing flames of the fireplace. He was sitting in an armchair by the fire, engrossed in a book, his features illuminated and made even more handsome by the soft light.
For a moment, Catherine stood in the doorway, content to simply watch him in silence. There was something undeniably magnetic about the way he was completely absorbed in his reading, his brow furrowed in concentration. Summoning her courage, she cleared her throat softly, announcing her presence. Dominic looked up, a warm smile lighting up his face as he saw her standing there.
“Catherine,” he said gently, setting aside his book. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here so late.”
“I couldn’t sleep,” she admitted, crossing the room to join him by the fire. “I thought a quiet moment in the library might help.”
Dominic nodded in understanding, gesturing at her to take a seat opposite him. As she settled into the chair, he regarded her with a gentle curiosity.
“Are you all right?” he asked, his tone filled with genuine concern.
Catherine hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Yes. I mean, with everything that is happening to Reggie, I would feel selfish if I said something was wrong.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Well, is there?”
She swallowed heavily. “I… perhaps this isn’t the best time to be discussing these things. We have more important matters to deal with right now.”
“That is probably true,” he nodded in a reassuring manner. “And we are doing everything in our power to solve those problems. You know that we are. But sometimes, the solution is out of our hands until the right moment for it comes. Only then is it available to us. In the meantime, perhaps we can focus on something else, something… as you said, less important?”
Now, his book was completely forgotten. She was the center of his attention, just the way she liked it.
“I… I don’t really know where to begin,” she admitted, biting her lower lip.
He smiled. “At the beginning?”
She chuckled. It actually helped. She cleared her throat a little, then she continued. “I wanted to talk about the last time we kissed.”
“Oh.” That was the only thing he said. She wondered if that was a bad thing. Regardless, she decided to see it through until the end now that she had started that conversation.
“Why… why did you run away from me?” she said it a bit awkwardly, but the truth was that was how she felt about it. He ran away from her and then they neglected to discuss it.
He didn’t say anything at first. He inhaled deeply. She wondered if he was searching for the right words.
