Chapter 22 #2
A ladder had been placed at one end of the deepening trench, and when Tobias climbed down and saw the darker rectangle of soil, he drew a sharp breath.
“There could be a burial chamber below us…or perhaps it’s just a place where dirt was backfilled from the robbers.
We’ll find out tomorrow, when the light is better. ”
Now, as the clock struck twelve midnight, Emeline imagined the thrilling events the next day might hold. Imagined herself using her tools, gently troweling around a half-buried artifact…losing herself in the painstaking unveiling of layers of history.
She told herself to close her eyes. Go to sleep, or you won’t be of any use tomorrow!
Moonbeams crept ghostlike through gaps in the curtains.
As one streamed across Emeline’s pillow, it seemed that she might reach out to find Hart lying next to her.
She ached to be in his arms again, but nearly as powerful was the longing to share with him every single thing that had happened at Woodcroft Priory.
Pain squeezed her heart and one hot tear spilled onto the pillow. At least, if she never saw Hart again, she would have the vivid memories of their lovemaking to carry with her. She would live an independent, celibate life, for no one else could ever take his place.
A muted tap sounded at the connecting door. “Emmie?”
“I’m awake,” she called softly. “Come and join me!”
A moment later, Louise was crossing the room, slim and ethereal in her white nightgown. “I can’t sleep,” she confessed as she sat down on the edge of the bed. “You, too?”
Emeline sat up, nodding, and they embraced. “My mind is in a whirl.”
“Are you thinking of the excavation?” Louise looked directly into her eyes. “Or…of Hart?”
“Both.” Tears threatened, yet it was liberating to share her feelings with someone she could trust. “This is his mother’s family property, and I yearn to tell him everything that is happening.”
“Perhaps you miss him in…other ways as well,” Louise suggested gently.
“It is a kind of grief,” she admitted, drawing a painful breath. “But of course, Hart is alive somewhere in the world. So I will confess that my grief is tinged with something I should not properly speak of.”
“Of course you can say the word to me, Emmie.”
Emeline raised her eyes, smiling as her cheeks grew warm. “Lust.”
“You are a minx,” laughed Louise.
“That’s just what Hart calls me!” Feeling better, she dried her eyes on the sheet’s embroidered hem and looked at Louise.
“It’s so confusing. Part of me hates him for letting me fall in love with him and then leaving me with only a note.
But then I remember how many times Hart warned me to stay away.
Even that last night! I thought I could change his mind…
” She shook her head and sighed. “Let us talk of you instead, dear cousin. Is it only the excitement of the dig that keeps you awake?”
“No.” Color stained her cheeks. “Other thoughts do intrude.”
Unable to help herself, Emeline prompted, “Perhaps you feel drawn to Tobias?”
“I do have those moments, I confess. But my heart has been otherwise engaged for more than two decades, and those tender feelings cannot be abandoned overnight.”
Drat! She badly wanted to urge Louise to forget about Charles. It wouldn’t do, though. It came to Emeline that her shy cousin might use her unrequited love for Charles as a shield, allowing her to avoid the attentions of other men, but Emeline couldn’t say any of this aloud.
Instead she murmured, “No, I can see that it would be difficult to change the direction of one’s heart.”
Louise sighed. “We both must try to sleep. If there is a discovery behind that rectangle of dark earth, tomorrow will prove to be a very exciting day!”
“Yes,” Emeline agreed with a wry smile. “We should be thinking about archaeology, not men.”
“Well said, cousin.”
After Louise returned to her own room, Emeline lay back and closed her eyes. Sleep. But Hart’s arrogantly handsome face would not be banished from her mind…or her aching heart.
Where are you tonight, my love?
Seated in the coffee room of his favorite inn on the Left Bank, Hart distractedly broke off one more piece of warm baguette, spread butter, and ate it with a hot cup of café au lait. Outside, the River Seine glowed pink in the dawn light.
“Woof,” came Monte’s muffled reminder from under the table.
“You have already devoured a boiled egg and two chicken hearts,” he told the dog. “I suppose you think you should have my baguette as well!”
Monte replied by laying a paw on Hart’s boot.
“No. Learn to be content with what you have.” He seemed unable to keep the harsh edge from his voice. “You should be grateful I let you accompany us at all.”
William watched him from across the table. “Your lordship does not seem to be quite yourself,” he ventured.
“Indeed?” He tried to smile but felt his mouth twist in mockery. “Who exactly do I seem to be?”
The manservant was not put off. “A discontented sort of nobleman, I suppose.”
“But that is just who I have always been.”
“My lord,” William dared to persevere, “these past few weeks in London, my sister and I watched you undergo a change.”
“I have no time for this conversation.” Hart pushed back from the table. “We have lingered in Paris long enough. If we are ever to reach Lisbon, we must depart. As it is, unless we travel at a breakneck pace, we may not arrive for another fortnight.”
William opened his mouth, then, thankfully, shut it again. “As you wish, Lord Jasper.”
Rising from his chair, Hart froze at the sound of a familiar English-speaking voice. “Do you hear that? The boy who is with the landlord—”
Before William could reply, Bertram, the groom who had recently been hired at the Wigmore Street house, burst into the coffee room.
“Milord! I’ve found you at last!” cried the boy, seemingly on the verge of tears.
“You have indeed—but how? And what the devil are you doing here?” Even as Hart spoke, he realized that there was only one person who had knowledge of his preferred lodging places between London and Lisbon.
Peachey.
“I’ve pursued you from the priory, across the channel to France just to deliver this letter, milord!” exclaimed Bertram, hurrying forward to place the somewhat crumpled envelope in his hand.
His heart clenched as he broke the seal and began to read.