Chapter 7
CHAPTER 7
M ichael nearly forgot what they were doing there.
He was too focused on the lemons wafting from Adelaide’s hair into his nose, her soft body pressed against his, the rightness of having her in his arms.
But she didn’t want this.
She was only here because she didn’t trust him to see this through without her.
He refocused on the small gap she pointed out. If they looked closely enough, it provided a glimpse into what must have been the storeroom.
A group of five men stood in a circle. A few of them were on the outskirts of the circle, and Michael guessed that they were the muscle present to guard the proceedings and watch for any threat—for someone like him.
As Michael had suspected, Lord Gregory was in the center, although he still couldn’t quite believe it. How could he have been so ignorant of the intentions of this man he had considered a friend?
And there, of course, was Jack. He looked as unkempt as Lord Gregory was elegant, and Michael wished he could better hear what was happening. Adelaide leaned forward, closing her eyes as she concentrated. Michael was briefly distracted by the long eyelashes that rested against her cheeks, just above the dash of freckles splattered over her nose.
Michael bent toward her, finally picking up the faint words being spoken.
“This has been unacceptable,” Lord Gregory was saying. “The shipments are always delayed. When they do arrive, half the orders are damaged.”
“Not my fault,” Jack said, shaking his head. “I move the goods. I don’t make them.”
“To blame it on the printing is a lie. The papers are getting ruined in transport,” said the third man, stepping forward. “Not my fault.”
“They’re coming to us ruined already,” Jack argued, and Lord Gregory stepped forward, waving his hands between them.
“Shifting blame isn’t going to help. The truth is, it’s probably a bit of both. I can tell you it’s no good to me coming damaged.”
“Not to us, either,” Jack said. “Especially as you’re not giving us any true payment.”
“If this is good enough for me, it’s good enough for you,” Lord Gregory said. “I’ll give you all another chance to pick up the quality, understood? We have to do this together. If we don’t, this will never work, and we will all be screwed over. Now, what do you have for me today?”
Michael leaned forward to see what the third man held out toward Lord Gregory, his breath catching when he saw what was in his palm.
It was currency. He couldn’t be sure how much, but that was a sizeable stack in his hand. Why would this man be paying Lord Gregory unless?—
“The currency is what they are smuggling,” Adelaide whispered, coming to the realization simultaneously with Michael. She turned her head around toward him. “It must be fake.”
His jaw dropped open. He had imagined they were importing alcohol or fabric, but to create currency? That was beyond smuggling. That was treason.
He tightened his hold on Adelaide as though to protect her.
“How could I not know?” she whispered, but he was shaking his head against her.
“It makes sense that you wouldn’t,” he responded in a low voice. “If Jack is only providing the transport, it likely wasn’t here long, and if it was, it was disguised as something else. But Adelaide, we must ensure you have no part in this.”
If Jack tried to bring her down with him, it could have dire consequences for her, that was for certain. Counterfeiting was punishable by hanging.
“The third man must be printing and manufacturing it,” he said. “Do you recognize him?”
“I’ve seen him in the tavern before, but I don’t know him,” she said. “Do you?”
“I do not, but we can discover his identity.”
“One of them has to be a weak link,” she said. “But we should go before we are discovered.”
“Very well,” he said, wiping his hands on his rough pants as he began to stand, quickly crouching back down as the door scratched open behind them, and Adelaide looked backward, sharing a panicked glance with Michael.
“What do we do?” she whispered, her gaze swinging wildly between him and the door.
He lifted his finger to her lips, telling her to keep her words to herself, but then footsteps sounded closer toward them.
“Hey! No one’s allowed back here!”
Michael would like to say that he acted without thought, but the truth was, he had planned this well in advance, knowing exactly what he would do if they were discovered.
It was what he had longed to do since the last time he did it.
He leaned down and kissed Adelaide with all of the passion that had been building within him.
He might have kissed her to avoid discovery.
But he was going to make it mean much more than that.
Adelaide’s breath had caught in her throat when she heard the door open behind her.
She’d had an inkling of how Michael had planned to keep them hidden, but he had kissed her so swiftly that she had still been taken off guard.
It wasn’t just that he had kissed her.
It was how he had kissed her.
Michael’s lips were now pressed against Adelaide’s with a fierce tenderness that she felt throughout her entire body.
The world around them, including the tavern, Lord Gregory, and Jack, faded away as he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss with a passion that took her breath away. Adelaide melted into his embrace, her hands reaching his strong shoulders as she returned the kiss with equal fervor.
His fingers entwined in her hair and sent shivers down her spine. In that moment, in the secluded corner, hiding behind the sack of potatoes with some unknown man looking on, Michael and Adelaide were lost in each other, consumed by what they had both wanted but had denied themselves for so long.
Every piece of her came alive, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.
It wasn’t just the physical.
Oh, no.
The passion he was pouring into their kiss went far beyond him physically wanting her. His lips moved slowly and tenderly against hers, sending shivers down her spine. She could feel the depth of his emotions in every touch, in how he cradled her face and deepened the kiss with each passing moment. It was more than just physical desire – they shared a true connection in this intimate act.
Maybe it truly was love.
And that was the most challenging part of this entire situation.
For she wanted it so badly. She felt him; she needed him. But she couldn’t have him, which pained her more than anything else ever could.
This was why she had denied him for so long – so that she didn’t have to admit to herself what she wanted.
Damn him. Damn her brother for including him in this scheme. And damn herself for being unable to stay away from him.
“I say, that’s enough,” came the voice from a distance, and she blinked open her eyes as Michael finally pulled back away from her, the two of them returning to the present.
Her heart seemed to stop beating as she wondered if Jack could be there, but when she turned, she met the shocked eyes of Abraham, a cook who had worked for Jack for as many years as she had.
She wondered how much he knew about the illicit operation in the room beside them.
“Adelaide?” he gaped at her. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to speak to my brother,” she said when she finally found her voice. “But I couldn’t find him. Instead, I ran into… well, an old friend.”
Michael slid his hands up and down her arms. “Is that what we’re calling me these days?” he said, although there was humor in his voice.
“Something like that,” she said, nudging him forward so they could emerge from their hiding place. Adelaide had no idea if Jack knew about the small crack between the kitchen and the storeroom, but she didn’t want to risk him finding them here, for he would likely know exactly what they were doing. “We best go. It is good to see you, Abraham. I hope you are well.”
“As well as can be, Adelaide,” the man said, a tired smile on his face. “We miss you around here, but…” he looked behind him before leaning forward and speaking in a hushed voice, “we are glad that you got yourself away from here.”
Adelaide nodded her thanks, appreciating his words, even if she knew their existence in front of Michael would mean she would have some explaining to do later on, explaining that she didn’t wish to get into for she was uncertain what he would do with the knowledge. The man who used to be apathetic had become more protective than she would have ever anticipated.
She tugged on Michael’s hand as she led him out of the storeroom, through the tavern, and onto the street beyond. It was busy at this time of night, people moving about, but Adelaide wanted nothing more than to be as far as possible from Jack, The Red Lion, and Shoreditch itself.
“Adelaide.” Michael’s voice was quiet in her ear. He pulled her into the shadows, putting his back against the cold brick wall as he drew her toward him. “Are you all right?” he asked as he softly stroked one side of her face with his fingertips.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” she asked, putting on a tough exterior, but it was clear he saw through it.
“You witnessed your brother’s involvement in a counterfeit scheme that could see him hanged, and he has threatened to bring you down with him. I can see how you would be concerned. And then there is you and me, and what happened in there. We?—”
“Successfully convinced Abraham that we were enjoying a passionate moment,” she said in a rush before he could finish with the truth. “You could be an actor on the stage, Michael. If you weren’t nobility, that is. Or perhaps I am the one with the acting skills. I?—”
“Shh,” he said, gently placing a finger against her lips. “Neither of us was acting. You know that as well as I do.”
“I—”
She lost the words as he leaned his head down, slowly, gently moving toward her, giving her time to pull away if she so chose.
But she didn’t.
She was not nearly as strong as she should be, for she closed her eyes, tilted her head, and accepted his kiss.
His lips pressed against hers lightly, without the passion of the kiss in the kitchen, but with tender exploitation, as though he was relearning her lips, understanding who she was, and showing her what he felt for her.
It was both too much and not enough in the same breath.
This was why she had tried to distance herself from him. Because it was too easy to fall under his spell, to listen to his sweet words and give herself over to his touch.
This would be a goodbye kiss, the last one, she decided as his arms wrapped around her and pulled her close. His touch was light, likely because he was nervous that he would scare her away, but she would give herself to this moment.
One last time.