Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Tossing and turning in bed, Olivia relived her encounter with Warren.
Why, oh why had she not simply refused him?
She was a commoner. He was a peer. Yet no matter how many times she reminded herself of the facts, she was inevitably drawn to the man who set her entire body alive when he was close.
She had wagered and endured that battle for a decade.
When she ventured out of town or to a village that neighbored Guernsey Manor, she never felt whole.
It was only when she was within his proximity that she feel as if she were capable of living a full life.
Even so, she had thought that meant living in the shadows and watching him from afar.
Now she was daring to consider what her life might be if she…
No, she wouldn’t torment herself with what ifs.
She tugged the tangled sheets over her head, only to throw them off a moment later.
Done with lying to herself, Olivia swung her legs around and jumped out of bed.
Dwelling on the matter had resolved nothing.
It was time to act. She donned one of the many modest day gowns that Lady Charlotte had ordered for her.
She paused in front of the looking glass; the image she’d barely recognized a week ago was ever so slowly becoming more familiar.
Lady Charlotte’s rebuke to her displeasure at wearing such lovely gowns rang clear in her mind.
“It’s the woman who wears the clothes that matters.
The clothes themselves do not make the woman. ”
Egad. Lady Charlotte was like a magician, able to make others do and believe the impossible.
On her tiptoes, she crept to the door of her chamber and peered into the hall.
She closed her eyes to listen carefully.
One… Two… Three… Four… Five. Silence. Hands pressed together, she sent up a quick prayer that she would be able to slip out without detection.
Breath held, she stole down the hall, avoiding certain sections that were prone to creaking.
By the time she reached the servants’ exit, her chest was burning for air, and her palms were sweaty.
When she finally reached the cool night air, she heaved in a deep breath.
“Where do you think you are off to in the middle of the night?”
Olivia jumped a good two feet off the ground and spun around to face the Earl of Camden, who was twice as intimidating as Lady Charlotte. “My… my lord.” She sank down into a curtsy she wasn’t certain she could manage with her knees weak and shaking.
“Olivia… May I call you Olivia?”
The earl’s gentle tone eased Olivia’s nerves ever so slightly. The man rarely spoke, but when he did, everyone knew to listen and listen carefully. “Of course, my lord.”
“Grand. Now, pray share your destination. Although, I have a good inkling as to where you have decided to set off to at this ungodly hour.”
“I didn’t mean to cause you alarm, my lord.”
“Of course, you didn’t. However, I will remind you that you are in my employ and it is my responsibility to see to your safety.”
She stared at the lord before her. Servants were easily replaceable. Her previous employers never hesitated to remind her of that fact or to make her an example. Ian had truly found the most unique employers in London.
Ian! Olivia peered around Lord Camden to find Ian quietly standing in the shadows. Ugh! She should have known that her childhood friend would have fully anticipated her actions. Ian always knew her next move even before she did.
“Must you always interfere?” she asked as Ian stepped forward.
Before Ian replied, Lord Camden raised his hand and answered instead, “It’s quite fascinating how women and men can experience the same set of events and yet come to two entirely different viewpoints.”
Shifting her gaze back to the earl, Olivia felt befuddled by the man. He was like no lord she’d ever met prior, and that included Warren. There was no pretense, no arrogance, just pure straightforward honesty.
“Are you seriously upset at me?” Ian barked. “You were about to traipse about town in the wee hours, and to visit a blasted lord, no less.” Ian turned to Lord Camden and added, “No offense, my lord.”
“None taken.” The smirk on the earl’s face was clear even as clouds blanketed the moonlight.
Such a remark would have earned Ian a good beating, or worse, resulted in his being released from his duties on the spot by most peers, yet Lord Camden remained calm and appeared amused rather than irked. How had Ian gained such favor?
Olivia stepped closer until she came nearly toe-to-toe with Ian and motioned for him to bend down so she might speak to him in private. Like always, Ian sighed but lowered his head. “I must speak with him.”
“In the middle of the night?” Ian growled in her ear.
“I’ll not sleep a wink until—”
Ian didn’t let her finish. Instead, he harshly countered, “You haven’t slept well in a decade. Why not wait ’til morn?”
“Why are you being so difficult?” She wanted to stomp on his foot and run away as she used to when they were little, but they were adults now, and such behavior was unbefitting, especially in front of Lord Camden, even if she wasn’t a lady.
“If you are going to be stubborn, then I shall accompany you.”
She flickered a glance over at the earl who was pretending to be uninterested, looking down at the tips of his boots. Olivia leaned in closer and whispered, “Just you and me, like always.”
Ian’s shoulders visibly relaxed, and his lips curved momentarily at the corners, banishing the dark scowl from his features. “Fine. Just the two of us.”
She had won. No easy feat against a man who was a stickler for rules. Ian straightened and shrugged out of his coat only to drape the heavy material about her. She would be a liar if she didn’t admit that the warmth infused her with a strength that was much needed.
Bolstered with confidence and with Ian at her side, Olivia turned to address Lord Camden. “I shall leave Lady Charlotte in your care for the eve.”
“I expect both of you to return before daylight.”
Brows knitted, the earl’s command wasn’t lost on Olivia as she nodded and slipped past her unusual employer. Lord Camden had a godlike aura about him that often had Olivia wondering if he was even human, and especially now.
As soon as they exited the Camden townhouse, she doubled her pace to keep up with Ian’s long strides. During their teens, he had grown feet while she had grown mere inches. Nearly out of breath, she gasped, “Are we going on foot or should we hail a hack?”
Ian slowed his pace. “It’s not much farther.”
Glad for his sense of direction, Olivia smiled. “Thank you.”
“What for?”
“Accompanying me.”
He glanced down at where she held onto his sleeve out of habit. “I thought you were annoyed at me.”
“You know I can never stay angry at you.” It was the truth. Ian was the only one who always managed to make her forget any misgivings. “How is it you became a member of the Camden staff?”
“I had wondered how long it would take for you to ask.”
Ian was trying to bait her into one of their long-standing arguments over her incessant curiosity and how it ultimately led to no good.
Olivia clenched her jaw and matched Ian step for step.
Five steps later, and she was certain her teeth were about to crack, but she refused to give in.
After another five steps, she let out a sigh.
Ian was like a steel vault when it came to secrets.
She tugged on his sleeve. “Well, if you are not going to answer, then at least tell me how much farther before we reach Warren’s townhome. ”
“We are coming up to Lord Guernsey's residence now.”
Ian scanned the streets that were still illuminated by the gas lamps. It was eerily quiet, like the calm before a storm, or rather, it was hours before that the ton would finally retire to their beds.
Ian removed her hand from his sleeve and turned her by the shoulders to face the steps leading up to the entrance.
“We can’t enter via the front!”
“I agree, we cannot, but you can.” He gave her a push, and she stumbled forward.
As she regained her footing, Olivia looked back to glare at her so-called friend, but Ian had vanished.
Where… no, how had Ian disappeared into thin air?
Hands balled, she rubbed her eyes as she whirled around and looked both left and right.
Had she imagined it all? Olivia was aware she had inherited the horrid habit of sleepwalking, but certainly her conversation with Lord Camden and then her walk with Ian couldn’t have all been a dream. Could it?
Olivia slowly turned back around and faced the front door.
She was here now, regardless of how it all came about.
She was no longer a child who shied away from touching others or being touched.
As a grown woman, she was finally able to banish her mother’s lies that her bastard touch would harm or dirty others.
It was time for her to share her decision with Warren.
They could become re-acquainted and mayhap even become friends but nothing more, even if her heart beat only for him.
Deception. The word continued to repeat in his head. Warren was no fool. Intricate schemes, white lies, and deception were vices women employed to gain an advantage, yet Olivia had insisted on the opposite. Was she truly an angel? He continued to pace the length of his chamber, from door to window.