Scoundrel's Honor (Russian Connection 3)

Vanya arched a silver brow. “Do I have a choice?”

“Not on this occasion.”

Shocked by Dimitri’s unexpected arrival, Emma allowed herself to be pulled through the gate and into the small stone grotto that hid them from view. It was only when he spun her to meet his furious gaze that she jerked her arm free of his slender fingers.

“You truly must overcome your habit of manhandling me, sir—”

“Dimitri,” he bit out, removing his hat and muffler and tossing them on a nearby marble bench.

A chill inched down her spine at the hard expression on his beautiful face, but she held her ground, refusing to reveal her unease.

“I will not be bullied.”

“Be happy that I have not turned you over my knee as I long to do,” he snapped.

“I beg your pardon?”

“I suspected that you were headstrong and impulsive and inclined to follow your heart rather than your head, but I did not realize you were without sense.”

“I do not have to remain here and be insulted by a—”

Her proud words were brought to a sharp halt as he reached up to tug the bonnet off her head, disregarding her angry protest as he dropped it on the ground.

“Did you truly believe that ridiculous concoction would protect you if you encountered the men who abducted your sister?”

“As a matter of fact, I do,” she said, tossing back the thick honey hair that tumbled about her shoulders. “No one took the least notice of me.”

“My servant recognized you from across the square.”

“More likely he recognized Vanya Petrova and assumed I was her companion,” she argued. “The men I am seeking have no expectation of seeing me in St. Petersburg and certainly not in the company of a noblewoman.”

He stepped forward, his hands clenched at his side. “You took an absurd risk.”

“I am quite at liberty to take whatever risks I desire. It is none of your concern.”

“Emma, do not be a fool,” he rasped. “Those men may hide among polite society, but beneath their fine clothing and excessively large homes they are no better than animals. If they decide you are a threat to them they will not hesitate to put you in a grave.”

Emma bristled at his unwanted lecture, but there was something in his voice that tempered her fury.

It was understandable for any gentleman with the least amount of decency to be outraged at the thought of innocent young girls being abused. But there was something personal, perhaps even intimate, in Dimitri’s anger.

Tilting back her head, she studied the chiseled perfection of his aristocratic features. This man was proving to be disturbingly complex.

“Herrick insisted that you were the best suited to assist me in finding my sister, but he did not reveal what connection you possess with these men.”

His eyes darken

ed. “Do you wonder if I am a partner in their crimes?”

“No. Certainly not.”

“I have confessed to be a sinner.”

Without thought, she reached to place her hand on his forearm. “You might be a sinner, but you are not evil.”

His gaze lowered to where her fingers lay against his coat. “There are those who would disagree.”

She shrugged off his warning, bitterly aware that the opinion of others rarely had anything to do with the truth.