To Catch A Thief (Saved By Desire 3)

When Sophia looked at Jeb, he too lifted his goblet in a silent toast but didn’t take his eyes off her as he took a sip.

He watched her swallow as she took a sip of her own wine but didn’t notice her place her goblet back onto the table. His gaze was avidly fixated on a tiny droplet of wine that clung to her bottom lip tantalisingly before her tongue popped out to brush it away.

Jeb almost groaned aloud and had to turn his gaze away when his body began to react with startling speed.

Sophia blushed prettily. It was a little unnerving being the subject of his observations, but she couldn’t find a way to raise issue with him without embarrassing herself. Besides, if she was honest with herself she was quite thrilled being the focus of his attention. He was, by far, the most interesting man she had met in a very long time.

I should be shot for the thoughts I am having, Jeb mused wryly as he tried, and failed, to turn his attention back to his food. He glanced down at his plate only to find the footman had removed it and was busy in the process of serving the fish course. He hadn’t even been aware that anyone had approached him.

So much for being an alert and watchful field operative, Jeb mused wryly and took another sip of his wine while the footman served his meal.

Sophia was beginning to find it incredibly difficult to concentrate on anything. Busily trying to think of a way to get some air, she jumped in alarm when Squire Trelawney suddenly boomed a rambling discourse about the quality of the pheasant shooting across the table, and asked Jeb what his opinion was on the latest news in London.

With Jeb’s attention diverted for now, Sophia was, for the first time that evening, able to relax a little. Somewhere deep in the pit of her belly, slow and steady warmth had begun to build. It brought a shiver to her spine, and a tremor to her hand that she had never encountered before. She was at a loss to understand it.

What was it about him that captivated her so? She had seen handsome men before, many of them in fact. Although Jeb was handsome, he was no more attractive than anyone else she had ever met. So what was it about him exactly? Was it that mischievous glint in his eyes that twinkled across the table at her when he smiled, almost daring her to smile back?

Whatever it was about him that had caught her attention, she was ensnared. Captivated even, but had no idea what to do about it.

Before she could find an excuse to leave the table for a few moments, her attention was captured by the rather tedious Mrs Arbuthnot, who proceeded to chastise her for not making an appearance in church last Sunday. It was on the tip of Sophia’s tongue to remind the woman that she didn’t live in the village, but in deference to upsetting the host, murmured her apologies. Inwardly she mentally sighed, especially when her enjoyment of the evening dimmed a little when Jeb suddenly whispered something to his father and left the table.

Jeb made his way into the hallway only to find the trinket boxes still where he had left them.

So far so good, he mused as he searched the rest of the now almost bare house.

If he were a thief, he would take the stolen items just as he was about to leave. It would be a foolhardy thing to do to steal something and keep it with you while you were in the house. That meant he had to bide his time until everyone left, and almost take up sentry duty near to the table so he could keep an eye on the lure.

Rather than return to the dining room, he ignored out the low hum of conversation and took a moment to ease his troubled thoughts.

There was something decidedly odd about the entire group of people seated at that table, if only he could work out what it was. He knew from past experience that each individual’s discomfort when meeting anyone else’s gaze indicated that they each had something to hide. It didn’t help him identify who might be the thief because now they all looked shifty.

All except for Sophia, that is. She was the only one who appeared anywhere near normal, although she was still uneasy about something. That could be down to nothing more than being in the company of veritable strangers, or being the subject of his own somewhat earnest gaze.

“Is everything alright?” Algernon murmured as he came to join him in the hallway.

“Nothing missing as yet,” Jeb replied quietly.

“That’s good, isn’t it?”

“For now.” Jeb nodded toward the dining room. “Anything unusual about them tonight?”

Algernon coughed. It was on the tip of his tongue to declare that his son had been the only one behaving out of character, but he didn’t wish to put a stop to Jeb’s quite obvious interest in the delightful young lady who was like a breath of fresh air at the dinner tonight. As far as Algernon was concerned, she was the only guest who could stay as long as she liked, and it had nothing to do with her innocence of all of the thefts.

Oblivious to his father’s thoughts, Jeb turned his attention to the guests, partly in a desperate attempt to keep his mind off the wondrous temptation of Sophia.

Did the Vicar have something to hide? Vicars were usually the blemish free stalwarts of society; weren’t they? That being the case, he couldn’t possibly be the thief. That led him to Mavis Arbuthnot, who seemed to have made it her personal mission to chastise anyone who didn’t make it to church last week. However, given she was a devout Christian who seemed to consider everything but attending church a sin, she was probably not likely to stray so far from the moral path by stealing anything. That led him onto Delilah Carney, whose tendency to be as loud as she is brash made her a startling contrast to her niece. The marked difference between the women was odd, mostly because there was something quite false about Delilah. Her behaviour wasn’t entirely supported by the somewhat cynical gleam in her eye. Did that make her a thief though? Jeb couldn’t be sure. With that in mind, he left her very firmly on his list of suspects, although hoped she wasn’t guilty of anything because of her association with Sophia.

Now, the Harvells both seemed to know an inordinate amount of gossip for women who couldn’t afford to socialise much. If they couldn’t socialise, they couldn’t shop – right? Were they impoverished enough to steal what they couldn’t afford? Although they appeared innocent enough, Jeb wasn’t about to be fooled by anybody. With that in mind, he had to leave them on his list of suspects too.

Then there was Algernon’s man of business whom Jeb had yet to hear two consecutive words from. His occasional grunts proved that he was still alive. However, once or twice Jeb had actually wondered whether he should jab the man with a knife to see if he was still breathing. How on earth Algernon got Philip to do anything for him was beyond Jeb, who had yet to succeed in eliciting anything more than a grunt. But that didn’t mean he was a thief. Especially when he didn’t attend all of the locations the items were stolen from.

Mrs Banks was the only other relatively normal guest at the table, although she had a tendency to snort when she laughed, and was incredibly loud. However, that wasn’t enough to condemn her as a thief, even if he ignored the way she gazed around the room longingly, studying the portraits and noting the few ornaments that remained.

“Don’t you dare think about leaving me in there with them,” Algernon suddenly announced when Jeb remained motionless in the centre of the hallway.

Jeb jerked and threw his father a rueful look. “I should throw them all in a bag and shake them up and down. How on earth did they get together?”

Algernon shook his head. “Damned if I know. I am going to have a word with cook and ask the woman to get a move on with the food. The faster this meal is over, the better chance I stand of keeping my sanity.”