“I think we had better go inside and discuss that because I disagree with you,” Luke countered and looked her square in the eye. “On all counts.”
Working with the Star Elite, he was used to getting what he wanted and right now he wanted Poppy inside, sitting down where she was safe. He hadn’t lost sight of the number of people who were milling about, and was struggling to keep one eye out for the return of the woman in black, while trying to keep his mind on the reason he was in the stable yard in the first place. It was difficult to concentrate when such strong desire was coursing through him. Desire that was the very last thing he wanted to have to deal with right now.
“I have a carriage to catch,” she replied waspishly, more shaken than she cared to admit by the connection she felt toward him.
“Where to?”
Her stomach dropped to her toes. She considered lying to him but had no idea which coaches were due to depart and which weren’t. She could name a location but then it would soon become apparent that she had lied and then she would never get rid of him. Strangely, she didn’t want him to think she was a liar.
“Pardon?”
“Where are you going?” Luke glanced around them. “You are in a coaching yard. You must be going somewhere.” He eyed the bags in her hand meaningfully, silently daring her to deny it.
“I am going home.”
Luke mentally sighed and wished now he had shaken her in the first place. “Where is home exactly?”
“Look, who are you? I don’t know you so why should I tell you any of my business? Now please get out of my way and go and pester someone else.” She tried to side-step him again but then noticed him signal to another gentleman she hadn’t seen before. He was equally dark and just as tall as Luke himself. She didn’t need to know who they were to be aware that neither of them were people she should challenge in any way. That put her in a dire predicament indeed because she needed to get out of the coaching yard, and the sooner the better. However this man, Luke, and his associate, had just made it clear she wasn’t likely to be going anywhere without talking to them first. She sighed and realised that she had to concede defeat if she hoped to go anywhere today. This time, when Luke tried to drag her into the warmth of the busy tap room, she didn’t object and chose a seat in the far corner.
“Just talk to me for a few moments. There are a few questions I need to ask you about the body you found the other day, and why you decided to leave when I told you to stay.”
“I don’t want to think about it,” Poppy countered, eager to put the entire ordeal behind her. In reality she had spent the last several days thinking of nothing else. Her problems with Clarence had faded into insignificance compared to what had happened in the park, and the problems the man before her brought with him. She had found herself waking up in the middle of many a night with him on her mind. Strangely, he was the last thing she thought about before she fell asleep as well. Now that he was beside her, the rest of the world paled into insignificance.
“I am afraid that you have no choice in the matter. A body has appeared, you see, of a rather estimable gentleman. You were the one who found him. Unfortunately for you, you have no
witnesses to corroborate your story that you have no prior knowledge of who he is. You were the one who allegedly found the body in the park. The man had only recently been murdered. You were the one who then vanished when you were told to remain with the corpse until I returned. I think you had better explain yourself.” Luke’s voice dropped to a menacing whisper, and he leaned forward threateningly just in case she decided to bolt for the exit she kept looking at. However, the closer he drew to her the more he became aware of the delicate scent of roses and quickly had to lean back to put some distance between them again when his body responded with predictable eagerness.
“Just stay with me. Once we have talked, as long as you are honest with me and answer my questions, you can go wherever you want to go. However, lie to me and I shall hound you wherever you go.”
Poppy stared at him and shivered at the ruthlessness in his gaze. She didn’t want to touch him anymore because she rather suspected he would bite her. He was nothing short of dangerous, and had such a strong, somewhat imposing aura about him that he made Clarence look like a limp cravat. Luke was vibrant, strong, and downright sinister when he wanted to be, but there was also something else, something softer, more reassuring that she never expected to see there as well. Confused she stared at him and tried to decide what to do. She glanced at the exit. It was too far away. Besides, his friend was right next to it. She could try to leave, but suspected it would be a futile endeavour. If one didn’t stop her the other one would.
Given what had just happened with the woman in black, she couldn’t take the risk that the woman wasn’t lurking outside somewhere. She certainly seemed fixated on her bag, but for a mugger she had looked incredibly odd. No, her chances were better if she told him what he wanted to know, and got on the next carriage to Cumbria. Then she could put this entire farce behind her – somehow and get on with what was left of her life.
“All right, just a few minutes then,” she replied reluctantly. “But I warn you that I have a carriage to catch so you had better ask your questions quickly. As soon as the carriage is announced, I am going and nobody is going to stop me.”
CHAPTER NINE
She shook her head when the maid offered her food or a drink and waited while Luke took a seat beside her. She should object to him sitting so close, and ask him to put some more decorous between them, but nobody within the busy tap had given them even a cursory glance so to do so would just waste time she didn’t have.
Luke decided to just cut to the chase. Aware that he was sitting far too close to her than was polite for a lady he didn’t know, he made a point of leaning closer still and smiled when he saw a flicker of awareness in her eyes when she looked at him. It pleased him to note that she wasn’t as averse to him as she pretended to be and for the first time since he had met her, he started to feel fairly confident that he could get the truth from her.
“Firstly -” he began softly, “- why didn’t you wait with the body like I told you to?” He didn’t take his eyes off her as he waited for her to reply and watched the shadows flicker in her eyes a moment before her gaze dropped to the table top. He knew immediately from that look that she was hiding something and glanced down at the bags tucked carefully behind her legs, protected from view by her skirts.
“I needed to leave,” she replied evasively. “Why should I stay?”
Luke snorted. “Because you knew the man had been murdered. You saw the marks on his neck. The magistrate has questions for you about what you saw that morning.”
“I didn’t see anything,” she protested quickly, then closed her mouth with a snap when she realised she was going to make herself sound guilty if she continued to be so defensive. It wasn’t like her at all to be so brisk with anyone; especially someone who had been nothing but polite and helpful. She glanced around the tap and winced when she realised several people had paused their conversation to look at her. She glared at them and waited until they resumed their conversations before she took a moment to calm down. Once the lull in chatter had eased, she turned her attention back to the man who seemed to occupy her every waking moment.
“I didn’t do it,” she whispered.
“I didn’t say you did,” he countered.
“So why are you asking me? The only people I saw in that park were the pick-pockets and you. It wasn’t me who killed him. I doubt the pick-pockets were big enough.”
“I only have your word that it wasn’t you,” he said silkily.
Poppy’s gaze flew to his. “I have only your word that it wasn’t you either!”