Luke sighed impatiently. “Just because Clarence hasn’t knocked on the door yet, doesn’t mean he has gone away. When I brought you here the smog was too thick to be certain that we weren’t followed. It is too risky to leave you unchaperoned for the time being. You must come with me.”
“But I couldn’t see you when we were out there. If I couldn’t see you then Clarence couldn’t see me, right? Besides, if we were followed they may still be out there, you know, waiting. Wouldn’t I be safer inside, behind a locked door?”
Luke was already shaking his head. “I could see you in the smog, Poppy. I just knew how to use the smog to mask my presence and stop you from seeing me.”
Poppy tried to ignore the flurry of nerves deep in the pit of her stomach but couldn’t. While she didn’t want to go outside, she didn’t want to stay in the house all by herself either, no matter how nice it was. Over the last several days it had started to feel like a veritable prison. She longed for a bit of fresh air. If only she didn’t have to experience the smog again to do it she would be happy to go out whenever he wanted.
“It won’t take long. The kids I work with are two of the gang who accosted you, but they are friendly enough. All they need are food and pennies. They are not pick-pocketing for me,” he hastened to reassure her. “They are just gathering information for a few extra pennies.”
Poppy wasn’t sure how she felt about that. It didn’t seem right that Luke was employing criminals, especially children, but then she couldn’t really pass judgement because she didn’t have all the facts. From the look on his face, she suspected the argument could go on for hours so conceded defeat and went to fetch her shawl. By the time she returned to the kitchen everybody had left except for Luke.
“Do you not have anything thicker?” Luke asked with a frown when she joined him in the kitchen wearing her thin shawl.
Poppy shook her head. “I didn’t think we were going to stay in London for long so only brought the basics. My cloak is with the belongings I left back in Cumbria. Heaven only knows where everything is now.”
Luke was already making his way toward his room at the back of the house. Within minutes he was draping a voluminous cloak around her shoulders.
Poppy was immediately encased in warmth; slightly scratchy, but wonderfully thick. However, her senses were more tuned to the man before her, especially when he didn’t step back once he had secured the clasp. Rather than move closer, he remained where he was, far too close than was polite, looking down far too intently than she was comfortable with.
“Stay close to me. Keep hold of my hand and don’t wander off. Don’t speak to anyone unless you have to and keep your hood up.” With that he tugged the hood up over her head and arranged it so that most of her face was hidden. “Clarence will not be able to tell if you are male or female. My colleagues will have left using various methods to make sure they aren’t observed or followed. We are going to do the same so that anyone watching this house will not know who you are. Unless they can follow four people at once we stand every chance of not being followed. When we reach the end of the road we will turn left and make our way to the meeting place, but while we are there you need to stay quiet and let me do the talking. Trust me, Poppy. I won’t let anyone hurt you.” His voice dropped to a husky whisper.
He watched her eyes widen the more he spoke but knew from the flurry of awareness in her eyes, and the warm shiver of her sigh, that it was more from desire than alarm. Before sense could warn him to be cautious he lowered his head.
The smooth slide of his lips against hers elicited a gasp from her that he immediately took advantage of. This time, the kiss went far deeper than a mere token of affection. This was a branding, a possession that seared them both. Poppy clutched the edges of his cloak without even being aware that her hands had lifted. She knew she should stop this and put some distance between them, but couldn’t. She was curious; and wanted to know, and feel, everything this man had to offer her. She wanted to find out what happened next. She wanted to experience more of the wonderfully intriguing sensations now building ferociously within her. It was scandalous as much as it was daring, and it called to her reckless side, urging her to surrender everything and savour this precious moment for her, for him, for them.
She wasn’t surprised by the ferocity of the desire. It was now obvious that it had been building step by small step from the moment she had arrived. The odd shiver of awareness, the intimate glances, occasional murmured conversations, a gentle touch here and there, it had all been heading toward this one moment in time where everything changed between them.
Luke knew he was taking this far further than he ought to right now, but was helpless to ignore his desire for the woman before him. She looked almost lost in the huge folds of his cloak but that only emphasised her femininity and made him want to protect her more. There was nothing he wanted more than to keep her safe so that later, once they were all alone with the house to themselves, he could uncover all of her secrets and decide what the heck he was going to do next.
When the clock in the hallway chimed he realised that time was passing far too swiftly, and they needed to get a move on if they were going to make the meeting in time. With that in mind he reluctantly lifted his head and stood back.
“Stay close to me, Poppy,” he whispered, not altogether sure if he meant just while they were outside. He ushered her out of the door before she could speak and locked it behind them.
Their journey across London was the most fraught Poppy journey had ever had anywhere. The smog had, if at all possible, thickened, and rendered even the meagre street lighting useless. At times she struggled to see her hand in front of her face and was immensely grateful that Luke had insisted on holding her hand. She wanted to ask where they were but when something squeaked and scurried across her foot decided she would rather not know. Eventually, Luke motioned for her to stop and tugged her into what appeared to be an alleyway.
“Stay quiet. Remember, they don’t know you but may recognise you as being the woman they tried to target in the park. If they do they may not want to talk to me so let me do the talking. Just keep an eye out in case anyone is lurking in the shadows, and likely to overhear.”
Poppy nodded but suspected he couldn’t see her through the gloom. She frowned and realised then just how vulnerable she was. Not only was her precious supply of money back at the house, but all of her worldly goods as well. She had nothing on her that was actually hers, and had no idea where she was, or where the safe house was, so had no way of retrieving her belongings if she lost Luke. Sidling closer to him, she glanced around worriedly and, as instructed, remained motionless while they waited for the children to appear.
“You are late,” a small voice scolded from several feet away. A young boy appeared out of the gloom so silently that Poppy gasped before she could stop herself. “Who’s that?” Toby asked with a nod toward her. His step faltered. For a moment he looked as though he was about to run.
“The woman in the park you tried to accost a couple of weeks back,” Luke replied quietly. “Did you get followed?”
“Na, course not guv’nor,” Toby replied with a sniff. He sidle
d closer to Poppy and peered up at her. Poppy lifted the hood of the cloak and bent down so he could see her face. Once he recognised her he grinned cheekily. “No bag today?”
“No, I left it at home where it is safe,” she replied softly.
The sight of the boy’s grubby face disturbed her, but not as much as the thinness of the shirt he wore beneath the threadbare jacket that barely touched his wrists and did little to ward off the evening chill. Her heart went out to him because he looked frozen. If she had thought to bring some money with her she would have given him some so he could purchase something warmer.
Oblivious to the direction of her thoughts, Toby threw Luke a cheeky glare. “Is she yours?”
“Yes,” he replied without hesitation. “So mind your manners. She isn’t a target.”
Toby merely grinned and held his hand out.
“What do you know first? Have you seen the bigger gang?”