In those moments she nearly forgot that she wanted to go off on adventures. Whenever he was near, it was as though the adventure had come to her.
At that moment she heard the doorknob to her room rattle.
She looked over, and sure enough the metal moved. Holding up her candle, she slid closer.
Once again, the knob jiggled and, not knowing what else to do, Eliza grabbed onto it, stopping its movement.
“Eliza?”
Menace. She’d recognize the deep timber of his voice anywhere. “We’re supposed to meet by the kitchen door.”
“I know that,” he answered.
“Then what are you doing here?”
The knob jiggled one final time and then stopped. “That’s a bit complicated.”
She frowned. “Complicated? What’s complicated about the kitchen?”
He let out a sigh. “Eliza.”
There was a warning in the way his voice dropped low. Something that let her know he’d changed his mind. She needed to think fast. “We’d better hurry. If Bash catches you in the house, there’ll be no escaping.”
“He already knows I’m in the house.”
She blinked in confusion. “What?”
“I arrived here before you did.”
Why would he come here before her? A gasp escaped her lips. “What did you do?”
She heard him press against the door. “First, I told Bash of your plan.”
“You did what?” Then his words sunk in. “First?” What else had he done? Her heart raced in her chest. She shouldn’t have trusted him. Drat. She slapped her forehead, frustrated.
“I know you’re a risk-taker. It’s honestly something I greatly admire. You’re determined, and focused, and intelligent. But you’re also in danger.”
She smacked her hand on the door. This needed to be done. Her missing the meeting would only delay their ability to put all of this behind them. All because of Menace. “You don’t get to decide if I go or I stay.”
“Bash does,” he answered. “Which leads me to the second thing I’ve done.”
She’d had just about enough of this conversation. She yanked on the door, but it didn’t budge. Not even a little. She gasped, yanking harder.
“I barred the door,” he said quietly. “It’s for the best.”
?
?Who’s best?” she shot back pulling one more time. She knew the door wouldn’t budge but she needed to vent her frustration somehow. He needed to open the door so that Eliza could attend this meeting. He didn’t realize how important that was, although he clearly understood how determined she could be.
“Well,” he paused, and she heard him press closer to the door.
She pressed closer too. Because if by some miracle the door opened, she wanted to be close enough to hit him. “Well what?”
“Certainly mine. If you hate me then I won’t have to worry about how distracting you are.”
“Cad,” she fired back. “How can you be so selfish?” Hate him? Hate didn’t even begin to describe how she felt about him right now. She’d like to beat him senseless. Anger pumped in her veins. But something else beat along with it. Excitement? Challenge? She pushed those thoughts aside.
“But it’s for your best interest too, Eliza.”