The Formidable Earl (Diamonds in the Rough #6) - Sophie Barnes Page 0,74

You don’t answer to anyone, least of all Carlton Guthrie or Valentine Sterling, the Duke of Windham, or whatever the hell you want to call him.”

“He has been like a guardian to me, offering help, support, and protection since I lost my father. I cannot dismiss that and neither should you.”

“Christ have mercy,” Simon muttered.

“So,” she said, eager to get past this difficult discussion as fast as possible, “we get back to work. And since The Black Swan is our best bet at the moment, I think we ought to have some breakfast and get ourselves ready so we can be there in a couple of hours like Mr. MacNeil suggested.”

Determined to move forward, Ida tried not to worry over where they intended to go. After all, the tavern was right next to Amourette’s, a place she’d been wary of heading back to in case it was being watched. But things had changed since the ball. She wasn’t safe anywhere anymore, and she wouldn’t be until she caught the real traitor.

“I need to check on my uncle first, not that I relish the visit.” Simon took a deep breath and expelled it. “There’s been no word from the hospital yet or from Huntley.”

“In that case, let’s hurry.” Ida grabbed his hand and led him toward the kitchen. “There’s much for us to accomplish and the day isn’t getting any longer.”

Chapter Fourteen

Until recently, Simon’s life had been neat and tidy, governed by order. His reputation had been impeccable, his future more or less carved in stone. In truth, his entire existence had been incredibly dull and predictable. To say his life had become more interesting of late would be a massive understatement.

Never in a million years would he have pictured himself heading off to a St. Giles tavern to interrogate uncouth men with a woman he’d found in a brothel. The world he’d once known had truly been flipped on its head.

“He’s doing well,” the Duke of Redding informed Simon when he showed up at St. Agatha’s, “should be back home again by tomorrow.”

“Are you aware of what happened to him?”

“Huntley gave me the broad strokes.”

Simon nodded. He liked Redding’s efficient, no-nonsense manner. “Then we are agreed that no crime has occurred here?”

“Indeed,” the duke muttered. “From what I understand, it was an accident.”

Simon shook Redding’s hand. “Thank you for your help.”

“Of course.”

When Simon returned to the carriage where Ida waited, there was no denying the concern in her eyes. “He’ll be fine.”

She breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. I’m glad.”

He scoffed. “I wouldn’t have minded if he’d be bedridden for a week. The insults he dealt both of us and the fact that he dared approach you as he did when I was absent are unpardonable. My God, if he turns out to be the man we’re looking for, I’ll wish…”

Simon stopped himself. He was angry. Furious, really. Not just with Elliot but with the futility of the goal he was trying to achieve. It had been three weeks and they weren’t any wiser than they’d been at the very beginning. The few clues they’d found led nowhere. And now MacNeil was banging down the door and Guthrie would soon be returning and everything felt as if it was falling apart.

“It’s natural for you to feel resentment toward him,” Ida whispered. “That doesn’t make you a bad person. It just makes you normal.”

“Normal?” He’d never felt normal. Except, he had to allow, when he was with Ida. “I’ve always judged others harshly, but I’m not sure I had the right.” Confused by what he felt and the threat it posed to the man he’d always been, he turned away from the window and faced her. “I’m not sure I deserve you. Ida, I’m not—”

“Stop.” Urgency filled her eyes, so intense it sucked the breath right out of him. “You are the very best of men, Simon Nugent, Earl of Fielding, and I…”

She averted her gaze, appeared to consider her words.

“You what?” he asked when the silence had gone on too long.

She swallowed, looked up, and smiled so warmly it washed away all the ugly emotions inside him. “I am honored to know you, to call you my friend, and to have the pleasure of spending the night in your arms.”

The kiss that followed was soft, gentle, so giving it seemed to say things her words had omitted. And while he’d been slightly surprised by the swift stab of disappointment he’d felt at the mention of friendship, the kiss revealed that