Mistletoe and Mayhem - Cheryl Bolen Page 0,127

with you.”

“And yet it is done, and I had believed you would want to stay with your brother today.” The words were reasonable, and yet she felt anything but.

Where was her calm? Where was the rational person Ivy had always been?

“Those in charge of the investigation know where we will all be should they require us.”

“You told them we were going to Greystone without first asking?”

“You are coming to Greystone in two days, Ivy, so stop fighting me. There is danger for your family if you stay, so stop thinking of how you feel and think of them.”

It was a direct hit, and he was right. So why was she fighting this?

The reason, of course, was standing a few feet from her.

“The carriage will arrive in two days, and you will be in it when it leaves London if I have to put you in there myself.”

“I don’t like to be ordered about, Mr. Haddon. I will do as you say because you are right, my family needs to leave London with some expediency, but that does not mean I will take continuous direction from you.”

“Ivy?” He moved closer. So close that all she would have to do was fall forward and she’d be pressed to his chest again.

“What?”

“Stop fighting me.” He slid a large palm around her back and pulled her close, then he was kissing her again. She felt every inch of his chest pressed to hers. His other hand cupped her cheek, and his fingers seared into her skin. She lost all rational thought save one: she wanted this with him.

“At least now I know how to keep you quiet,” he whispered words against her lips.

“I don’t understand this.”

“You will” was all he said before he took her hand in his and led her down the stairs.

She walked because she’d been doing so for most of her life and it wasn’t very taxing, but her head swirled with thoughts. What did “you will” mean? And why did those two words fill her with hope and excitement?

Chapter Thirteen

The weather was cold with the promise of snow in the air as Rory made his way to the Redfern townhouse. His family was leaving shortly and would meet them at the inn where they would spend the night before journeying together to Greystone tomorrow. He had decided to travel with Ivy, Jackson, and their aunt, to ensure they reached it safely.

Determined that Madam Layla would be punished for her crimes, Joseph and Rory also met with Squire Ringwald yesterday to discuss what had taken place at Le Plaisir. The man was a magistrate, and Rory thought he would help expedite matters; clearly he’d been wrong in his assumptions.

Ringwald had been determined to make light of what happened to Jackson, even stating that young high-spirited men got into all kinds of trouble. Rory had pointed out that as he was the man who had found his friend tied to a bed and then had a pistol pointed at him by Madam Layla, he felt there was a great deal more to it than young men getting into trouble. Things had declined after that.

The magistrate had dismissed the blackmail letter as a woman’s hysteria, which angered Rory, as Ivy was not the type for hysteria. Joseph had pointed out that he was not happy with Ringwald’s defense of Le Plaisir and that he would be taking the matter higher if it was not dealt with to their satisfaction. Ringwald had stormed from the room, leaving the brothers concerned over just how far Madam Layla’s tentacles reached.

Stopping outside the Redfern townhouse, Rory handed over his horse and was soon knocking on the door. He was pleased to see another carriage loaded with luggage waited as well as the one his family had loaned them.

He’d almost expected to receive a note from Ivy stating they no longer wished to leave London, but at least in this she was now showing sense.

Ivy. Rory wasn’t sure how it had happened, but she’d come to mean something to him. As yet, he was unsure what. However, he did know that her lips were soft and sweet, and her body pressed to his made him lose reason. What he wanted to do about that, he was unsure.

“Good morning, Parslip. Is the household ready for departure?”

“Indeed they are, Mr. Haddon. And in a flurry of activity.”

“Excellent.”

“At present they are taking tea in the front parlor.”

He found Aunt Bea and Jackson seated before the fire. Of Ivy there was no