Benedict's Challenge - Carole Mortimer Page 0,4

so. None of Lord Gordon’s friends or associates knew of any young female relative or ward living with him at Gordon House. The few of Lord Gordon’s servants willing to answer questions, for a monetary sum, also, after being given the money, denied all knowledge of her.

One thing Benedict was very sure of: he had not imagined her.

He could never have imagined such a beautiful young woman nor the intensity and depth of her blue eyes. Eyes that haunted him, day and night, not only in his thoughts, but also in his dreams.

The same beautiful blue eyes Carlton had just described?

To think that the young lady might be here now. That she might have come to Benedict…

He came to an abrupt halt the moment he saw the crumpled heap of unmoving blue silk on the back step of his home.

The same blue silk gown he had seen his angel wearing the previous week?

His angel?

Yes, because if this was that same beautiful creature he had seen for the first time a week ago, then Benedict had absolutely no intention of returning her to Lord Gordon’s home until he knew exactly what or who she was to the older man. And, more importantly, why she had needed to seek Benedict out in this way. He did not for a moment fool himself into thinking it was because she had become as instantly enamored with him a week ago as he had with her.

Benedict was well aware of the harshness of his features and the air of superiority and arrogance he exuded which tended to keep most people in Society, except for his three closest friends, at a distance. It was an air he had deliberately nurtured and for the reason of protecting someone very dear to him.

He sincerely doubted the blue-eyed angel had seen something in him during that brief meeting of their gazes a week ago, to make her regard him any differently than that.

But she was here now, and Benedict intended to ensure she did not leave again until he knew who she was and why she had run away from Lord Gordon’s home wearing only an inadequate silk gown.

He moved forward to crouch beside the still figure, drawing in a harsh breath as he stared down into the deathly pale face of the blue-eyed young woman who had taken such complete possession of his thoughts this past week. A face which appeared even thinner and paler than it had then, the high cheekbones more pronounced, even the plumpness of her lips a paler shade of rose. No wonder Carlton had been concerned.

For a moment, Benedict wondered if she was still breathing, and then he saw the shallow rise and fall of her breasts beneath the bodice of the gown.

A short-sleeved silk gown which, as Carlton had already noted, was too large for her and totally unsuited for the late January weather when she did not have the benefit of a cloak, bonnet, and gloves.

The matching blue slippers peeping out from beneath the hem of the gown were currently soaking wet. Meaning she had in all probability walked here, and these flimsy shoes had become wet from walking through the puddles on the pavement and roads formed by the rain which had fallen heavily the previous night. The hem of her gown was completely sodden in confirmation of that possibility.

None of her limbs appeared to be out of alignment or swollen, as indication she had any broken bones, and although her hands were slightly blue in color, her fingers did not look to be injured either. Nor were there any visible injuries to her head or torso.

After weighing up the danger of moving her if she was injured internally against leaving her out in the cold and wet a moment longer than necessary, Benedict quickly and carefully gathered her up into his arms.

He tensed as she gave a slight groan. He allowed her time to settle with her head resting against his shoulder before turning on his heel and hurrying back to the infirmary. She weighed little more than a child, but he was inclined to think, taking into account the thinness and pallor of her face, that was more from a lack of sustenance than a specific illness.

Carlton stood at the ready to open the doors through to the examination room. “Do you know who she is, Your Lordship?” he enquired quietly once Benedict had lain her down on the examination table before covering her with a blanket. Being