Noble Scoundrel - Amy Sandas Page 0,25

was still surprised by how utterly languid she became under his hands. Even as the wide flat of his roughened palm smoothed over the most tender area of her injury, he did not cause discomfort.

And when he expanded his attention to the muscles that ran along either side of her spine, she couldn’t stop her posture from softening into his touch any more than she could hold back the deep sigh that released from her lungs.

But then his hands left her. Suddenly and completely.

Katherine stared straight ahead, noting how the air around them felt charged in an odd way. Though she was compelled to turn and look at him, she resisted. Not because she feared what she might see in his gaze, but because she feared what he might see in hers.

“You’ll need to keep your arm in a sling for a week or more,” he said gruffly. “And no leaping from carriages into moving traffic for a while.”

“Frederick doesn’t need to know the extent of”—she waved a hand—“this.”

He gave a short grunt. “He knows.”

She sighed. The sound was heavy and long. One more thing she was failing to protect her brother from.

Hale was silent as he lifted the strap of her chemise back into place and then her gown before quickly doing up the row of buttons. As soon as the last one was secured, he rose to his feet. Taking up the length of cloth he’d brought up with the poultice, he fashioned it into a sling to support her injured arm. Again, his attentions were surprisingly gentle and efficient.

Once he was satisfied with the makeshift support, he turned away from her without meeting her eyes. “I’ll fetch Freddie. He’ll want to know you survived so much time alone with me.”

Katherine watched him walk from the room with an odd pressure filling her chest.

Chapter Nine

Katherine struggled through the process of tugging her stocking back on with one hand. The swelling around her ankle hadn’t gotten too much worse, but the purple discoloration was disconcerting. Carefully, she replaced her boot but couldn’t pull the laces very tight.

It would have to do. If she’d managed to race through the London streets with the injury, she should be able to get home.

Home and away from Mason Hale.

The man was simply too much. Too big, too blatantly male, too intense with his bold gaze and even bolder manner. Too everything!

“Are you all right, Kit?”

Katherine looked up to see Frederick hovering in the doorway. She gestured for him to come into the room. “Of course. I told you I’d be fine.”

He crossed to sit at the foot of the bed. His nose wrinkled in distaste. “What is that awful smell?”

“A poultice Mr. Hale insisted on applying to my injuries. Hopefully, the smell will dissipate soon.”

With a nod of assurance, Frederick noted, “I knew he’d be the right person to help us.”

“It was a good decision to bring us here,” she acknowledged, “but now we need to be returning home.”

When her brother straightened his spine, she realized they were about to have an argument.

“Maybe we shouldn’t?”

Katherine arched a brow. She had no idea what her brother was suggesting exactly, but she could see by his manner that he was completely in earnest.

“What do you mean? Of course we should go home.”

Her brother’s eyes darkened. “There were a few details about the initial kidnapping I didn’t relate to you. I couldn’t properly fit them into the puzzle, so I left them out until their existence made more sense.”

She’d suspected he’d been holding something back. “And now they do?”

He nodded. “The abduction by the criminal gang was clearly random. But the first pair I encountered that night—the men who locked me in the cupboard—their motive was very different. They had not been part of Bricken’s gang,” he continued. “Their manner of dress, their dialect, their modus operandi...all different, not to mention the distance I walked after escaping them. They operated in a different neighborhood from Bricken. A different territory.” He paused. “I didn’t mention this before, but while I was locked in the cupboard, I was able to listen in on much of their conversation.”

Despite the dread rising inside her, Katherine remained still and patient. Frederick often took his time explaining something, but only because he felt every detail to be important. Most often, it was.

“After they’d gotten me to the inn, they’d sent a message to someone. They were awaiting his arrival when I escaped.” His expression hardened and for a moment he looked a