“Oh. No. Not at all,” I said with a sarcastic laugh.
As I listened to the overly English conversation at my table, my attention kept homing in on Arik and the French girl. He caught me staring and smiled. I sucked in a sharp breath and adjusted in my chair, bumping into the soup bowl a waiter was placing in front of me. The soup slopped over the sides and landed on the saucer underneath it. “I’m so sorry,” I said.
“It’s not your fault,” the waiter said. “I apologize for startling you. I’ll get you another.”
“Oh, no, please, leave it. It’s fine.”
He bowed his head slightly and backed away.
I tasted a spoonful. It was delicious, so I slurped it down. Before long, another plate landed in front of me. I studied the stuffed pastry. “Okay, what’s this?”
“It’s Beef Wellington. Eat it. You’ll like it.” Professor Attwood dissected his with a fork and knife.
I took a bite and was pleased. But the yummy food hadn’t removed the bad taste in my mouth. My run-in with that French girl earlier kept annoying me. With everyone around our table distracted in conversation, I took the opportunity to talk to Professor Attwood.
I whispered, “Arik wasn’t there when I went to his room earlier. In the hallway, I ran into that French girl who’s sitting beside him now. She said he was gone on a mission, and he wouldn’t be back for weeks, but he’s here at dinner. Isn’t that suspicious?”
“He was on a mission this morning. There’s nothing to be suspicious about, no one knows how long a Sentinel will be gone.” He cut a piece of beef and stuffed it into his mouth.
“She said she was the chambermaid.”
He swallowed. “Her name is Veronique Lefevre. She’s a Sentinel. She probably wondered why you were snooping around the Sentinel chambers. Anyway, she’s here from the French haven.”
“Who invited her here?”
“No invitation is needed. We move freely among our allies, and last I checked, France is our ally.”
Auntie Mae’s dinner knife slipped and clanked against the plate as she tried to cut her beef. I glanced up and spotted Arik heading in our direction, wearing a black suit with a purple and black tartan cummerbund. He flashed me his dimples, and my breath caught. My knife slipped from my fingers and clunked onto the table.
Auntie Mae gave me an amused look. Another thing we had in common—klutzy hands.
Arik addressed the table, his gaze landing on me. “Good evening. May I have a word with Miss Kearns in private, Professor Attwood?”
The sound of my name off his lips melted me.
Professor Attwood wiped his mouth. “Certainly. It’s entirely up to Gia, of course.”
“Sure.” I bolted out of my seat and instantly regretted it, hoping I didn’t look too eager. I took a calming breath before saying, “Excuse me,” to the table. Arik led me to the patio.
He gave me a sidelong glance. “You look lovely this evening.”
His comment startled me. “No, I don’t.”
He smirked, his cheeks dimpling again. “I assume you’re the type who doesn’t know how to respond to a compliment. All you have to do is say ‘thank you’ and blush a little. Try it.”
My cheeks were burning, so I definitely had the blushing part down. “Thanks. You look pretty hot yourself.”
Something whizzed by my head. I spun around, searching for what I hoped wasn’t some big, disgusting flying bug. Hovering in midair, right in front of my face, was an oval black stone the size of my fist. It slowly rotated until a yellow eye stared at me.
“It’s only a surveillance eye,” Arik said, placing a hand on my lower back and guiding me to the stone wall that encircled the patio. “There are several of them throughout the castle. The eyes connect to the Monitor.”
The warmth of his hand on my waist sent a jolt of excitement through my body. I stepped away from him and placed both my hands on the cool stone banister to steady myself. “You mean Pip?” I glanced back at the floating eye.
“Yes. He reports any suspicious activities to Professor Attwood.”
“What did you want to talk to me about?” I asked.
“How are you coping?” A strand of dark hair fell across his brow, and I wanted to smooth it back.
The night was chilly, so I wrapped my arms around myself to keep warm. “It’s definitely been strange, but I’m adjusting.”