Still, she didn’t look at him. If she didn’t escape soon, she’d start bawling and make more of a fool of herself than she had already. “Can’t it wait?”
“No.”
The uncompromising negative made her turn in surprise. He leaned against the front of the desk, his hands curled over the rim on e
ither side. Strain tautened his body, and his face was more serious than she’d ever seen it. Foreboding clanged like a tocsin, overwhelmed even her embarrassment and chagrin.
“What is it?” She thought she’d clawed back a measure of calm until she met his fathomless black gaze, and hurt and humiliation washed over her again.
“Please sit down.”
He gestured to the chair he’d vacated. Silently she obeyed, trying not to notice the trace of warmth lingering from his body.
“I saw immediately what your stepbrothers are,” he said heavily. “Swine in fine clothing.”
She wanted to tell him how wonderful he’d been this afternoon but he wouldn’t welcome her praise. Instead, she raised her chin and spoke in a hard voice. “We can beat swine.”
“Yes.” He paused. “But I’m afraid the measures will be more drastic than either of us imagined.”
She tilted forward, her hands fisting on the chair arms. “Do you intend to kill them?”
In spite of the fraught atmosphere, that startled a soft laugh from him. “What a bloodthirsty wench you are. No, I don’t intend to kill them. Or only as a last resort. I have no wish to dangle from the hangman’s rope when this is over.”
She spoke from the quaking depths of her heart. “Will it ever be over?”
“Yes.” He paused again, sending her an unreadable glance. “And no.”
She frowned. She didn’t know where he went with this. His expression told her nothing. “You speak in riddles.”
With sudden restless energy, Gideon swung away from the desk. A few long strides, and he reached the windows. The night outside was dark, haunted by the sea’s eternal thunder. Although they no longer spoke of it, her declaration of love lay heavily in the air between them. She supposed it always would. Again, she cursed herself for her impulsiveness.
After a few taut moments, he turned to her, his face terrifyingly grave. “There’s only one way I can keep you safe.”
She straightened against the chair. One hand clutched her mother’s locket like a talisman against evil. “Are you going to take me away?”
“If they tracked you to the wild edge of England, they’ll find you wherever we go. We can run if that’s your choice, but I don’t fancy our chances if every magistrate in the country is after us.” He watched her steadily, and she caught the ghost of his earlier devastation beneath his purposeful manner.
“And people will recognize you.” Her voice was husky, although for his sake, she tried to sound practical, unemotional.
“My celebrity is a blasted nuisance.”
“Your celebrity saved us from a house search today.”
“True.”
“If we can’t outrun them, what can we do? I could go alone.” She paused and spoke with difficulty. She hated to beg. Worse, she hated to contemplate leaving Gideon. “If I had some money, I could find a room somewhere—London even. It’s only a couple of weeks.”
His face darkened in swift rejection. “Over my dead body.”
She swallowed the dread that clogged her throat. For all her seething unhappiness, his statement filled her with relieved gratitude. “I can’t see an alternative. Apart from the smugglers’ hole.”
“There is one alternative.” His tone was neutral, artificially so, she thought. His eyes didn’t waver from her face. “We could get married.
For one radiant moment, joy flared inside her.
Married…
She rose and took an unsteady step toward him. “Gideon…” she began as wild happiness exploded in her breast.