He knew that every word that passed his lips was only making things worse, but he didn’t seem to have the ability to stop. And if he were honest, there was something decidedly invigorating about arguing with Ellen, something that made him wonder how the argument would have ended if they’d been in private.
But everything changed when he spotted Montrose standing outside.
“Who is that man and what do you think he wants?” Ellen whispered as Joseph clutched her close.
“I don’t know,” Joseph whispered back.
They watched as the man began doing most of the talking, as if he were explaining something to Montrose. Montrose didn’t look happy about it, whatever it was. Part of Joseph wished he could hear what the two men were saying, and he was tempted to move closer to the windows in case they were speaking loud enough to hear.
But a greater part of his attention was taken by the feeling of Ellen in his arms, by the fact that her scent was all around him and he could feel that fast pulse of her heart because of the way his arm circled her chest to keep her close. Every one of the wicked feelings he’d had toward her when they were in the parlor together rushed to the surface. They were decidedly inconvenient, particularly since the two of them had just been arguing, but it was as if now that he knew they were there, he could neither deny nor control them.
How mad would it be if he turned Ellen in his arms and kissed her right there in the hallway? The two of them were already at odds with most of society for nonsensical reasons. Why not give society something to truly hold against them?
Ellen seemed to sense his desire. Even though they were both facing the windows at the end of the hall, where Montrose had taken over the conversation from his accomplice, she twisted to gaze up at him. Her eyes held a tempting heat, and her mouth relaxed into softness that begged to be kissed. How much trouble would they get into if they just—
The sound of sudden, loud laughter jolted Joseph to his senses, and he let go of Ellen just as a trio of young ladies stepped into the hallway from the exhibit room. For a moment, Joseph thought they were laughing at him and Ellen, but as soon as the ladies noticed them, they reacted with as much surprise as Joseph had upon seeing them.
“Good morning,” Joseph said as politely as possible, tipping his head to them.
“Joseph!” Ellen gasped suddenly. She grabbed his arm and tugged.
Joseph turned to see what had her in such a state only to find her pointing at the window. Apparently, the ladies’ laughter had been loud enough for Montrose to hear from the street. His accomplice was gone, and Montrose now frowned through the window, hands cupped to his face to block out the light so that he could see inside.
The moment Montrose met Joseph’s eyes, he pulled back and began to walk away.
“I cannot let him slip through my fingers again,” Joseph said, starting forward.
“You’re not going without me,” Ellen said with steely determination.
The two of them marched toward the door, and almost without thinking, Joseph reached for Ellen’s hand.
“Elle, where are you going?”
They were stopped just as they reached the door by Mrs. Mercer stepping into the hallway, another, fine lady by her side.
“It’s Montrose,” Ellen called back to her sister, a note of excitement in her voice. “We’re going to catch him.”
For the briefest of moments, a smile played across Joseph’s lips. Even when she was infuriating and overly emotional, Joseph truly did like Ellen. No, like wasn’t a strong enough word.
There wasn’t time for him to plumb the depth of his vocabulary for a word that fit his excitable fiancée. He pushed open the door and drew Ellen outside to Oxford Street with him. It was imperative that they catch up with Montrose, and perhaps even more important that they discover the identity of the man he’d been speaking to. If they could discover that, then perhaps they could unravel Montrose’s plan to interfere with Westminster’s project entirely.
Montrose had walked on and was several yards ahead of them, keeping a sedate pace. Joseph didn’t see the other man anywhere. Ellen glanced around hurriedly, and he assumed she was searching for that man as well, but seeing as Montrose was approaching a line of cabs for hire, Joseph didn’t have time to waste with searching.
“Montrose!” he called out, tugging Ellen along as he jogged to catch up with the villain.
Montrose visibly tensed and whipped his head around to see who had called out to him. When he turned around and spotted Joseph, his anxious stance melted into relief. That simple gesture had Joseph’s blood boiling, but it was made even worse when Montrose broke into a dismissive smile.
“Well, well. If it isn’t the youngest Mr. Rathborne-Paxton,” he said, then chuckled. “Has Lord Cathraiche allowed you to leave the nursery today?”
Several aggravating thoughts struck Joseph all at once. Montrose was goading him. The man must have sensed how furiously he disliked being treated as a child, so he was using that to upset him. Also, Montrose must have known that Francis had returned from Lisbon. He also seemed to know how Francis had been treating him of late, which did nothing at all to settle Joseph’s nerves.
Above all that, Danny Long’s words about behaving like a grown man rose to the top of his thoughts. For a moment, Joseph had no idea what to do with that advice or why he was remembering it at such a crucial moment.
Then it all seemed to fit into place in his mind.
He came to a stop a few feet away from Montrose and stood with his back straight and his head held high. He ignored Montrose’s jabs, opting to smile as if he’d encountered a friend while shopping instead.
“I saw you through the window just now,” he said, pretending as though everything were as casual as could be. “You must introduce me to your friend someday. He looked to be an interesting chap.”