Two
“That didn’t last long,” Reginald mumbled and rubbed his face in his pillow. He rolled and sniffed as the smell of sex tickled the inside of his nose. But it was the wrong sort of sex. A hand slid around his side and it was lighter than it should have been. Too light. He flopped onto his back and raised the wrist so he could inspect the hand and frowned. It was rather small and delicate and…feminine. Reginald followed the wrist under the covers and gasped when he spotted a full, round breast and a bare nipple. “Who the hell…?”
He threw back the sheet and Reginald screamed bloody murder as a woman blinked at him, alarmed and confused. She was horrifyingly naked and her long brown hair was thoroughly mussed. Reginald held up his hand, blocking her from his sight before he could notice the finer details of her anatomy.
“My lord?”
“Get out!” Reginald ordered and flailed wildly. “Paul! There’s a woman—! Why is there a—? What the fuck?”
“My lord, you and I… We…” She raised her brows and cautiously reached for him.
“No, the fuck we did not! PAUL!” He scrambled away from her and Reginald howled as he spilled out of the bed, landing on his ass and pulling half of the bedding with him. The door behind Reginald swung open and an older man with drab brown hair and a round, gentle face hurried into the room.
“My lord?” He asked, his soft voice cracking with concern as he rushed to help Reginald.
“Don’t touch me! Who the the fuck are you?” Reginald shrieked as he slapped at the man’s hands. His panic grew louder and Reginald kicked and grew tangled in the sheet as he fought to get away. “Both of you, get out!”
“Please! My lord! It’s me, Gates!” He said as he attempted to help Reginald up.
“Stop it!” Reginald managed to get to his feet and lunged away when the woman tried to grab him. She had pulled on a silk robe and covered herself, at least. “No!” Reginald pointed at her and shook his head. “I don’t know where you came from but I would never! Where’s Paul?” He demanded.
“Paul?” Gates gave his head a shake. “I do not know of anyone—”
“Why would you?” Reginald yelled at him. “We don’t know you. Where’s my fucking husband?” He leaned to see around Gates and frowned as he checked the door and the hallway. None of it looked right. The door, the molding, and the rustic wood flooring were all wrong.
“Your husband? You don’t have a…”
“I said stop!” Reginald shook his head wildly. “I don’t know who you are or how I got here but Paul will find me and he’ll take me home.” That calmed Reginald immensely. He reminded himself that Paul would always find him. “As soon as he realizes that I’ve wandered off.” He gave Gates a confident nod and raised his hand to see if their coordinates were close but his bracelet was gone. “Where did it go?” He cried and tripped over the sheet as he hurried to the bed.
“My Lord, I must insist that you calm down. You are in your home and no one has taken anything from you.” The older man attempted to corral him onto the bed but Reginald spun and darted across the room.
“No. I don’t know you. You must have me confused with someone else.” Which was extraordinary. How had Reginald managed to wander into his doppelgänger’s bedroom?
“You’re Lord Marston,” Gates said slowly and the woman nodded in agreement. Reginald’s jaw swung open.
“Yes. But.” He shook his head. “There’s been some sort of mix-up. You shouldn’t be here. Who are you?”
“I’m…Gates.”
“What…? You keep saying that but that doesn’t tell me anything!” Reginald complained loudly “Who are you, Gates? And what are you two doing in my house? Where’s Paul?” He demanded and went to check the bathroom but frowned at the coarser sheet in his hand. His face pinched at the heavy embroidered coverlet he’d gathered around his waist. It was burgundy and gold as were the curtains around the bed and the windows. “There’s no way this is my house.”
“It’s yours, my lord,” Gates replied, his neck craning as he tiptoed after Reginald. He appeared to be sincerely concerned. “I’m your butler. Perhaps you hit your head when you fell.”
The woman shook her head at Gates. “He woke up raving, sir!” She whispered, her accent heavily Italian.
“Get out!” Reginald told her. “I don’t know who you are but I want you gone!” He shouted. Gates’s soft, sagging face turned red.
“My lord! She’s your…” He coughed suggestively but Reginald refused to believe it.
“No, she is not.”He said loudly and firmly. “I don’t know where my husband is or how I got here but he’ll be here soon and he’ll straighten this out!” Reginald insisted.
“Your husband? Why do you keep saying this?” She asked. Her eyes darted to the butler, who looked rather scandalized as well.
“Your wife, the marchioness, is at home in Milthorp,” Gates informed Reginald carefully as he crept closer.
“MY WHAT?!” Reginald stumbled back and reached for the wall by the window. His eyes caught on a couple in an opened carriage as it rolled by. She was wearing a bonnet and the man was in a top hat. Reginald’s eyes grew huge as three more men in top hats rode by on horseback. Then, he glanced at the palace and noticed that he could see a lot more of it. “Where are all the trees? And the cranes and skyscrapers?” There were far fewer trees and half of the buildings on Pall Mall were gone. “What in the fuck is going on?” Reginald whispered.
“I’ll send for the doctor,” Gates said and Reginald nodded.