Hell, he’d rather spend five hours on the rack, have his fingernails ripped from their beds, than suffer such intimacies.
Helen gathered herself and drew her arm from his grasp the instant he relaxed his fingers. “Thank you, Mr St Clair. I presume Jenkins was told to make haste so I cannot chase after my brother.”
“Sebastian is obsessed with the mining project.” It was not a lie. “If he fails to deliver the report on time, it will undermine people’s faith in the scheme.”
Spine rigid, she sat back in the seat and drew her knees farther from his. “He must be beyond desperate if he dares risk another scandal. You know what will happen if we are caught together in this carriage?” He was about to say they would be forced to marry, but she added, “I must leave for Egypt in disgrace.”
Egypt—the place as hot as his bed when he thought of her?
“It’s two hours to the Saddlers Inn,” he said, banishing his own reservations. “The likelihood of anyone catching us alone is negligible.”
She arched a brow. “Unless we want to court a scandal.”
The hairs on his nape stood to attention. Would a scandal secure her a ticket to North Africa? Was that why she’d wandered down the dark corridor at the Hamptons? Why she seemed suddenly more relaxed in his company?
Nicholas pulled down the blinds, plunging them into semi-darkness. The viewing window provided the only source of light.
“Whatdidthe fortune-teller say?” he repeated, trying not to think about what lovers did when alone amid a sensual gloom.
She released an incredulous snort. “You’ll never guess.”
“You’ll run away to a distant land?”
“No. I am to marry a farmer.”
“A farmer!” Like hell she would.
“I thought the mystic was a fraud, but then she made a damning prediction. She knew my name had been in theScandal Sheetand said I would find myself embroiled in another scandal soon.”
He felt a prickling on his scalp.
A rippling down his spine.
“Hence why you’re nervous about taking this minor risk with me.” Thankfully, he did not believe the soothsayer’s nonsense. “I can’t imagine you ankle-deep in pig muck, Miss Langley. Let’s pray your mystic is wrong on all counts.”
“Would you like to know what she told Miss Ferrington?” Her tone brimmed with amusement. “My poor friend hasn’t looked at a gentleman in the same way since. I shall give you a clue. Mina shuts her eyes tightly whenever she enters a room.”
He was more mesmerised by Helen’s smile than the intriguing prophecy. “Might she identify her future husband by the tone of his voice?”
A laugh burst from her lips. “No, she will see her husband’s buttocks before seeing his face. Mina has considered donning a blindfold and using a walking stick to navigate the ballrooms.”
Laughter was contagious. For the first time in months, he forgot that Charles Holland wished to ruin his name and drain him dry. “Perhaps she will stumble upon a lord with his breeches to his knees, piddling behind the potted fern.”
“We spend so much time hiding behind the fronds, we’re sure to catch some fellow in the act.” A tear trickled down her cheek, reminding him of the day he had almost dared to kiss her.
The memory proved sobering, and he was forced to watch her dash the droplet away while trying to catch her breath.
To distract his mind, he moved the blind and established they were already heading to the Queen’s Elm tollgate on the Fulham Road. At this rate, they would be at the Saddlers Inn before amorous thoughts threatened to consume him.
“You don’t have to hide in the corner,” he said softly, though he was glad he didn’t have to watch her dance with other men.
“Clearly, you know nothing about the rules of disgrace.”
“Feel free to enlighten me.”
She sat forward, excited by the prospect of educating him. “First, you must spend a month at home, dine on gruel and receive no visitors. Then you may attend social functions but only because thetonreserves the right to cut you dead in the corridor.”
Her situation provoked his temper. “Tell me the names of those who insulted you, and I shall humiliate them in turn.”