What a romantic he was! Belle curled her fingers into his lapel. “Perhaps we both needed to be ready for that meeting at the same time.” Did that mean she wanted a continuance of their relationship? No matter that a gaslight burned nearby, she couldn’t read the emotions in his eyes. “Life has certainly not been the same since your arrival.”
Should she dare to ask him to make their engagement real? It would be the first step to marrying again. Could she give him the whole of her heart and take the risk of losing another husband? Would it hurt as much a second time? There was a certain feeling of teetering as if on the edge of a great precipice, for the choice was even more poignant since he worked for the Home Office and his position there was dangerous, at times.
“Agreed.” Hawk rested his hips on the stone railing and tugged her more firmly into his arms. “You have made an unexpected impression on me, and now my thinking has completely upended itself.”
“That is exactly what I feel too.” Anticipation buzzed at the base of her spine. “What are your plans for after Twelfth Night? I would very much like to see your stay here extended.” In her bed for as many consecutive nights as they both could endure. Yes, she desired this man, but now she wanted him in all the ways a woman could… as her husband.
His ice blue eyes darkened slightly, and delicious heat flowed through her blood as he pulled her closer. “I suppose that all depends on your brother-in-law as well as how this mission goes.”
“Ah, I see.” Did that mean he would refuse to make a decision until that time?
“Don’t fret, sweeting. All will be well. I can promise you that.” Hawk gathered her close. He pressed his lips gently to hers as the delicate flakes drifted down around them. “Perhaps those plans are something we can discuss later? Preferably in your bed?”
“Oh, yes, please.” Heat sailed through her being. She giggled like a schoolgirl. Then she lifted onto her toes and claimed his lips.
With a soft growl, he took the hint and applied himself to the embrace most splendidly, and once more the world disappeared.
“Well, isn’t this a charming scene?” Sarcasm dripped from the inquiry, and as Belle broke the kiss, she frowned when Philip materialized out of the shadows. “However, this little romance will need delayed in favor of more important things.” He shoved the cold nose of a pistol into her back, and she froze.
“What are doing, Philip?” Fear skittered down her spine. She clung to Hawk but since her back was to her brother-in-law, she couldn’t see his face.
“What do you think? I searched this damn house for the treasure while everyone was busy with the ball, but it’s not here, so I’m demanding your cooperation.” He jammed the pistol harder into her back. “Now, if you please.” When she didn’t immediately move, he clamped a heavy hand onto her shoulder and wrenched her from Hawk’s arms. “I said now.”
“Montague?” Icy fingers of fear played down her spine.
“See here, Ravenscroft,” Hawk said as he pushed into Philip’s personal space. “I will not allow you to threaten her. If you want to talk about the treasure, you do so with me and leave Belle out of it.” A warning growled through his voice, and for the first time she saw him as the man on a battlefield, the man who was a spy forced to defend himself in hostile situations.
“If you think to move again, Hawkins, I will put a ball through her back. See if I won’t.” The cock of his pistol echoed in the silence. As Belle whimpered, Philip sneered. “I have been tracking this treasure for longer than you have, Captain. My damned brother found it by accident, but he hid it all over again when I came ‘round to visit thinking I’d squander it.”
“No doubt it was the truth.” Hawk bounced his gaze between her and Philip. “It’s not as if you have been fiscally responsible over the years. Everyone in London knows you’re deep in dun territory with creditors on your heels.”
“Shut up!” Philip hooked a hand about her upper arm and yanked her backward against his chest. He pressed the pistol’s nose into her ribcage. “I can no longer delay, so you two will help me find the treasure since lovely Amelia undoubtedly knows where her husband hid it.”
She trembled from fear and exposure, for it was decidedly chilly on the terrace. “Laurence might have put forth those clues, but I have no idea where the cache is.” A sick feeling came over her. When she cast a glance at Hawk, he lifted a hand, asking her for calm. “You didn’t help his death along, did you?”
“Ha!” There was no mirth in the sound of Philip’s bark of laughter. “I did not but he died before I could extract the information from him.” Her brother-in-law shrugged, and when she looked backward at him, his eyes glittered dangerously in the dim light. “I would have killed him if I had to, for I desperately need the blunt that treasure will fetch.”
Anger and sadness tore at her heart.Poor Laurence.“Bastard!” She twisted about with no care for the pistol and slapped Philip’s cheek. “Laurence was worth three of you.”
“This ends now, Ravenscroft.” Hawk used the distraction to spring at him while Belle retreated a few steps. As the two grappled for dominance, Philip lashed out. Perhaps desperation gave him greater strength. He delivered a punch to Hawk’s chin that had the captain reeling. “I am not amused by either of you.”
The captain wiped at a trickle of blood coming from his lip. Perhaps he’d bitten it when punched. “I cannot, in good conscience, let you find that treasure, Ravenscroft. It is not for you to squander.”
“And I cannot let you deny me.” The menacing growl in Philip’s voice sent prickles of alarm over Belle’s skin. “It had been my intention to come here and seduce Amelia into revealing the location, but I hadn’t anticipated she would have fallen for her protector.” Then he rushed at Philip, and with a fierce expression, landed a punch of his own.
They scuffled for a few moments while Belle stood off to one side, both fascinated and disgusted by the display. As of yet, the noise from the fight hadn’t attracted the attention of the party goers inside the ballroom.
Finally, she could stand by no longer. Hawk had taken more than a few punches, but he’d given the same, and both men were decidedly disheveled. How her brother-in-law managed to keep hold of his pistol was anyone’s guess, but she suspected he wasn’t a novice at brawling. “This is not how I want people to remember the Ravenscroft name.” She tugged on Philip’s arm until he came away from Hawk. Above everything, she wanted to keep the captain safe, because she loved him beyond measure. “Please leave, Philip. We honestly don’t know where the treasure is.”
At least it was the truth.
“You’re lying. He knows.” With a flourish worthy of Drury Lane, Philip pointed the nose of the pistol at Hawk. “I demand your compliance.”
“Then you are headed for disappointment, Ravenscroft. Belle is correct. We haven’t managed to locate the cache of valuables.” He flicked a glance from the pistol to Philip’s face. “Your threats won’t work, for I am not afraid of dying.”
Her heart trembled at his bravery.
“You might not be, but you are fearful of something happening to her.” Before she knew what he was about, Philip snaked an arm about her chest and jammed the nose of the pistol beneath her chin. “If you don’t assist me in this endeavor, Iwillkill her and gain satisfaction as you watch her die. Then I’ll dispatch you, for that is the glory of a double-barreled pistol. No delay with a reload.”