of obvious frustration. Aiden had growled in response, then
marched them all back to the carriage. Again without an explanation:
He'd sat silent, the reins in hand and frowning, for
a few moments before sighing and then resolutely setting
them in motion.
Now Alex stood on the front walk of a huge brick mansion,
waiting patiently for Mohan to finish assisting Preeya
from their carriage.
"It's a beautiful house," she ventured, hoping he'd finally
say something, anything, that might give her some idea of
what they were about.
"Carden's an earl and an architect:' he supplied, offering
his arm. "Seraphina's a well-known artist. It's amazing what
one can do with unlimited amounts of money and talent,
isn't it?"
Carden, the man for whom Sawyer worked and who was
currently in Egypt, she recalled. This was the place where
Aiden had been living prior to being sent to guard Mohan?
"The Blue Elephant must seem like a hovel to you," she
posed, feeling decidedly out of her element.
"Not in the least," he assured her as he led their procession
toward the front door. ''The Blue Elephant's charming and
comfortable in a way I didn't know a house could be."
"You certainly didn't think that at first sight."
His cheeks colored slightly. ''Well,'' he drawled, "I'll admit
that all the colors, all the touches of India, were a bit off -
putting at first, but I've come to like and appreciate it. Quite
a lot, actually."
"Why?" she pressed, determined to know whether he was
being honest or merely polite.
"I don't know," he answered, leading her up the steps.
From the other side of the massive door came the unmistakable
sound of several wildly barking dogs. Apparently unaware
of it, he went on. "I suppose there's a refreshing lack
of pretension about it. And Lord knows that it's not the least
predictable or boring." He drew her to a halt and, blindly using
the door knocker, smiled broadly as he added, "Now that
I think about it, it's a lot like you."
Her cheeks flooded with heat but she resisted the impulse
to hastily assure him that she hadn't been in search of either
a compliment or a declaration of his feelings. Any sort of
protest-however brief or spirited--couldn't help but be
painfully awkward. Better, she knew, to let it pass as though
unnoticed. But the silence stretching between them was
becoming noticeable and she felt a need to fill it before it
could become strained.
"How many dogs do your friends have?" she asked,
grateful to the raucous beasts for the timely diversion.
He looked at her as though puzzled by the question and
then turned his head to stare at the door, seeming to have
suddenly become aware of the commotion on the other side.
"Six, but they took two of them along to Egypt." He reached
for the latch, saying, "Sawyer probably can't hear us knocking
over the welcome committee. Either that or he can't get
past them to open the door."
He pushed the door wide. Straight ahead of them, in the
center of the foyer, was a large round table centered with a
crystal vase holding a lush arrangement of exotic, freshly
cut flowers. It was the perfect welcome, a serene island whispering
of perfect hospitality. The rest of the foyer, however,
was bedlam in progress.
"Good God Almighty, Sawyer!" Aiden shouted over the
din of the dogs as he advanced into the chaos.
"My apologies for not letting you in, sir," Sawyer called
back from atop a ladder teetering in front of heavily draped,
windows. "As you can see I'm putting down a rebellion in the
zoo."
A zoo? Well, yes. Four good-sized dogs leaping, barking,
their tongues lolling and their tails wagging furiously would
all of them perched on the valance, puffed up, hissing
and spitting-took the pandemonium well beyond anything
Alex had ever seen. She glanced back over her shoulder,
afraid that Mohan would be frightened by the anarchy. His
eyes were wide; almost but not quite as wide as his grin.
Preeya was clearly just as amused. Her concerns allayed,
Alex turned back to consider Sawyer and how she might
help in bringing matters under some semblance of control.
Aiden spared her the effort. ''Well, the cats might come
down if the dogs weren't threatening to eat them," he advised,
taking the ladder in his hands and steadying it. "Climb down
off there before you're knocked off and let's impose some
order."
''The dogs were confined but broke loose just as I had the
first blasted kitten in hand:' the butler explained over the din
as he carefully inched his way toward the floor. Once safely
there, he tugged his suit into place, lifted his chin, and slipped
into his official role. "Welcome to Haven House, Miss Radford."
"Hello, Sawyer," she replied. Half turning and gesturing,
she added, ''This is Mohan Singh, my ward. And our housekeeper,
Preeya."
"A pleasure, Master Singh. Madam," he said with a perfunctory
bow. It was to Preeya that he said, "If you would excuse
me for just a few moments while I incarcerate--once
again-the hounds of hell."
"I'll get Lucy and Tippy for you," Aiden volunteered,
snagging the heavy leather collar of one of the beasts as it
charged the window. A second later he had another one in
hand and was hauling them both toward the opposite doorway
and the hall beyond. The cat hissed and howled epithets
after them. The kittens sang the chorus. It took Sawyer a bit
longer to apprehend his pair of culprits, but eventually he
too moved off, his departure noted with additional commentary
from the still outraged cat.
"I like this house, Miss Alex," her ward said in Hindi.
"Might we have some animals of our own?"
"We have peacocks," she pointed out, remembering her
conversation with Aiden about Mohan's general state of
boredom and, specifically, his lack of pets.
"I meant an animal that could live in the house with us
and provide for our entertainment. A cat. Or a dog. Or perhaps
several of each."
"It's you who provide for them, Mohan," she cautioned.
"Yes, they can make one feel better and laugh. But animals
are also a responsibility. One that can't be taken lightly or
forsaken once the commitment is made."
"I will be a good caretaker and a kind friend."
Not Preeya, she noticed. Just days ago it wouldn't have
occurred to him to assume the obligation himself. At least
not without having first attempted to pass it off to someone
else. "I'm willing to consider the proposal," she ceded, assessing
the little fur balls lined up along the high ground.
"Perhaps Sawyer knows where we can acquire a cat of
our own," Mohan mused.
If she were inclined to wager, she'd put a few' crowns on
which ca
ts Sawyer would suggest they take home with them.
"Perhaps," she countered, "he might need to be convinced
of your willingness to be responsible and caring before he
would offer his advice in that regard. Do you suppose that
coaxing the cats down off the valance might be a way of
demonstrating those qualities?"
To his great credit, he didn't hesitate. "If you and Preeya
would steady the ladder for me, please."
Neither she nor Preeya said a word as they took up their
stations on opposite sides of the ladder and Mohan scampered
up the steps. But then, words weren't the least bit necessary,
Alex realized. They were both thinking the same
thing: Mohan had become a different, far happier, and more
likable child in the last few days. Since the day that Aiden
Terrell had been drawn into their lives. In the larger scheme
of things, adopting a family of cats was a very small reward
for the very significant changes Mohan had willingly undergone.
She could only hope that Aiden wasn't one of those
sorts who got near a cat and sneezed.
"Since they apparently were able to slide the bolt on the
pantry door," Sawyer said from behind him, "I think they'd
best be placed outside in their kennel, sir."
Aiden nodded and continued past the pantry door and out
the back of the house. With their wrought-iron enclosure in
sight, the dogs strained to race him there and he released
them, allowing them to run the last measure of yard. He'd no
sooner done so than the other two bolted past him, dashing
to catch up, vying to be the first inside.
"Where did the kittens come from?" he asked, closing the
kennel gate and drawing the chain around to secure it. "They
weren't here the last time I was."
"Actually, they were, sir," Sawyer corrected, giving the
chain a good yank to be sure it would hold. "In the carriage
house. But when the snow started falling, the mother cat
brought them to the rear door and demanded warmer shelter."
Aiden grinned, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and leaned
his shoulder against a bar. "And you couldn't refuse."
"Of course not, sir." He cleared his throat softly. "Although
I did attempt to confine them to a well-appointed box
in Miss Beatrice's room. As a strategy, it worked well enough
until Mrs. Blaylock inadvertently failed to fully close the
door after feeding them this morning."
"Then all hell broke loose."
"Yes." He cocked a silver brow as he' added dryly, "But
not until after she'd left for her day out, of course."
Yes, it was a good plan. Sawyer was the perfect solution.
"How would you like a chance to avoid all this for a while?"
The silver brow moved slightly higher. "Are you suggesting
that I take a holiday, sir? How very kind of you."
"Well, it would be something like a holiday."
Sawyer's brows came together as he lowered his chin.
"Do go on, Mr. Terrell."
He knew how to play Sawyer. Leading with the trump card
always did it. 'This morning," he said coolly, matter-of-factly,
"two thugs came into the Blue Elephant and attempted to kidnap
Alex at knife point."
As Aiden expected, Sawyer started, blanched, and glanced
back toward the house. Just as predictably, the man blinked
twice, then straightened his shoulders, turned back, cleared
his throat and said, "Obviously, and most thankfully, they
failed to do so."
Aiden nodded. 'That's because I shot them both dead."
Sawyer considered him somberly and then gently offered'
"I'm sure it was absolutely necessary to do so, Mr.
Terrell. I sincerely hope you also view it in such a light and
have no remorse over the course of events."
"I'm working on it," Aiden admitted with a shrug. That
was the one problem with knowing Sawyer so well; the man
also knew him.
Rather than dwell on the regrets, he deliberately moved to
the next phase of his plan. "But it occurred to me in the after- .
math that I can't adequately protect three people all at once.
If I'm out and about with Mohan, then Alex is alone in the
house and Preeya's alone in the kitchen. I can't very well confine
everyone to one room of the house to keep watch over
them. The boredom would be unrelenting. For all of us."
"And you do so loathe being bored."
Aiden smiled, knowing that if Sawyer were being honest
he'd have to admit to the same predilection. "So what would
you say to being my second for a few weeks?" he posed, already
knowing that the deal was done and all but sealed.
"Just during the day. I'd take full responsibility for Mohan's
safety and you could be a daunting male presence hovering
along the edges of Alex's and Preeya's worlds. You could
step in and diffuse any number of situations that might arise.
At night, we're always together in the salon until we retire. I
can manage that on my own and you could come back here
to sleep in your own bed. So what do you think? Would you
be interested in helping me protect them?"
"I am hardly a professional at such efforts, sir."
"And I am?" Aiden countered with a snort. "I thought I
might press O'Brien into duty, but I couldn't find him.
Which is just as well. He's a bit rough around the edges.
Then I went looking for Barrett to see if he had someone else
he could assign to help me. His secretary says that he thinks
Barrett has gone off to Wales on a case. Not that he'd know.
Barrett never tells anyone what he's going to do. The inconsiderate
bastard. I swear to God, Sawyer, the man will be
dead in a ditch somewhere for a week before it .occurs to
anyone that he might be missing."
"You sound slightly harried, sir."
"That's probably because I am," Aiden supplied, knowing
that they were mere seconds away from Sawyer's formal enlistment.
"If you truly believe that I would be of more help than
hindrance-"
"Bless you, Sawyer," he declared, clapping a hand on the
man's shoulder in genuine gratitude. "I'll make sure Barrett
pays you for your trouble."
"But I can give of my time only until I hear word of the
family's imminent return. At that point, my duties here '
would have to take precedence over any others."
"Of course. I wouldn't have it any other way. Can you
start tomorrow morning?"
"I believe that will not be a problem, sir. At what time
should I arrive?"
"Nine?"
"Very good, sir. Nine o'clock it will be."
"Thank you, Sawyer. You're a saint Now," he added,
looking back at the house and sighing. "Let's go see what we
can do about the cats and salvaging Sera's curtains."
"If you have any hopes of becoming a saint yourself,"
Sawyer muttered, "you'll take them home with you. The
cats, I mean. Not the draperies."
Aiden grinned. "If no one's sneezing or blotting red eyes
when we get in there ... A boy should have pets, don't you
think?"
Aiden started awake and stared into the darkness, hearing
only the rasping of his breath and the frantic pounding of
his heart, feeling only the searing heat in his shoulder. He
reached up and laid his fingertips over the scar, letting the
smooth familiarity of the circle ground him. As always,
the burning slowly began to subside, retreating back into the
realm of his nightmares. And as usual, the stark, horrifying
clarity of the images started to fade with it. But not completely.
This time the memory of them hauntingly remained
and his heart refused to slow.
He swallowed and deliberately considered the changes.
Her eyes had been blue, her hair golden in the sunlight.
She'd been a tiny slip of a thing; so feminine, so delicate,
that he'd called her his china doll. God, he could remember
all of that so clearly. So why couldn't he just as clearly conjure
the actual image of her from his memory? Why had the
crumpled body on the bloody deck of his nightmare been
raven haired? Why had it been Alex's hazel eyes that had
stared unseeingly up at him?
He couldn't have forgotten, couldn't have let such a precious
thing slip away. It was unforgivable. More so than having
failed her that day when the sun had glinted so brightly off