A Clandestine Affair (Currents of Love Book 5)

by Emilee Harris

  With a sigh, she clutched the latch of the window and brought it back in, turning the latch to close the window. As she did so, a movement off to the other side of the street caught her attention. A man hurried down the street and nearly walked straight in front of a delivery wagon. The driver of the wagon shouted his anger and waved a fist in the other man’s direction, but the other man took no note, simply redirecting his path around the obstacle and continuing in a hurried pace down the street.

  Sarah was about to turn back into the house, but something nagged her about this man and his hurried pace. There was something oddly familiar about his movements. Squinting, she focused on the man and then drew in a sharp breath. As soon as she devoted her entire attention to him, there was no mistaking him. She had fawned over that tall figure, those broad shoulders, and fine features for more years than she was willing to admit. She could tell the form and figure of Thomas Mallory anywhere.

  But what in the world was he doing here? And why did he move in such a frantic manner? That alone threw her off for a few seconds in her initial observation. She’d never known the man to move with anything but deliberate elegance, but this man rushing in the direction of her home darted glances in every direction unaware of his surroundings, and hunched his shoulders in a way she’d never seen Thomas do. With a start she realized something even more disturbing. He appeared to be making his way to the Langdon townhome.

  Turning in a flurry of fabric, she rushed out of the upstairs room and down the hall, hurrying toward the stairs and the front entry. Sir Thomas had no reason to come here, she chided herself, even as her heartbeat quickened, and her breath caught in her lungs at the unaccustomed speed of her movement toward the front door. He would catch hell from her brother for coming here. The last time he was here, he’d been unequivocally exiled from the Langdon home and told in no uncertain terms he was no longer welcome.

  He respected the dictate and kept his distance. Though he initially tried to reinstate communication with her brother, Eric would have nothing to do with him and they fell into a cordial acquaintance, communicating only as necessary for work. Sarah hadn’t seen Sir Thomas for months, and now debated how much of her heart’s racing resulted from the fear her brother might find out he was here and how much from her unfortunate heartsick excitement to seeing him. She came to a skidding halt beside the door and tried to peek out the side window without her movements being obvious. True to her assumption, Thomas’ silhouette continued on its way in her direction, his focus now intent on the Langdon home. Her heart hurtled irrationally against her ribs, and her breath came in short, painful puffs.

  She opened the door just as he raised his hand to knock, convincing herself it would be better if she opened the door, rather than let the Butler do it. Aside from the fact they were working with minimal staff due to their pending departure from the home, it would do no one any good if the information got back to Eric that Sir Thomas had been here.

  Nodding to herself, she assured herself that was the only reason. She wanted to keep the peace in the house. Her excitement and deliberate desire to be the one to answer the door had nothing to do with any lingering feelings towards Sir Thomas. After all, the man had never shown any interest in her. She had made grand strides in recent months attempting to forget about him…

  Sir Thomas started at the unexpected door opening, restraining his hand from its movement, which would have caught her squarely on the forehead. “Miss Langdon, I—”

  “What are you doing here?” She took up her most frigid tone on Eric’s behalf, though it pained her to do so.

  “I must speak with Eric.”

  “You know you’re not welcome here.”

  “I do, and I apologize, but this is extremely urgent. I wouldn’t have come if it weren’t.”

  Sarah took note of his features and appearance, trying to discern if he were telling the truth, but that reason took second place to what presented itself under her scrutiny. Sir Thomas was out of sorts, his features haggard and unshaven, his clothing rumpled, and he surveyed the street as he spoke as though expecting to see someone he recognized, and that person was not someone he wanted to see.

  “What’s going on?” She questioned.

  “Please, Miss Langdon, I must speak with Eric. Would you please let me in?”

  “I’m sorry, Sir Thomas,” His countenance fell, looking so dejected her heart reached out to him. “You misunderstand,” she clarified, “Eric isn’t home.”

  “Eric—” Thomas bit back a remark she felt certain would have surprised her had he said it loud enough for her to comprehend. “Let me leave him a note.” he countered, regaining a spark of hope. “Please, it’s very important.” Again, he diverted his attention to the comings and goings of the street, rocking his weight from one foot to the other.

  “Sir Thomas, what in the world has—”

  “Miss Langdon, in all honesty, it’s not safe for me to be here in the broad daylight and it’s not safe for your family for me to be seen here either. I don’t want to cause you any more harm or trouble, you must believe me, but I must speak to Eric. Please let me come inside.”

  Unsure of how to proceed, she focused on how disoriented he looked. The sight of him caused a sympathetic surge of fright in her. She took only a moment to consider it, knowing that while her female family members would remain away for a while yet, Eric could return at any moment. But it seemed cruel to deny Sir Thomas in his current state. Taking a breath and swallowing, hoping her decision didn’t come back to bite her, she opened the door and stepped aside, turning her head toward the hallway and nodding. “Into the study.”

  “Thank you, Miss Langdon,” he breathed as he hurried past. After many years of being a friend of the Langdons, he knew the house as well as he did his own. He hurried ahead to Eric’s study, accessing the room and commandeering the desk, opening the drawers in search of a piece of paper and pen. Sarah followed on his heels.

  “Sir Thomas, what is this about?”

  He began to scribble words onto the piece of paper.

  “I’ve had some information that I need to get to Eric. It’s of the utmost importance.”

  “But Sir Thomas—”

  She cut off as voices sounded from down the hall, tilting her head toward the sound as she recognized Eric’s voice.

  “Right this way, Constable, I’ll see who’s available to assist and join you momentarily.”

  Sarah’s eyes caught Thomas’ a second before they both began frantically searching for a hasty exit that might disguise his presence. He snatched up the note, shoving it into his pocket, and returned the pen to its place.

  “I can’t be found here,” he hissed needlessly. “If it were only Eric, I could attempt to explain myself, but—” His attention flew to the hall as the clack of heels traversing the floorboards grew louder.

  “I’ll see what I can do,” she offered with a nod as she turned toward the doorway, hurrying out in the hopes of stalling her brother. Stepping past the threshold, she turned in the direction of her brother’s voice, plastering on a smile and hoping she didn’t look as guilty and disheveled as she felt.

  “Sarah,” Eric acknowledged. “Perfect timing. I need your assistance.”

  “Of course, Eric,” she responded with a smile, her hands automatically beginning to translate the words that Eric didn’t need translated for the benefit of the men following him. Men, she now saw, who all wore uniforms of the constabulary. “What can I help with?”

  “The constable here needs to speak with me.” He looked over his shoulder at the lead man behind him.

  “Very well, will you take him and his companions to the parlor? I can have some refreshments—”

  Eric began to chuckle as he reached her side. “I’m sure the men appreciate the thought, Sarah, but they’re here on business. Come back into the study.” He took her by the elbow, turning her back toward the room she wished she could bar entry to. Sarah’s heart raced.

  She held her
breath as she crossed back into the study, prepared to faint on the spot if necessary to cause a diversion, but to her massive relief Sir Thomas was nowhere to be seen. She let out a sigh as Eric shut the door behind them and offered a seat to the constable.

  “Now then, sir, what is it I can help you with?”

  “I believe you are an acquaintance of one Sir Thomas Mallory, are you not?”

  Sarah swallowed again as she concentrated on forming calm and fluid hand gestures to accompany the speech.

  “Former acquaintance, yes,” Eric acknowledged with a sour expression.

  “Have you seen the man recently?”

  “Not for over a year.” A steely finality accompanied Eric’s tone, prompting the constable to pause a moment to examine Eric’s features before nodding. Apparently, her brother’s iciness and unwavering eye contact served their purpose.

  “He may attempt to contact you. If so, you must make every reasonable attempt to detain him and contact us immediately.”

  Sarah’s hands faltered, but she recovered quickly, lowering her gaze to avoid Eric’s curiosity.

  “Might I ask why?”

  “There’s been a murder of a former intelligence agent and Sir Thomas was seen fleeing the scene.”

  Sarah snapped her head in the constable’s direction with such force she may well have caused damage to her neck. The constable raised his brows at her, but Eric cleared his throat, saving her a portion of her embarrassment and bringing her attention back to him. She blinked at him, necessitating him to dip his gaze pointedly at her hands and remind her of her purpose. Eric already understood what the constable had said, but couldn’t acknowledge the man until she went through the motions of translating. Such were the annoyances of pretending ignorance of lip reading, a ruse which proved lucrative in his intelligence work.

  “Of course, you have my word, Constable.”

  “We are of course watching his home, but…”

  The men exchanged a few more sentences, Sarah fumbling her way through without hearing, certain from her brother’s irritated expression that her translations had turned to gibberish. She could have sighed her relief when the Constable stood to make his farewells.

  Eric shook the man’s hand and escorted him and the other men back to the entry. Sarah followed in their wake, more to assure herself they’d left than out of any formality. Eric didn’t close the door behind them, reaching instead for his hat on the console. Setting it atop his head, he turned to face her with a stern set to his normally relaxed features.

  “I was between errands when the Constable hailed me,” he began. “I’ve got a new lead on a French smuggler I’ve been trying to root out and Captain MacLeod has been hounding me about some sort of new wares for his galley. I haven’t the foggiest what he’s on about and the man is so blasted difficult to pin down. I ought to deal with him at some point, or he’ll drive me insane. You heard what the constable said, Sarah, do not under any circumstances allow Thomas in if he shows up here, do you understand?”

  She nodded numbly. He stared at her, assessing her, and she struggled to stand fast under his inspection. After a moment he reached for the door.

  “Make sure Mother and the other women know of it too. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  Another silent nod sped him along his way, leaving Sarah to sway in confusion in the front foyer.

  Chapter 4

  Thomas leaned his head back against the wall of the small closet and let out a long breath. He only just remembered about the space and hid himself away an instant before Eric and the constable entered the study. Uncomfortably confined, he expected at any moment to unsettle something in the supplies surrounding him and cause noise that would alert the group in the study to his presence. Only his extreme fright kept him still as a statue during the conversation. If he had to wager a guess, he’d say he hadn’t breathed the entire time.

  His muscles began to ache and strain as he made an active effort to relax them. So, his house was being watched. He supposed that shouldn’t surprise him, but where would he go now? At least his confusion the night before had led him to wander the city streets in panicked contemplation rather than make his way home. His one saving grace. Well, that and Sarah.

  Sarah. There’d been a moment when he thought she might give his presence away, but the fact she hadn’t now placed her in danger if anyone found him and realized he’d been here. His heart lurched with both thankfulness and something akin to anger that she would put herself into such a predicament on his account. Lord knew he wasn’t worth it.

  His thoughts flew to his Aunt. Better she didn’t see him, but she would be worried sick over him, and if these blasted constables did anything to upset her—

  The door wrenched open and Thomas jumped, slamming his head into a shelf. He bit off an oath as something fell from the perch, automatically reaching out a hand to catch it. During all of this movement the drastic influx of light that accompanied the opening of the door vanished almost as suddenly as it had blinded him, causing him to gasp in surprise as a soft female form pressed up against him in the minuscule space.

  “What have you gotten yourself into?” Sarah’s familiar voice hissed angrily.

  “Sarah,” Forgetting his manners, Thomas struggled to put his thoughts in order in the disorienting darkness and awkward nearness to his assailant. “I told you it was important. But I can speak with—”

  “Do you think Eric will speak with you now?” She insisted, her voice rising a notch before she battled it back down to an overt whisper. You know how he feels; the circumstances haven’t changed.” Her words lost some of their heat and her small form sagged against his frame. “And you heard him promise the constable he would help.”

  Thomas scrunched his eyes shut and let out a sigh. Silence stretched between them and awkwardness built as the reality of their closeness in the confining space took hold in the absence of conversation. “Miss Langdon, could we not discuss this in the study?” Thomas swallowed. The scent of her light floral perfume surrounded him, and in a matter of seconds the air warmed to sweltering. He made every effort not to notice the pleasant crush of her curves against him, but a distinct set of new sensations began to accost him.

  Not new, he understood the sensation this nearness incited, but new in the sense that this was Eric’s sister prompting the feelings. Eric’s little sister, almost a decade his junior, who had always been the amusing yet nondescript silent presence in a room. His throat went dry. Surely all the excitement and stress of recent events were catching up to him and playing tricks on him.

  Sarah opened the door and they tumbled out into the study. He glanced at her, her flushed cheeks glowing against her normally peaches and cream complexion, and her breaths somewhat labored, which he attributed to the close confinement and growing warmth inside the closet. Quickly looking away, he tasked himself with closing the door to the study, taking a deep breath before turning back to face her.

  “Miss Langdon,” he pleaded, “you must believe me. I was not the one who killed Graham Cartwright. But I was with him, at his request, and he was trying to pass on information of vital importance. It’s to do with the agency.”

  “Well then, why don’t you go to the agency?”

  Heat rose in his cheeks. “I can’t.” He admitted.

  “Why not? If this information really is vital for the agency, you need to take it to them at once.”

  Chewing on the inside of his cheek, he clasped his hands behind him, but Sarah didn’t let the inquiry go.

  “What’s happened?”

  He looked down into her earnest eyes, shining with concern, not the familiar disdain so common in the eyes of all those around him these days. A stab of self-loathing shot through him as he realized this lovely creature standing before him, whom he never bothered to take notice of, might now be his only ally.

  “I’ve been suspended.”

  Her eyes widened and her small mouth bobbed open and closed, but she remained silent as
she formed her response.

  “What will you do?”

  How he appreciated her rational nature, prompting him to think productively rather than wallow. “I’ve got to find someplace to hide for the moment I suppose.” He mused after a moment of thought. “I can’t go back to my home, and anyone who knows me is likely also going to be watched.”

  “I agree with you, but you also can’t leave here.”

  “What?” Thomas brought his gaze up to meet hers, brows furrowing.

  “You said it yourself, it’s too dangerous for you to be wandering about in the daylight, and the constable left a man here as well, I saw him pause across the street.”

  Thomas scrunched his eyes and hissed. “Wonderful.”

  “There might be another way,” Sarah offered after another moment of silence and pacing. “You weren’t privy to all of my brothers’ escapades in their younger years, but they did find ways of leaving the house under our parents’ noses in their youth. I watched them often enough. You can wait here until dark and you should be able to sneak out after that.” She nodded to herself as though the plan were finalized.

  “I can’t stay here, your family would never—”

  “My family won’t know you’re here.”

  Thomas paused, tilting his head at her.

  “No one has seen you yet except me. You shall stay in my room.”

  Eyes widening, Thomas attempted to argue. “Miss Langdon, I can’t—”

  “You haven’t got any choice. Come on.” She opened the study door, leaning out into the hall and checking for any additional people before signaling him to follow her. She dashed down the hall and up the stairs with him following on her heels. They reached the family rooms in a matter of minutes, pausing at the top of the stairs to check again if any servants were present. They beat a hasty retreat to Sarah’s room, closing the door behind them.