Strike at Midnight(33)

“I had to see you,” he said, his smile dropping as if he was warring with what my reaction had meant. “Just for a moment. I didn’t think anyone would recognize me in City of Carena.”

“Well, someone recognized you as someone of importance. And your clothes didn’t help.” I took a deep breath. “You don’t come down to Lower City dressed like that.” I knew that Sir Raymond had, but knights were different. No one attacked a man who wore the Knight of Arms crest, for they knew it would bring the Royal Army down on their heads. But a man of the nobility who had dared to walk into a dangerous part of the city? Why the hell not?

“When a woman spoke to the clerk about being your friend, she told him that you lived in the lower part of the city. It was the best thing I could have hoped for, and I just needed to come down and show a sketch around to see if anyone knew you.” He gave me an embarrassed look. “Only I didn’t make it that far. I’m sorry that you had to rescue me.”

“You’re sorry?” Oh, for goodness’ sake. This guy.

He had come looking for me in a place he would never have stepped a foot into under normal circumstances, just to return my slipper. Now he was sorry for putting me out.

“Why is your hair pink?” he asked me, but he had a genuine interest in his eyes when he did so.

“Probably the same reason I live in Lower City. Wasn’t that fact enough to put you off from looking any further?” Not to mention I was going to kill Melody for pointing him in my direction.

“Of course it wouldn’t. I just wanted to find you. To speak with you. No matter the cost.” He smiled again, and the soft expression on his face made alarm bells go off in my head. Fate was a cruel bitch to have literally thrown him into my path this way.

“Look,” I said, putting my hand up as if it had powers in there to make him understand. “I’m a renegade hunter. I was undercover at the ball, and that’s why my hair wasn’t pink then. I don’t usually wear dresses, I swear way too much, and I’m drunk more often than not. Are we clear? I’m not a prospect for you, and you need to get that out of your—”

“I love your hair,” he said, and the smile he gave me this time almost knocked me off my feet. “It suits you.”

“Are you deaf?” I asked, dropping my hand and taking a step back. “Did you not hear me?”

“I heard you, I’m sorry. It’s just you said you were undercover, which makes sense since I saw you with that man. I wasn’t sure if you were together, not with the way he was looking at you when I came to find you. But then you ran after him and I wasn’t certain if he was your…”

He trailed off and I just stared at him. Flabbergasted. I could barely find my words. “Yet you still came after me?”

“No matter your interest in the man, I had to return your slipper. But you were after him for other reasons that night? Am I correct?”

“Yes, but that’s not the point.”

“Did you catch him?”

“Yes, I did, but—”

“You weren’t hurt, were you?”

“No, I wasn’t. Look—”

“I knew it was the Duke of York. But it didn’t seem like him if that makes sense? He looked so angry.”

“No, he wasn’t the duke, he was an imposter, but again, that isn’t—”

“Is the real duke well?” he asked, and he completely threw me off track.

“Will you stop asking questions?” I shouted, and then I bit my lip at the hurt look on his face.

“I’m sorry,” he said, and that just made me feel worse.

“Stop. Saying. Sorry.”

“I’m so—”

My fingers were on his lips before he could finish those words, and then I dropped them as quickly as if I had been burned. His skin had lit up a fire against mine as he looked at me with those adoring eyes, and I opened and closed my fist as if to try and squeeze away the feeling. This was not good.

“I-I–” I stammered as he held my gaze, and I needed to look away—I really did—but I couldn’t. It was as if his eyes were pulling me into a place that I had craved all my life.

“Thank you,” he said in lowered tones, and he was looking at me like he was about to kiss me. “For the rescue.”

“You’re welcome,” I said as his words broke the spell. He shouldn’t be thankful to me. He shouldn’t be welcomed. He had purposely put himself in harm’s way just to seek me out. That was stupid. Idiotic. Amazing. Romantic— Oh, my head just needed to shut the hell up.

“I can’t believe you’re a hunter,” he said, and that innocent grin on his face returned. “How exciting!”

“No,” I said, putting my hands up against his chest as he stood up from the wagon. It felt hard and toned, and…no. “Not exciting.” I quickly dropped my hands from the heat that threatened to come back. “You shouldn’t have done it. We need to take you home.”

“Not yet,” he said with sudden panic. “I’ve only just found you.” He handed me the slipper again. “Please, may I have just one hour of your time? Take the shoe, and then just one hour. Please?”

Now he was begging like a puppy. I should really check his ass for a tail. But if all he wanted for the return of the slipper was an hour of my time…