The Watchmaker's Daughter (Glass and Steele #1)(86)
Dennison followed us down the stairs, past the porters, his head low and shoulders stooped. Outside, a carriage came forward when one of the drivers recognized his master. Dennison gave him the bad news. The driver looked crestfallen.
"But I have a family! How will I feed them?"
"Work for me," Matt said. "I live at sixteen Park Street. Duke, go with him."
"I'll go too," Willie said quickly, eyeing Matt. She must have suspected she'd be on the receiving end of his temper for some time and wanted to ward it off for as long as possible.
"May I humbly request a ride back home?" Dennison asked.
"Walk," Matt growled.
He held the door of his own carriage open for me and assisted me inside. He followed me and closed the door. Cyclops drove off, the other conveyance behind us.
"You play well," I ventured after two minutes of taut silence.
He grunted.
"You won, Matt. So why are you angry?"
He'd been looking out the window, but he now turned to me. Some of the frostiness had already vanished from his eyes, but they were still cool. "I'm not angry."
I barked a laugh.
He rubbed his eyes and I felt awful for mocking him. The poor man was exhausted. "I possessed a lot of vices in my youth," he said. "Gambling was one of them, as was drinking to excess, usually both at the same time."
"You don't have to explain," I said.
"I want to. I want you to know that I stopped because I didn't like the man I became when I gambled and drank like that. I gave up after I was shot. Things tend to fall into perspective when your life hangs in the balance."
Neither of us spoke. The hissing of the carriage lamps and the clip clop of the hooves and rumble of wheels were the only sounds. The night air wasn't cold, but it was dense, confining. My corset felt too tight. "I'm sorry," I said finally.
"For what? None of this is your fault."
"For misjudging you. I see now that it's not anger but tension. You wanted to get out of there quickly."
"I didn't even want to be in there," he said quietly. "Sometimes…" He removed his hat and dragged his hand through his hair. "Sometimes I find it tempting."
"Yet you manage to have a drink or two without going to excess now. Why not a game of poker here and there?"
He shrugged. "I didn't want to risk falling into old ways. I haven't played in years."
"We could play at home. That might satisfy Willie too, and keep her from going out to find opponents. We don't have to play for money, but for something else. Matches or tokens."
His mouth hooked up at the corner, all mischief again. His tension vanished entirely. "You want to learn to play poker, India?"
"If you'll teach me, yes."
His smile turned positively wicked. "You'd better not wager anything you can't afford to lose."
I smiled back, even though my heart fluttered madly. "Nor had you."
His eyes turned smoky. "For the first time in my life, I think I'd like to lose."
THE END
Coming soon:
THE MAPMAKER’S APPRENTICE
The 2nd book in the Glass And Steele series by C.J. Archer
When a youth apprenticed to a mapmaker disappears, Matt is asked to investigate. But when he uncovers lies and magic, he realizes he needs India's help. Meanwhile, time is running out to find his watchmaker.
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In the mean time, have you read THE LAST NECROMANCER? Read on for an excerpt of the 1st book in the bestselling Ministry of Curiosities series from C.J. Archer.
Excerpt of THE LAST NECROMANCER (Ministry of Curiosities, Book #1)
by C.J. Archer
About THE LAST NECROMANCER
For five years, Charlotte (Charlie) Holloway has lived as a boy in the slums. But when one theft too many gets her arrested, her only means of escape lies with a dead man. Charlie hasn't raised a spirit since she first discovered she could do so five years ago. That time, her father banished her. This time, she brings even more trouble upon herself.
People are now hunting Charlie all over London, but only one man succeeds in capturing her.
Lincoln Fitzroy is the mysterious head of a secret organization on the trail of a madman who needs a necromancer to control his newly "made" creatures. There was only one known necromancer in the world - Charlotte - but now there appears to be two. Lincoln captures the willful Charlie in the hopes the boy will lead him to Charlotte. But what happens when he discovers the boy is in fact the young woman he's been searching for all along? And will she agree to work for the man who held her against her will, and for an organization she doesn't trust?
Because Lincoln and his ministry might be just as dangerous as the madman they're hunting.
CHAPTER 1
London, summer 1889
The other prisoners eyed me as if I were a piece of tender meat. I was someone new to distract them from their boredom, and small enough that I couldn't stop one—let alone four—from doing what they wanted. It was only a matter of who would be the first to enjoy me.