A Knight in Central Park(33)

Afraid she might fall asleep, she went to the window and peeked through a tear in the curtain, thankful to see that the moon was no longer hovering overhead.

She returned to her stool beside the bed. Even in her exhausted state she could not keep her gaze off of Sir Joe. In sleep, all of his hard lines had disappeared. His brow no longer furrowed. An exceptional looking man he was with his strong chiseled jaw. Fine thick lashes and well-defined cheekbones. His hair, a tad short for her liking, was as dark as a winter night...thick and smooth, making her fingers itch to touch it. His mouth though, she decided, was by far his finest feature: firm, full, perfectly sculpted lips that promised much more than mere words. She leaned her head against the wall. A woman could look upon a man such as he for all eternity. Her eyelids dropped, and she drifted off to sleep.





“Where am I?” a gruff voice called out.

Alexandra’s eyelids fluttered before fully rising into alert wakefulness.

Sir Joe was sitting up, looking about with wild bloodshot eyes until his gaze rested firmly on her. “Alexandra! I am going to wring your neck!” His gaze darted about the sparsely furnished room. “Why am I still here? What have you done?”

Alexandra swallowed.

Sir Joe threw the sheet aside, went to the window, pushing aside the linen covering. Sunlight streamed through, hitting the floor in bright beams. Taking giant strides her way, he said, “You tricked me!”

She jumped to her feet. For the first time since meeting him, she wondered what he might do.

“Where is the moon? What did you do with it?”

She clasped and unclasped her fingers. “I am afraid it is gone.”

He snorted. “Afraid my foot. I bet there isn’t a thing in this world you’re afraid of.”

The hard lines about his eyes and mouth had reappeared. He looked very nearly like a madman. And yet he was right about one thing; she was not afraid of him. Mayhap the pain she’d seen in his eyes when he had talked of his father caused her to be unafraid. Or maybe it was the ease with which he had interacted with his students at the faire.

“You’re going to be afraid for your very life, Alexandra Dunn, if you don’t hand over that stone right now.”

She took a step backwards. “I cannot.”

He kept his hand out, palm up, staggering slightly before he lifted his hand to the side of his head. “What did you hit me with this time?”

“My brother meant no harm, I swear.”

“I bet he didn’t. He just happened to accidentally throw a small boulder at my head. What is it with you people?”

She kept her gaze locked on his as he continued forward.

“It’s not going to work, Alexandra.”

“What shan’t work?”

“Your plan to keep me here.”

“I have no plan.”

“Yes, you do. I can see it in your eyes. You’re a sneaky one, Alexandra Dunn, and you are up to something. Now where’s that stone?”

She pretended to look about. “It must be here somewhere.”

When he glanced away from her and toward the bed table, she patted herself, making sure the rock was tucked safely near her bosom.

Sir Joe turned about so fast he startled her. Towering over her, holding out a hand, he waited. “Give me the stone, Alexandra, before I am forced to search for it myself.”

“You would not.”

“Try me.”

Her chin raised a notch. “I am not a child.”

He took a firm hold of her shoulders. “My entire future depends on my meeting with the Academy next week. Do you have any idea how much time I have spent wracking my brain, researching, reading, analyzing...nights without sleep, weeks without rest? Do you?”

Helplessly she tried to swallow the lump in her throat.

“I have too much riding on this meeting. Hand it over.”

She wanted badly to give him the stone, but it was too soon to let him go. Not yet.

His face softened. “I am sorry I couldn’t save your house,” he said in a calmer tone, clearly trying to rein in his frustration. “But I did all I could. If I thought I could help you get your sister back, Alexandra, I would. But I’m one man. And I’m the wrong man for the job. Give me the stone.”

She shook her head. “No, I c-cannot.”

“Hand it over.”

She let out a defeated huff. “You are a most unbearably stubborn man. Here,” she said, retrieving the rock from inside her skirt pocket and offering it to him.