Read Online Viridian (The Hundred-Days Series Book 2) by Baird Wells - Free Book Online Page B

Monsieur Lennox?”
    “Henry.” Smiling, he reached out,
brushing knuckles over the back of her wrist. “When I arrived last week, your
name was everywhere, on everyone's lips. I thought, 'She cannot be such a
sensation.' So I went the opera, fixed on being your enemy.” He grinned,
sweeping his fingers farther toward her elbow and earning a laugh. “I was
nearly converted, only moments after the curtain lifted. 'She is comely
enough,' I said, 'but that is all.'” He stared past her for three breaths,
playing at thoughtful, and shrugged. “Then I heard your voice. A siren, an angel;
I had to make your acquaintance. I could not rest until we had spoken.”
    Now she returned his touch, playing
her fingers between his. “And we have spoken. What shall we do now?”
    Ty widened his eyes. “Converse,
delight one another? I'm not certain I follow.”
    Alexandra slipped from her chair,
moving to stand before him. Small fingers cradled his jaw. “I'm quite certain
that you do.”
    Ty leaned back in his chair,
preening. This was far, far too easy .
     
    *          *          *
     
    Olivia glanced to the ceiling, at
footsteps hammering out of time with giggling and screeching, and snorted in
disgust. Maybe she should bring up more feathers; the tickling seemed popular.
    Servants. She pressed
herself deeper into the darkened ground floor parlor of Alexandra's house,
until hushed voices reached the bottom of the steps and faded back through the
house.
    When all was still, save the ruckus
overhead, she darted into the hall. Gaining the staircase a tread at a time,
she paused and listened again and again until she reached the first floor
landing. Now was the moment of truth. She would discover if her copy of the
floor plan, borrowed from the house next door, was accurate.
    Resting one hand on the white wood
frame, Olivia grasped the knob and turned. It opened without a hitch, swinging
silently inward. Thank goodness, because Ty was the one proficient with lock
picks.
    The guest chamber was large, a
canopy bed jutting out from the back wall. Its heavy, carved posts were draped
in enough thick blue fabric to make uniforms for an entire navy. There was
little else to speak of; a practical straight-legged side table, matching blue
curtains drawn to keep the room cool. It must have been Talleyrand's room, when
he visited Osipova. Nothing private would be kept in here, not that she'd
expected otherwise. Olivia passed it over in favor of Osipova’s chamber. The
two rooms adjoined, granting her access while Ty kept their target occupied in
the antechamber.
    “Aggh!” From next door Ty let out a
feral cry. “Now I've caught you! But where shall I take you?”
            Hands clapped. “To bed, monsieur! To bed!”
    “Soon,” he threatened, “but not
just yet.”
    “You cannot be serious,” muttered
Olivia. Not that she gave Ty much thought, but it had crossed her mind,
unbidden of course, once or twice. Awash in his soap and cologne, the thoughts
were hard to ignore, lying beside him in the dark. Long, calloused fingers, his
hooded gaze; Ty would be a slow burn as a lover. No rushing, certainly no
schoolyard games.
    Olivia shook her head, freeing her
thoughts, and peered around the wardrobe. There it was, a door into the
adjacent bedchamber. Once more, she prayed it was unlocked.
     
    *          *          *
     
    What was bloody well taking her
so long? Ty listened for any hint of Olivia.
    He winced, flinching from teeth
buried in his earlobe. Seduction for the purpose of turning a mark, gaining
trust and access, was simple. No one was in a hurry, both sides content to play
their parts and enjoy each other. Unfortunately, Alexandra was a business
woman, with no interest in preamble. A man in the bed cost her one who had yet
to pay, and if haste was any indication she had a good deal more work left
today.
    Fingers kneaded the buckskin along
his thigh and she giggled. She was