Chapter 23

Chapter 23

"Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?" Mason asked.

His heart was racing, and his palms were sweaty. The way he had handled the situation had only put them in more danger. Those were incredibly dangerous men, and now they were injured, and it was his fault.

"What were you doing there by yourself?" he said.

Fury flashed through Miss Owen's eyes. "I tried to tell you, and you shot me down. You pushed me away. Why do you care now?"

Mason had little patience left for all of it. Adrenaline was bursting through his body, and his entire night was a bust.

"You could have gotten yourself killed," he argued.

"I tried to tell you about it all. I really did. You were too busy for me, weren't you? So, lower your voice and stop questioning me. This is none of your business."

"Of course it's my business." Mason clenched his jaw. "This is my investigation."

"You kicked me off it," Miss Owen argued. "So, I went on my own investigation without you. I have important information, and there's a man's life at stake."

Mason shook his head. "Your life is at stake, too."

Miss Owen wouldn't even look him in the eyes as they argued. He didn't understand why she was so angry at him still. He had just saved her life. He had hoped for more gratitude.

"What were you doing there tonight?" Miss Owen asked.

"I was following up on a lead," he explained. "Thankfully so. You might have gotten badly hurt."

"They weren't going to hurt me," she argued. "He was trying to warn me. Nobody was getting hurt until you got there."

"You ruined my night's investigation if you must know," Mason explained. "I had good information."

Miss Owen chuckled. "Are you sure it wasn't a decoy?"

That was the first time that she had looked at him that night. The moment he saw the look on her face, he had the feeling that she knew something he didn't.

Mason was furious with her. How could she not understand just how dangerous the situation had been?

"Do you have any idea who that man was?" Mason asked.

The silence from Miss Owen told him that she had no idea. He took a deep breath and did his best to calm down, but it was difficult.

"That was Roderick Finch," he explained.

Her face paled as the truth set in.

"The same Roderick Finch I've read about in the news?" she asked.

Mason nodded. "The man who has no fear going up against politicians, or robbing banks, or burning down the homes of those who have angered him."

Explaining it to her was also a reminder to him just how much trouble they were in. Not only was Finch onto them but his henchmen were all injured from Mason's stunt.

"Why does Roderick Finch know who you are?" Mason asked.

"I was spotted listening in on a conversation," she confessed. "Lord Mortimer and Lady Arabella were discussing the Phoenix Society at the ball. I was near enough to hear, but they caught me looking at them."

"That's what you were trying to tell me the other night." He finally understood. She had been trying to help him, and he'd pushed her away. Quite rudely so.

Miss Owen nodded. Mason took a deep breath and tried to swallow down the guilt that he felt then.

"If you knew you were spotted, why did you carry on with the investigation?" he asked.

"Who are you to tell me what I can and can't do?" she snapped. "I had a good lead, and I followed it. To help the duke."

"Ah." Mason felt bitterness creep up on him then. "Did you feel that was your duty as the future Duchess of Trent?"

Miss Owen looked as if she'd been slapped in the face. Her eyes widened, and her mouth hung slightly agape. He had hoped not to bring that into the conversation, but it had slipped out of him.

"Is that what this is about?" she asked. "Why do you care about any of that? Perhaps that attention should be directed at your Miss Fletcher."

Had he gotten it all wrong? While the duke had told him of his intention to court Miss Owen, he hadn't confirmed that it would happen. Mason had simply assumed.

He had enjoyed her jealousy when he was dancing with Miss Fletcher, but he didn't realize just how badly it had hurt her and pushed her away. When he had left the house, he had been thinking of little other than Miss Owen.

Then, when he arrived at the Rusty Dagger, there she was. And he was so glad that he'd been there to help her.

"Why are we even having this conversation?" Miss Owen asked quietly. "You've made your opinion of me quite clear. I might as well take the duke up on his offer."

She sniffed as if she was fighting back tears. Mason felt all control slip away from him then.

He reached forward for her and took her into his arms. In the small confines of his carriage, he kissed her. He pressed his lips against hers with so much desperation that he wondered for a moment if he could ever let her go again.

She did not struggle against him. Instead, he felt her soften to him and melt into his embrace. It was a moment that he felt would last forever. It was as if time stopped, and so did his heart. He wanted to drink up every last drop of that moment.

She tasted of everything he had missed in life and quenched a thirst in him that he had not previously noticed.

When they finally parted for air, there was a heavy silence in the carriage. Their eyes lingered on each other for a moment before a wide smile cracked across her face.

Mason couldn't help but smile as well.

"I'm sorry," he said.

Isabella leaned forward then and kissed him gently again. "Don't ever apologize for that. Please."

He no longer cared about anything else that had happened that night. He wanted to take back every bad thing that had happened between them.

"I'm sorry about Miss Fletcher, too," he said. "It wasn't what you think at all. I was trying to get information."

"I guess there are a few things we've gotten confused between us," Miss Owen said.

Mason shook his head. "I shouldn't have treated you that way. You've been an excellent partner on this investigation, and pushing you away was not the right thing to do."

"Next time, you could try talking to me," she said.

"There's much more than talk I'd like to try with you, Miss Owen."

There was little space between them, but it still felt like too much. He had lost only a few days' worth of time with her since the ball, and even that felt like a lifetime.

Miss Owen's cheeks flushed as she glanced out the window, and a cheeky smirk broke across her face.

He reached out and took her hand. It was something he'd done before but only when they'd been running from danger. Her fingers were small and gentle in his.

"I'm sorry I got us into danger," she said softly. "And thank you for rescuing me."

"I'm just glad that I was there," he responded.

While they were moving further away from the danger, he was growing more concerned about what that danger meant and just how deep it ran. There was much for them to be concerned about.

"I thought I could do it without you," she continued. "The moment I stepped in there, I knew I'd made a mistake. I was trying to leave, but they followed me out."

"My information led me to the Rusty Dagger. You think it was wrong information given to me as a decoy?"

Miss Owen nodded.

"Perhaps Finch wasn't there for you," Mason said. "He was there for me. I was being walked into a trap, and you caused a disruption."

"That's horrifying," she whispered.

Mason agreed. "We're at risk here. Our identities aren't a secret anymore and active steps have been taken to stop us."

It was becoming far trickier than he could ever have anticipated. He didn't mind if he was in danger, but he minded greatly that Miss Owen was. The fact that she'd come face to face with a man like Roderick Finch made his stomach twist in a knot.

"Who knows what information we can trust now," Miss Owen said.

As the minutes passed, the gravity of the situation set in. They couldn't know just who was involved and who was told to keep an eye out for them. It could be anyone.

"Lord Mortimer?" Mason asked.

"And Lady Arabella," Miss Owen answered. "They were talking about the Society, and Lady Arabella promised that the duke would be taken care of."

"What else did you hear?"

He felt awful for pushing her away when she'd tried to help him the last time they spoke.

"Someone we spoke to during one of our investigative nights must have spoken up," Miss Owen said. "Lord Mortimer mentioned that he knew someone was asking around about the gatherings."

"We weren't careful enough," Mason said. "This is very dangerous."

"We can't trust anybody," she agreed. "Even the people who attend the same parties as we do. Those who hide behind their titles and friendly faces."

"Those people are considered friends of the duke," Mason added.

It felt too soon when they arrived at Miss Owen's home. The moment she stepped out of the carriage and he headed home, he felt an empty space beside him and within him. One that could only end when he saw her again.

***

Isabella had hardly slept that night. All she could think of when she was awake was Mr. Alton and the way he had tasted on her lips. When she did fall asleep, she dreamed of Roderick Finch and his looming figure as he threatened her.

It felt as if her sanity was slowly slipping away. When Eliza came in with a cup of tea, it was as if the words came exploding out of her, and she told her everything that had happened that night.

In an unusual event, Eliza went quiet and slowly sank into a seat.

"This is bad," she said quietly.

"I was in danger, yes, but I'm still glad I went," Isabella said. "Everything that happened with Mr. Alton was like something out of a book. It was just perfect."

"I don't like where any of this is going," Eliza said as she shook her head. "I'm worried about your safety, miss."

"I was saved," Isabella said with a smile. "But it was pretty terrifying."

"I can't believe you went alone," Eliza continued. "That you snuck out of the house that way, too. That is reckless of you."

"I know," Isabella said quietly. "After everything I've experienced with Mr. Alton, normal life just seems so tedious. I had to do something."

"Will you really give up the life of a duchess for a man so rogue?" Eliza asked. "A man who is so against the idea of marriage and children?"

Isabella frowned. "How do you know that?"

"Mr. Langley told me about it," Eliza said. "We speak perhaps more deeply than is normal. He tells me that Mr. Alton has never had an interest in marriage."

Isabella wasn't bothered by that. She knew the way he had kissed her the night before and how he had come to her aid. He cared about her, she knew that.

She was about to answer Eliza's question when their conversation was interrupted. When the maid walked in, Eliza shot up from her seat and straightened her skirt.

"Sorry to bother you, miss," the maid said. "I've been sent to fetch you. There's an unexpected guest waiting downstairs."