“Well, you know—because—what if—” she stopped and pointed her hand off behind them. “What if—”
“What if someone were to ask?” he allowed.
“Yes.”
“They won’t get an answer.” If he wasn’t going to explain everything to her, the least he could do was try to reassure her of her safety.
She pressed her lips together and breathed out sharply from her nose. “But how do you know—”
“A little faith,” Cal said with a pat on her hand. “You’ve trusted me thus far. I’m just asking for you to trust me a little bit longer.”
With a heavy sigh she nodded her head once, curtly. Cal smiled and then opened the door to the inn allowing her to enter in front of him.
The inside of the inn was not much an improvement on the outside. There was a single row of food stained wooden tables along the right wall leaving barely enough room to pass on the left by the bar. The dirt floor was filthy, even for dirt. Cal could make out bits of food and waste around the tables as well as several muddy areas dispersed around the narrow room. Cal assumed that was the source of the musky and pungent odor filling the room, but he didn’t want to speculate exactly what had caused the muddy areas.
The fireplace in the back was lit, filling the entire room with a small amount of soot and smoke. Other than the fire, the only light in the room was the dim and dappled rays of sun that came through the tiny smudged window of the door. But those rays of light only served to accentuate the smoke and soot in the air. On the far side of the room Cal could just barely make out a few poorly dressed and grimy bar patrons, along with an equally unkempt woman in a low cut dress, at the table closest the fire. As Cal expected, none of the occupants gave him or his companion a second look.
The woman tightened her grip on Cal’s arm.
On their left, the woman behind the bar approached them and when she was within earshot, she folded her arms and leaned down on the bar.
“You lost?” she asked eyeing Cal and his companion up and down. A piece of her greasy hair fell over her eyes and she wiped it away with a filthy rag in an equally filthy hand.
“Well, actually we—ouch!”
Cal elbowed his companion in her side.
“Not at all ma’am,” Cal answered the barkeep.
“Ma’am, is it?” The barkeep raised a brow. “Sounds like you’re lost to me.”
“No. Ma’am. We’re in exactly the right place.”
She kept her brow raised and shook her head. “If you say so.”
“Oh, I do.” Cal reached into his coat pocket where he retrieved a small velvet bag which he threw on the bar. It landed with a faint metallic clink. Both the barkeep and the woman on his arm looked at him curiously.
The barkeep reached out a tentative hand and took the bag, undoing the ties and looking inside. Her eyes widened slightly but she kept her face even as she redid the ties and placed the bag into her dress by her bosom.
“Seems you’re in the right place after all…” She cocked her head sharply to the side in the direction of the stairs in the back left corner, before turning and going back to whatever it was she had been doing before.
Cal nodded his head and then led the woman on his arm towards the back of the inn.
“But—wait—” She didn’t let go of his arm but she pulled against him, looking to the barkeep behind them and then back to Cal. “What was—was that—” She lowered her voice to a whisper and leaned into Cal. “Was that money?”
He felt his mouth twitch but he didn’t answer. He unhooked his arm from hers and placed his hand on her lower back giving her a gentle nudge up the stairs.
“How much—” She turned around to look at Cal. “How much—where did you get that?”
“It’s no matter right now.” Cal pushed her lower back again and followed her up the stairs to the small landing and constricted hallway that connected to it. The only light in this space came from a small, soiled oil lamp hanging on a nail on the wall. The doors to the individual rooms were barely visible and Cal had to squint his eyes in order to see them even after he squeezed past the woman and walked down the hall.
“Did you steal it? Is that why you’re being followed?”
“What? No!” Cal turned, eyes still narrowed, and looked at the woman. “How ridiculous would that be? Steal money, run, and then use it all to hide? What would be the point of that?”
“Maybe you just like running…”
“What?” Cal continued to glare at her.
“Alright then, maybe you didn’t spend all of it. Maybe you have more—”
“Maybe I do. Now shush!” He gestured his head back towards the stairs that lead down to the pub where the other inn patrons were congregating. “Do you want other people to come asking after those sorts of things?”
“Oh,” she said as she clasped her hands in front of her and rocked her arms nervously from side to side. “I didn’t think about that.”
Cal sighed, and for not the first time today he wondered what he’d gotten himself into by bringing her along.
He knocked on the first door on the right side of the hallway and heard a loud crash in response as if someone had thrown something at the door. He stepped away and went to the second door, knocking firmly again. When he didn’t hear a response he turned the handle slowly and glanced inside. The room was slightly better lit than the hallway but not quite as well lit as the pub downstairs despite the large window on the far wall. Nonetheless he could tell that the room was unoccupied. He stepped inside and gestured for the woman to join him.
She followed quickly.
“Close the door,” he instructed her as he took the flint box from a small table and lit the oil lamp next to it.
The woman walked across the room to the window and pulled the heavy curtains further open, disturbing the surrounding dust. She coughed several times before turning back to face him.
“Now what?” she asked.
She was wringing her hands in front of her chest and biting her bottom lip something fierce. She was nervous as hell. But damn if it didn’t make her all the more intriguing. And beautiful.
Cal knew he shouldn’t be thinking this. Especially now that they were alone together and would be for some time. He reminded himself again of the promise he’d made to not let her get too involved or to become too attached. He wasn’t entirely sure about her feelings but he was failing miserably at the later. What was worse, he couldn’t seem to help it. It had been such a long time since anyone had been on his side. Even though they were strangers he felt a connection to her that went deeper than he could understand.
Cal gave the room a once over and was not surprised to discover that the only place to sit was the bed. He brushed off a corner of the sheet and sat down, patting the space to his left.
“Well then. We’re going to be here for a while,” he said letting go of his better judgment. “Shall we finally get to know each other?”
Chapter 5
Ellie turned and looked out the window, devoting all of her attention to the areas surrounding the inn. There wasn’t much to see even if the window hadn’t been so dirty and grimy… except for more dirt and grime, and more buildings that looked remarkably similar to the one she was already in. And some buildings that looked even worse. That was of no matter though. Right now she didn’t really care what was or was not in front of her to see, as long as she was not seeing what was behind her. But that desperately handsome man behind her was not so easy to ignore… and neither was the manner or location in which he was situated.
If someone had asked Ellie to guess how her day would go, and then told her to let her imagination run wild to all the places she could ever possibly envision, nothing she came up with would have ever been close to the reality. Twenty-four hours ago she was a normal woman working in a dress shop. She most certainly wasn’t the type of woman to kiss a strange man or to run away with a strange man. Or to be in a room, in an inn, with a bed, with a strange man
. It was horribly scandalous. And terribly wicked.
And Ellie was surprised to find that she liked it. Very much.
“What are you looking at?” she heard the man ask from the other side of the room.
Ellie sighed and turned very slowly holding her crossed arms close to her chest as if for protection.
The man was leaning back on his arms now into a more relaxed position on the bed. She’d known he was handsome. There was no getting around that. But his position on the bed gave her a better view of him, and for the first time since they’d met she was finally able to give him a good looking over. The lines of his body were long and lean, but he had a strength that told her he knew work, though only recently. His head was tipped back towards the ceiling showing a strong jawline peppered with ebony colored hair. It was clear he hadn’t shaved since the last time she’d seen him and perhaps for a day or so more than that.
His manner of dress though, was a bit confusing. He was dressed like a laborer or worker of some sort, in a simple shirt and trousers, but the fabrics of the clothes seemed almost too fine. It was possible that he was employed by a well-to-do family and was given their castoff clothing, but even that didn’t seem to fit. His mannerisms, speech, and attitude were that of someone who should be more finely dressed, someone who should not be running and hiding in a place such as this. And he had all that money… At least she’d thought it was money anyway…
He definitely wasn’t a conventional sort of man by any sense of the definition and he didn’t have a conventional sort of look. But something about him made her feel safe and comfortable, and to be honest she found him and this entire situation quite appealing. More than appealing.
Oh, Lord. She could feel her cheeks warming up and turning bright red. She should have stayed facing the window. Or better yet, she should have just stayed in bed.
She frowned. She probably shouldn’t be thinking about beds. That just made her think more about him.
“You’ve forgotten how to talk now?”
“No, I was just—” but she couldn’t very well tell him what she was doing and so she cut herself off abruptly.
The man leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees with a smirk.
He knew. She could tell. But now she could also tell that he’d been looking at her too. Whatever for? She wondered. Was he thinking the same things about her that she was thinking about him? She felt her cheeks get even hotter.
The man continued to smile and patted the bed next to him again. “I won’t bite.”
She felt something warm and tingly growing in her belly and for just a moment she considered going to sit next to him. In this room. Alone. On the bed.
But instead she shook her head rapidly and said, “No, I couldn’t possibly.”
“There’s nowhere else to sit.”
Ellie laughed and wiped off her forehead with the back of her hand. “That would be so far beyond inappropriate and scandalous.”
“This whole situation is beyond inappropriate and scandalous. And yet, here we are.”
“Yes. I suppose so. But I think it would be best if I stand.” She bit her lip and pointed to the ground where she stood. “Over here.”
“As you wish,” he nodded with a twinkle in his eyes. “But the offer remains open. We’ll be here for a while and you might get tired—”
“I’ll be fine.”
“Suit yourself.”
“So how much time do we have to occupy?” Ellie frowned. Well that sounded a bit improper, she thought. “Well—What I mean is—how long will we have to be here?”
“Oh, I’d say no more than an hour. Two tops. That should be plenty of time to keep them from finding…” The man trailed off and cleared his throat, clearly not wanting to tell her anymore right now. “But it’s going to get pretty boring if we just sit here and twiddle our thumbs…”
“Well, then what do you suggest we,” Ellie gulped, “do?”
The man leaned back against the bed with a satisfied look on his face. It was clear he could tell how edgy she was and that he enjoyed watching her squirm. What was more, Ellie was beginning to enjoy it too and she didn’t know how long she could hide it from him.
“Well, you could start by finally telling me your name,” he responded. “I’m growing rather tired of referring to you as ‘the woman’ in my thoughts.”
Ellie raised a brow. “Your thoughts? And do you think of me so often that this has become a hardship?”
“Often enough.” He rolled his mouth around. “So, let’s have it.”
“Alright then. It’s Mary.” She frowned.
“Something wrong with the name Mary? I always thought it was a rather nice name.”
“Well, it’s not that. It’s just that… Well, it’s just—that’s my name but it’s not my name.”
“Already lying? That’s not anyway to begin a relationship!”
“A relationship?” Ellie croaked.
The man gave her a rakish grim. “Is that not what a friendship is?”
“Oh. Why yes. I suppose so.” She paused. “We’re friends?”
“After all we’ve been through together I’d say so, yes. Unless you have another name for… this?”
Ellie gulped. “No. I suppose not… But as for lying, you’re one to talk.”
He pursed his lips. “Fair enough. So what is your name?”
“Well, it is Mary. That’s the truth. It’s just that. Well, it’s Mary—but it’s Ellie—Mary—Mary Wilson—” The longer she was here with him in this room with nowhere to sit but a bed, the more nervous and flustered she felt herself becoming. She shook her clasped hands in front of her as she inhaled and exhaled deeply. Then she carefully articulated her speech to punctuate each word. “Mary Isabella Angela Wilson—Wilson-Dillard, that is...”
On the other side of the room the man laughed and slapped his knee.
“Do you find my name amusing?”
“Such a big name for such a small woman...”
“Oh, yes... Well, I do go by a smaller name. That’s what I meant when I said that Mary was my name… but also wasn’t my name. Does that make sense?”
“Of course.” He chuckled again. “Lots of people have nicknames. I do. So, what’s yours?”
“What’s yours?” Ellie shot back.
The man paused for a moment. “Cal.”
“Cal. Is that it?”
“It is for now.”
“But I’ve gone and told you my full name.”
“You have.” He nodded. “But I didn’t ask you to. And I’ll request that you don’t ask for mine.”
“Alright then. I won’t. But I’m glad I can at least call you ‘Cal’.” Ellie smiled, feeling uncharacteristically devilish. “I too was getting tired of not having a name for my thoughts.”
Cal returned her devilish smile and Ellie immediately felt embarrassed.
Thank God she was just a worker in a dress shop. She didn’t know how she would have survived in the social world.
“So, Miss Mary. I’ve told you my nickname. What’s yours?”
“Ellie. I go by Ellie.”
“I like that much better than Mary. It’s more fitting. Short and cute… Like you.”
“Oh…” Ellie looked down at the floor as her face grew even warmer. “It’s short for Isabella, my grandmother’s name... though I never did quite understand why my mother gave it to me since they didn’t get along. They still don’t. Perhaps she thought it would help their relationship... It didn’t, but it’s my name none the less...”
“Wait, wait. Just a minute.” Cal held up his hand and his eyes grew wide. “Did you say Wilson Dillard? As in ‘Wilson-Dillard-the-run-away-Earl’ who gave up his title to escape the wickedness of the social world?”
“Yes, the very one. That’s my father.” Ellie smiled. She always felt a surge of pride when she was reminded of her of parents’ past. “They did it for me, you know.”
“You’re alright with that, then?” Cal gave her a c
urious and concerned look. “Seems like quite a large and life changing decision to lay on you.”
“I’m alright with it now. But I wasn’t always. There was a time when I felt rather guilty. My parents make a respectable living, they always have, but we’ve had our struggles. And sometimes I would wonder…”
“What about?”
“How things might have been different if only my father had kept the title. It was the money I thought about mostly. There was a time when I thought that if only we’d had more money, then maybe we wouldn’t have to worry about anything ever again.” Ellie hugged herself tightly. “I mean I know now that’s not the case. A title is so much more than money and it would have changed our entire lives in ways I can’t even begin to imagine, but as a young girl, I didn’t understand that. I only saw the possible positives. And for a long time I thought that if he’d kept the title then maybe our lives would be perfect. And easy… but he didn’t keep the title, because of me, and so it was all my fault that our lives weren’t perfect or easy…”
“Life is never perfect or easy. For anyone, no matter what they try to tell you.” He kicked his feet up on the bed and leaned back with his hands behind his head. “Titles are one thing but money is a whole other monster. It always seems to complicate things more than it helps…”
Ellie twisted her lips remembering the bag full of money he’d given the barkeep for their room. He seemed to truly mean and understand the words he said, but from the way he said them Ellie knew she shouldn’t press the matter at this moment no matter how curious she was.
“What do your siblings think about it all? Did they ever blame you?”
“Oh,” Ellie looked down and fiddled her thumbs. “I don’t have any siblings.”
“No? Didn’t your parents want any other children? Weren’t they—” He cleared his throat. “I mean from the stories I’ve heard I thought they were… very much in love.”
Love and Other Wicked Games (A Wicked Game Novel) Page 6