Rogue Countess

by Amy Sandas

  “Why?”

  Jude lifted his brows. “As I explained, you will need some help…”

  Anna interrupted with a rough shake of her head. “No, I mean, why would you offer to help?”

  Jude didn’t answer right away. His blue eyes were flat and unreadable as he met her wary gaze. When he finally replied, there was an odd note in his voice that she didn’t immediately recognize.

  “If I don’t, you will undoubtedly try to accomplish the impossible task yourself, which will lead to frustrated curses. Better I lend a hand than waste time watching you fail. The quicker the deed can be done, the sooner I can return to my bed.”

  Anna searched his face, still suspicious of his offer.

  Then she saw the almost imperceptible smile tickling the edges of his mouth.

  He was teasing her for her stubbornness. The realization that he would do so softened her wariness at the same time that it heightened her conscious awareness of him.

  She turned to look back over her shoulder at Leif’s figure draped heavily across the narrow bed and sighed, knowing Jude was right. The bedding was bloodied and wet from her administrations. She most definitely couldn’t leave him like that.

  Turning back to Jude, she replied with reluctant acceptance, deciding for the moment not to question his motives further. “I suppose I haven’t got any other choice than to accept your interference for now.”

  “How gracious of you,” Jude rejoined with light sarcasm.

  Anna harrumphed.

  “I’ll go discard of these,” he said, indicating the bowl of used rags in his hands. “I’ll be back to help you in a few minutes.”

  Without waiting for her to reply, Jude turned and left the room, leaving Anna to stare after him, utterly perplexed.

  She would have liked to indulge in a few solitary minutes pondering over Jude’s behavior tonight—his insistence in joining her, then his seeming lack of concern as she tended to Leif, and now this offer of assistance. Not knowing what was motivating him worried her. She took a deep breath and decided to sort it all out later. Right now, more important things needed to be tended to. The night had only just begun.

  Remembering the cupboard at the far end of the hall, she exited Leif’s room in search of linens. She was nearly to the top of the stairs when she heard a loud wooden crash in the front hall below. Alarm momentarily chased away her exhaustion and she rushed to see what had happened.

  “Riley, you cowardly scoundrel! Get your arse down here. I demand satisfaction.”

  Anna was halfway down the stairs by the time she saw the man who had forced his way through the front door and was standing awkwardly in the center of the small entryway. He was of average height and build. His hair was black streaked with gray and framed a face contorted with rage. Apparently, the cuckolded husband who had tried to end Leif’s philandering for good was not content with issuing a few shots at his retreating backside.

  “Riley!” the man shouted again then stopped abruptly as he saw Anna midway down the stairs. His reddened face twisted into a feral snarl. “Where is that damned whoreson? Are you his slut?”

  Anna’s temper flared recklessly to life. In a more rational moment she never would have challenged the wild-eyed man, but she was tired and emotionally churned up and his insult fired her blood beyond her control.

  “Now see here,” she retorted as she marched down the stairs.

  Before she could say more, Jude interrupted in a deep and ominous voice that instantly commanded attention. “Enough.”

  Anna wasn’t sure if he had directed the comment to her or the intruder. But her steps came to a halt just the same. She watched as the stranger turned to face Jude full on and noticeably straightened his spine as he recognized in Jude a more formidable opponent.

  “Why don’t you tell me who you are and why you are here,” Jude suggested. Though his words were casual, they were delivered in a tone that was anything but.

  “I’m here for Riley,” the man roared.

  “You can’t have him,” Jude responded.

  The intruder growled. “I demand satisfaction.”

  “Trust me, you will have no satisfaction tonight.”

  It was sort of amazing to watch the way Jude countered the man’s fiery demands with succinct and calmly uttered denials. For a moment, the two men stared at each other across the small space, each measuring the other’s conviction and determination. Then the intruder swept away from Jude with another low sound of anger and impotence rumbling in his throat.

  At first, Anna thought he intended to leave, but he only took a couple steps before turning around again. He squared his shoulders toward Jude, glaring at him from beneath mussed locks of his hair with red-rimmed eyes.

  “Anna.” Jude addressed her in a low voice without turning to look at her. “Go upstairs. This matter can be handled without you.”

  Anna tensed to argue. But then saw with a startling jolt of panic a dark and heavy shape held tightly in the man’s hand, slightly hidden within the folds of his coat.

  It was a gun.

  Anna responded with immediate action. She turned away from the scene in the hall and started up the stairs at what she hoped would appear to be an unhurried pace.

  “I’m not leaving until the bloody blackguard faces me like a gentleman.”

  The declaration reverberated up the stairs behind her. A wave of cold fire washed through her blood and screamed for her to go faster, but the last thing she wanted was to bring more attention to herself.

  Once she was out of sight from the men below, she sprinted back to Leif’s room, whispering prayers under her breath that the pistol would still be in the drawer of his wash stand.

  She barely spared a glance at her friend snoring peacefully in the bed. Opening the drawer, she nearly whooped in relief as she saw the pistol right where it had been when Leif had showed it to her one drunk and melancholy night. It was one of a matching pair that had been used by his grandfather decades ago when the man had shot his wife and then himself. Leif’s father kept possession of the pistol’s twin and had instructed Leif to always keep his loaded near his bed, never knowing when he might need to use it on an unfaithful woman, or himself.

  Anna had been deeply disturbed by the story at the time, but now she was grateful Leif had showed her the pistol. Never having held a gun before, the weight of it was disconcerting. She just hoped she could figure out how to use it if she needed to. Not wanting to waste another moment, she pointed the gun to the floor and held it close against her thigh as she rushed back down the hall to the stairs.

  Everything was far too quiet. She descended the steps, clenching her bottom lip between her teeth. The cold fear that had leaked into her bloodstream created a chilling stiffness in her movements and her heartbeat was far too loud and distracting in her ears.

  Her breath froze as she became aware of the fact that the entryway was empty and the front door was wide open.

  The sweat on her palm began to make the gun difficult to hold onto.

  Where on earth had they gone? Why was everything so bloody quiet?

  Then Jude materialized from the dark night beyond the doorway. He stepped inside the house and closed the door behind him. He was alone. The intruder was gone.

  Anna abruptly sat down on the step where she stood, setting the heavy pistol in her lap. Deep breaths filled her lungs and a strange shaky energy pulsed through her limbs.

  Jude noticed her then and scowled as he came forward.

  “I told you to go upstairs. I would have expected you to understand that I meant for you to stay there.”

  Anna didn’t answer. She wasn’t quite sure her throat had relaxed enough to speak yet.

  Then Jude noticed the weapon lying in her lap and his eyebrows shot upward.

  “What the hell did you plan to do with that?” he asked incredulously.

  Anna shrugged, her tongue twisting ineffectively in her mouth as she tried to think of a smart response.

  Ju
de stood at the base of stairs, just a few steps down from where Anna sat, and stared at her with a shadow of bewilderment in his blue eyes.

  She blinked and licked her dry lips.

  “He left?” she asked finally.

  “Yes, he left,” Jude answered. He reached toward the gun resting on Anna’s thighs, giving her a questioning look as he did so.

  She nodded quickly, and he relieved her of its weight, then offered his other hand to help her rise.

  “But he… How did you…?” she muttered in confusion as she stood and allowed Jude to guide her back up the stairs. Her hand fit surprisingly well in his. The warmth and subtle roughness of his palm provided a source of comfort and strength that Anna didn’t realize she needed. She almost shifted her fingers to link them with his but caught herself.

  “Once he heard Riley was on his deathbed, unconscious from loss of blood, not likely to make it through the night, he agreed that his and his wife’s honor had been avenged.”

  Anna was speechless. Jude had exaggerated Leif’s condition in order to keep him from further harm.

  Even though Leif was rumored to be her lover. Even though Leif had publicly insulted him.

  What manner of man would do that?

  “Do you even know how to use this antique?” Jude asked with a touch of humor in his voice as he examined the gun in his hand.

  “Leif showed me once. I hoped I would remember.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jude shaking his head. By then they had reached the top of the stairs, and when Jude would have continued on to Leif’s room, Anna stopped and motioned toward the other end of the hallway.

  “The linens,” she explained.

  Jude released her hand and nodded. The brief amusement and surprise were gone. His features were once again organized into an unreadable expression.

  “I’ll get them. Go check on your patient.”

  Then he strode down the hall, leaving Anna to wander more slowly back to Leif’s room. With the excitement over and Jude’s strengthening presence departed, her exhaustion seemed nearly overwhelming.

  Twenty minutes later, Leif was settled into a clean bed, having snored through the entire procedure.

  Anna led the way from the bedroom. She lowered her chin and lifted her hand to rub at the bands of muscle along the back of her neck. Once in the hallway, she turned to lean back against the wall and watched as Jude closed the bedroom door behind him. Her eyes burned with the desire to close in sleep, but she couldn’t keep from staring at her husband in the shadowy darkness of the narrow hallway.

  He had removed his coat before helping her with Leif, and dressed as he was in his dark evening pants and the thin white lawn shirt loosened around the throat and rolled up at the sleeves, he looked amazingly appealing.

  He had proven himself to be a surprise tonight. For an insane second, she considered stepping toward him and wrapping her arms around his narrow waist and laying her head against the solid surface of his chest.

  Would he hold her close and offer comfort?

  Anna shook her head, blaming the disquieting train of thought on sleep deprivation.

  “You should be fine to return to the house now,” she began, needing to say something to distract her thoughts from the unexpected yearning that filled her. She gestured toward the bedroom as she continued. “He will sleep for a while, I think.”

  Jude did not reply at first. She remained still under his studied regard, too drained of energy to care what he saw in her just then. His blue eyes were soft but direct, his gaze penetrating beyond her strained façade of calm composure to the worry and exhaustion beneath. He lifted his hand to her face, sweeping her thick black hair back behind her ear. His fingertips brushed along the crest of her cheek and the outer ridge of her ear as he did so, causing a fine tingling of sensation to rush over her skin.

  Was he going to kiss her?

  She hoped he would kiss her. Her eyes nearly drifted closed as she again experienced an urge to lean into the warm strength of his body.

  “Will you return home with me?” he asked.

  Anna reveled in the odd comfort of hearing him speak of home in such a manner. God, she really was tired. Lifting her chin, she shook her head and met his eyes with more strength than she felt.

  “I need to stay and watch for signs of fever. He may need me. I cannot leave until I know he will be all right.”

  Jude frowned, and then lifted one corner of his mouth in a way that confused Anna, much as the rest of his actions had that night.

  “Then I will stay as well.”

  Opening her mouth to argue, her words were cut off when Jude added more sternly, “I am not leaving without you so do what you must to accept it.”

  He pushed his hand through his hair, sweeping back the tousled locks that had fallen over his forehead as he lifted his gaze to peer past her shoulder down the hallway.

  “I saw a sofa in a room downstairs,” he continued. “I’ll sleep there, just in case…”

  He didn’t need to finish the statement. Anna knew he was referencing the fact that the man with the gun may still change his mind and return.

  Anna nodded silently, trying to ignore the hard emotional lump that had formed in her throat. She was not sure what to say. Thank you sounded so inadequate and almost trite under the circumstances. He was likely as tired as she was, and Anna was suddenly warmed by his decision to stay. Knowing he would be in the house gave her a sense of comfort and safety that she hadn’t expected and yet fully welcomed.

  Apparently unconcerned by her lack of response, Jude gave a short little bow and then turned on his heel to head downstairs. Once again, Anna was left gaping after him in utter confusion.

  Chapter Fifteen

  It was late the next morning when Anna decided it was safe to leave her friend in someone else’s care. The threat of infection had been avoided so far and Leif continued to sleep off his drunken coma. It had actually been Jude’s idea to fetch someone from her own household to come and take over the care of the wounded man, someone Anna trusted to notify her immediately if anything should change in the baron’s condition. Jude seemed to understand her need to retain some control and involvement in the situation. By the time Lorna, a mature and capable maidservant, arrived with a sturdy footman to assist her, Anna was nearly dead on her feet.

  Filled with the solid hope that Leif’s luck would hold out and he would make a full recovery, she allowed Jude to walk her out to the carriage. She barely felt the pavement beneath her feet or noticed the activity on the street as London went about its daily business. All she could think about was the soft comfort of her bed. She drifted off on the short carriage ride to her house and started in surprise when Jude leaned over to touch her hand and whisper that she was home.

  She stumbled up the steps to her bedroom, thinking it was a good thing she was still in her bedclothes as she dropped her cloak onto the floor and fell onto her bed. Her last thought as she dipped gently into unconsciousness was to wonder if Jude had gotten any sleep on the threadbare sofa in Leif’s study.

  It was several hours later when Anna awoke with an intense ache of hunger. Still exhausted, she lay in bed debating whether or not she should go back to sleep or rise to go in search of something to eat. After a few more minutes of sleepy internal debate, hunger won out and she rolled to the edge of the bed.

  She called for a bath and washed quickly, feeling refreshed and much more alert once her hair was cleaned and her skin was scrubbed. She dressed in a simple and comfortable gown and decided not to bother twisting up her hair. Instead, she pulled it back and tied it at her nape with a long ribbon, leaving the thick length to fall down her back.

  The clock in the hall struck eleven in the evening as she made her way down to the kitchen. The house was strangely quiet and she wondered if Jude had left for the night or if perhaps he still slept in his room upstairs.

  As she reached the bottom of the stairs and started to head back toward the kitchen to
see what Cook could throw together for her, she was distracted by the scent of ham and coffee and warmed butter. She didn’t recall ever being so hungry that she had been able to conjure up such delectable scents by desire alone. A welcoming glow of light flowed from the open door of the breakfast room, and Anna made an abrupt decision to veer off course.

  Her eyes widened in surprise as she crossed the threshold and saw the mini-buffet spread out on the sideboard. Steam rose up from fresh baked scones and cream pastries. There was also salted bacon, smoked salmon, soft-poached eggs, a variety of fresh fruit and a steaming pot of coffee.

  She was so drawn in by the fascinating collection of foods that it took an extra minute to realize someone else was already in the room. She hesitated and came to an awkward stop with one hand already reaching for a plate.

  Jude rose from a chair at the small breakfast table. A half-finished plate of food and a cup of coffee were in front of him.

  “I couldn’t quite resign myself to cold meats and yesterday’s boiled potatoes,” he offered dryly in explanation for the elaborate display on the sideboard.

  He appeared refreshed, his remote composure completely restored. Yet there was something different, a new layer of awareness. She knew it by the swift rise in her temperature the instant she noticed his presence and by the confusion that wasn’t fully hidden behind the practiced aloofness in his blue eyes. Somehow, in the midst of the previous night, a small kernel of something unfamiliar had become lodged in the space between them.

  “I see,” Anna finally replied.

  Jude cocked his head in a nearly imperceptible gesture and he swept a quick, but studied glance down her body before returning his gaze to her face. She resisted the urge to lift her chin and smooth nonexistent wrinkles from her skirt. He was scanning for her breeches, no doubt.

  But when he continued to stare at her in an oddly expectant way, she stiffened self-consciously, wondering what else he saw.

  He couldn’t possibly know how her pulse quickened and her breath thinned when he looked at her. Or that she sometimes felt light-headed when she met his impenetrable sapphire gaze. Surely he hadn’t somehow become privy to her intimate thoughts.