Page 25 of The King of Whitechapel (Victorian Outcasts #7)

twenty-five

D ARKNESS PAINTED THE windows of Christopher’s room a deep black, but the bright glow from the lamp illuminated Elizabeth’s hair as she sat in front of him at his desk. Darko slept soundly on his bed, now and then flipping his paws in one of his vivid dreams.

After the rounds, they’d been sitting at the escritoire in his bedroom to draw the list of guests at the ball. A very short list, that is. No one could possibly remember the over one hundred guests Pearce had invited.

“Barely forty guests,” he said, reading the short list again.

She rubbed her temples. “I don’t remember any more names. During that period, I attended several balls, and they’re all blended together into one long night.”

He reclined on the chair. “If we exclude your parents and those people who don’t know me and who barely know you, we’re left with nothing. A servant, perhaps?”

“I don’t think so. Pearce mentioned a very trusted source. No, it has to be a guest, or more than one. Aside from Rebecca, I can’t think of anyone else.” She stretched out her arms over her head, and he wasn’t enough of a gentleman not to notice the way her breasts strained the fabric of her shirt.

“We should talk to one of Pearce’s servants,” she said. “Ask them for a complete list of the guests.”

“Finn can get information from anyone.”

She frowned. “Don’t involve the boy. He’s too young.”

He laughed. “Finn? Don’t let his sweet manners and good looks fool you. He grew up in the rookery, stole wallets before he could speak, and he’s an expert with a blade. He’s no child. He grew up quickly.”

“He should go to school and find a proper job instead of … .” She raised her gaze then lowered it. “I mean …”

“I understand. I plan to turn my business into a legal one. It’s just a matter of doing a lot of paperwork and bribing the right people. Just so I don’t have to bleed money to bribe every damn copper or to fight every thug in town. Finn won’t need to be a criminal. But I prefer having him here with me than with another gang where he’d be forced to kill, or he’d be beaten.”

She put her hand over his. “As I said, you have a good heart.”

He glanced at her slender hand over his. “I’m the King of Whitechapel. Never forget.”

“You’re more honourable than Pearce, a duke.”

She laced her fingers through his as she’d done earlier that day, and the same shot of energy coursed through him. He’d give her the world if it didn’t mean involving her in his criminal life. She might care about him, but she didn’t get a taste of his underworld life yet.

The light from the lamp ignited her eyes with a golden glow that started a flutter in his chest. And he couldn’t stop himself. He’d promised he wouldn’t touch her but … He cupped her lovely cheek and drew her closer. He paused an inch from her mouth, waiting for her to push him away. But she drew in a breath and parted her lips in an invitation he couldn’t refuse.

He pressed his lips against hers with both fear and relief. The kiss was like going home after a long journey. Trembling with the effort of controlling himself, he traced the seam of her lips with the tip of his tongue as she breathed harder. He ought to go slowly because he didn’t want to scare her away.

When she opened her mouth, he didn’t hesitate to explore it with his tongue. He’d waited years to kiss her; he’d dreamt about kissing her; he’d filled his days with the memories of that one kiss they’d shared.

His body snapped with tension and anticipation. He slid his hand up to run his fingers through her hair, but her chignon stopped his progress. He wanted to see her curls fall over her breasts.

He broke the kiss only to remove her hairpins and undo her bun. Her glossy curls fell in a silky cascade over her shoulders. She looked beautiful with her hair down and her lips reddened by his rough kiss. He stroked her hair, caressing her shoulder, breasts, and waist. So much time had passed, so many lonely nights had tormented him since he’d touched her last. All the need and desire he had to lock away were now being released with a passion.

He held her by the waist and dragged her to his lap. Feeling her warm weight on him was the closest thing to finding peace he could get. Because when she was with him, he forgot about Pearce hating him, society mocking him, and his fellow Eton students beating him. The turmoil always stirring within his soul remained quiet, like a tamed beast.

Then he kissed her again, tasting her with more determination, tangling his tongue with hers until they were both panting with the need to be naked.

“Sleep with me,” he said, kissing her neck. “Just sleep as we did in the cottage.”

“Yes.” She wrapped her arms around his neck.

For a long moment, he didn’t move, enjoying her embrace and her breath on his skin. He had no idea how he’d lived the past years without holding her. She had the power to lift the worries and the tension from him. Maybe because in the cottage, he knew that everything was all right as long as she was next to him, as long as they were both alive.

He stood up and carried her to his bed. Darko stirred when he lay down with Elizabeth. She rested her head on his chest as he covered her. He’d dreamt of lying with her so many times, but the reality was better than any dreams.

Yes, he wanted to rip her gown apart and taste her skin everywhere, but his soul needed her quiet presence more.

* * *

Elizabeth still felt Christopher’s strong arms around her the next morning as she washed the dishes she’d used for breakfast, lest Jane complain. The cut on her palm was healing well, reduced to a thin red line. Christopher had taken good care of it. So she could wash the dishes without discomfort.

He’d left early after kissing her long and hard, with Darko following him, and afterwards, she’d left his bedroom as well.

The sensation of being next to him was the same as when they’d been in the cottage. She’d felt safe and protected there; she felt safe and protected now.

“What are you doing?” Jane strode across the kitchen, tying her apron.

“You told me I had to work like everyone else.” She rinsed the plate and put it on the rack.

Jane didn’t seem pleased. “Don’t expect me to thank you.” She took out a bag of flour and one of sugar from the pantry.

“I don’t expect anything from you.”

“Good, because I’m busy. I have to bake a honey and acorn cake for the party.”

“What party?”

Jane poured a few cups of flour into a bowl, frowning. “The Guv gives a party every two months when a full circle of shipping is closed. Although the last shipping didn’t go well. Thanks to your betrothed.”

“He isn’t and never was my betrothed.” Elizabeth wiped her hands on her apron.

“Anyway. I need the kitchen.”

If there was one thing she was grateful for during her homeless experience it was that she’d learnt to stand up for herself more than she’d used to.

She tossed the kitchen towel on the counter. “I didn’t do anything to you. I’m sorry for what happened to you, for the bad experience you had with rich people, but I’m not responsible.”

“You aren’t one of us.” Jane added the eggs to the mixture without looking at her. “A few months spent on your own don’t make you one of us. I’m talking in your interest as well. This life is going to crush you, and when you cry, wanting to go back to your rich house, you’ll see what I mean.”

“Living here can’t be worse than being kicked out of my house by my own parents for something I didn’t do.”

“You got a taste of what your people can do. There’s some justice in that.”

“Just because you aren’t born into an aristocratic family, it doesn’t mean you have the monopoly of pain and humiliation. I’m going to stay here whether you like it or not.”

She strode out of the room, almost bumping into Finn.

“Good morning! Miss, are you ready for my lessons? The books have arrived.” He sounded more excited than she’d expected.

“Of course.” She forced a smile, not wanting him to realise there was tension between her and Jane. “Let’s go to the office. Or maybe not.” She remained still when Darko padded into the dining room to drink from a large bowl in the corner.

Drops were splashed around as he took lazy, slobbering sips.

“What’s wrong?” Finn snatched an oat biscuit from a plate on the table.

“Darko hates me.”

“Claptrap. He’s a big boy, but he doesn’t hate anyone.”

“I’ve heard that before.” She chanced a step towards the door.

Darko lifted his head from the bowl to narrow his eyes. A low rumble reverberated from him.

“See?” she said. “He’ll jump at my throat at the first chance.”

“Give him some bacon.” Finn nodded at the plate with strips of bacon on the table. “He’ll become your best friend.”

Without moving too much, Elizabeth took a piece of bacon and offered it to the wary hound. Darko sniffed the air, his eyes narrowing suspiciously as if he knew what she was trying to do.

Gathering her courage, she inched her hand forth. He licked his black nose and sniffed again.

“I don’t bite,” she said.

He slid a paw an inch towards her. She held her breath when he stretched out his neck to sniff her hand.

“Don’t be shy,” Finn said. “Dogs can smell fear.”

“Great. Why didn’t you tell me that earlier?”

Elizabeth suppressed a shout when Darko snatched the bacon with a movement too fast for her to follow. The bacon vanished in a slurp and a snap of his jaw as if it’d never existed. She selected another slice of bacon. He didn’t waste time and wolfed it down with confidence. She went to take more bacon, but Finn pulled the plate away.

“Too much, and I want to eat the bacon for lunch,” he said.

“I know, but I’m trying to become his friend.”

“Let him lick your fingers.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Darko sat in front of her, head tilted back as he waited for more bacon. A drop of drool trickled down from a corner of his mouth.

“He won’t leave you alone until he understands you finished the treats,” he said.

“Fine.” Shivering, she opened her hand to him, hoping she wouldn’t lose a finger.

Darko hesitated before pressing his cold, wet nose on her palm. Satisfied that she didn’t have anything dangerous in her hand, he ran his long, raspy tongue over her fingers in a surprisingly gentle manner. She remained as still as possible while he removed every trace of grease from her fingers. Once finished, he yawned and stretched before leaving the kitchen, bored now.

“See?” Finn took a strip of bacon. “A few more of these exchanges, and he’ll be your best friend.”

At least she was making progress with one of those people who didn’t like her presence in the palace.

The rest of the day went by explaining to Finn the basics of mathematics and the value of each coin. Finn proved to be a great student and listener.

“… so if the total is two pounds, how much change should I get?” she asked.

Finn chewed his bottom lip, creasing his forehead. He reviewed his notes. “A farthing.”

“Yes! You learn fast.”

“Phew.” Finn sagged in the chair. “Thank you, miss.”

“This is but the beginning. We’ll go through the whole book. If you keep learning so quickly, you’ll be quite knowledgeable in a matter of months.”

“It’s more interesting than I remembered.”

“Did you go to school?”

“My mother taught me something before my father died, then she left me in a workhouse when we were starving and she couldn’t take care of me.” He spoke in a flat tone as if what had happened to him didn’t matter. “Horrible place, miss, especially for children. If the Guv hadn’t taken me in, I’d be dead from one of those nasty diseases the children in the workhouse catch or from the brutal work.” He swallowed a few times. “I don’t even know what happened to my mother. I searched for her after the Guv took me in, but the house where we lived was empty, and no one knew where she was.”

“May I ask you something personal?”

“Of course.”

She pondered her words carefully. “I resent my parents for what they did to me. Do you resent your mother?” She was surprised he’d searched for his mother after having been abandoned.

“No.” His voice cracked. “If she’d kept me, we would have both died. Life is hard for a normal family as poor as we were, but for a widow with a child, it’s gruelling.”

Not that their situations were comparable, but she wished she could be so forgiving.

“If anything,” he said, “I think your parents behaved more cruelly than my mama. They kicked you out not because they had no choice, but because they believed their reputation was more important than your safety. My mama was dying. That’s a good reason to let a child go, I guess.”

She wasn’t sure what she would have done in his mother’s place. But then again, Finn’s situation had been more tragic than hers. “I’m sorry.”

Finn lifted a shoulder. “It could have been worse. At least I have a place to stay, and the Guv takes good care of me.” He leant closer. “Don’t let what he does fool you. He’s the King, but he’s also a good man.”

“Did I give you the impression of having a bad opinion of Christopher?”

“It’s that … you came here only because you had no choice. You didn’t search for him before. Maybe because you don’t trust him.”

The boy was observant. “I searched for him, but I couldn’t find any information. He and I are from two different worlds, or at least we were.”

He shook his head. “I don’t believe that. You and the Guv are more similar than you think.”

“Am I interrupting the lesson?” Christopher entered the office in a flutter of dark clothes and golden hair.

She couldn’t stop a sigh as he flashed his crooked smile.

“Guv.” Finn stood up. “We’ve just finished.”

“Did you have another problem with the shipment?” she said.

His smile vanished. “Pearce’s coppers tried again to seize my cargo, but we fooled them, loading it on another ship. The shipment has sailed without problems.”

“Great news,” Finn said.

“Yes, a celebration is in order soon.” Christopher leant against the doorframe, his hungry gaze on her. “I need to talk to Elizabeth.”

“Yes, Guv.” Finn collected the books and pencils. “See you tomorrow, miss.”

“What is it?” she asked when Finn left.

Christopher shut the door and strode to her. Before she could ask again what the matter was, he took her face in his hands and kissed her hard. The way he cradled her head and angled it to kiss her more deeply started a fire in her belly. A fire that was always ready to burn for him.

He hauled her up and sat her on the desk before nestling between her legs without breaking the kiss.

She closed her legs around him, getting lost in the savage lashes of his tongue. She closed her eyes as he kissed her cheeks, jaw, and neck. A storm of sensations swept through her. It was amazing how a kiss from him sparked infinite pleasure in her body.

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you for the whole day,” he whispered against her skin. “And I was worried.”

“Worried?” She brushed his hair from his face.

“I have this fear tormenting me, that someone might take you away from me, that I come back here and you’re gone.”

“No, it won’t happen again.” She searched his eyes. “I’m not going anywhere.”

She must have said something that upset him because he frowned. Wasn’t that what he wanted to hear?

He hugged her without saying anything; only his heart beat faster and louder.

“How did you join this life?” she asked, caressing his gorgeous hair.

He sat down on his chair, carrying her with him. “As I told you, Father assigned me a job in his estate in Yorkshire. It was a good job. I started as an assistant to the steward. Then I managed the estate myself for a short time until Father died. Pearce made it clear he had no intention of letting me anywhere close to any of the family’s properties. He ordered me to leave and made sure no one in Yorkshire would give me a job. I moved around until my money ran out. When I didn’t find any job and was starving, I joined a small gang in London. It was nothing too scary or dangerous, but after I witnessed the Reapers abusing and terrifying people, I decided to intervene and beat those bullies at their own game. I won. The rest is history.”

“So you became the King to protect the people of Whitechapel.”

He gave a dismissive wave of his hand. “I’m no saint, Elizabeth. The Reapers were competition, but yes, they were too violent not to do anything.”

“As I said, you’re a good man.” She kissed his cheek. “I was worried about you after your father died.”

He coiled an arm around her waist. “I wanted to see you. Before Pearce gave me the sack, I planned to visit you once my position as the steward granted me some respectability. I hoped to leave my illegitimate status behind.”

“I never thought you cared about respectability.”

“But your family did.” His eyelashes fluttered down. “I wanted to present myself as a successful estate steward. Once that became impossible, I couldn’t search for you as a criminal.”

She tilted her head to stare at him. “You wanted a proper job for my sake? To see me?”

“Yes.” There was a fierce determination in the way he said that and not an ounce of hesitation. “You’re an earl’s daughter.”

Emotion swelled in her chest. He’d been ready to work hard only to see her. “Thank you.”

A muscle in his jaw ticked. “Once your father realises his mistake, he’ll want you back, and you’ll be gone again. You’ll leave me again. But it’ll be right. You deserve to be happy.”

“What makes you think I want to return to that house? No matter how deeply and sincerely my parents apologise, I’ll never forgive them for having thrown me out. They didn’t believe me. They listened to gossip and didn’t trust me.” Her voice broke with frustration. “I mean, they learnt I’d lied about the Great Blizzard, but they didn’t believe me when I said that nothing had happened between us. I shall never forgive them.”

His arms were around her, protective and soothing. She rested her head on his shoulders, fighting bitter tears. She didn’t want to cry. She’d spent nights crying until her eyes had burnt, and she was tired of being sad.

Christopher brushed his lips over her heated cheek. The touch was feather-like and gentle, but it satisfied the hunger for sensations in her chest.

“You may change your mind after you experience my life for a while.”

She shook her head, hiding her face in the crook of his neck. Why did everyone keep saying that?

“My people are brutal,” he said.

“So are mine.” She inhaled his heady scent, a combination of leather, soap, and musk. “I don’t want to leave you. No matter how hard you try to convince me.”