A Reformed Rake by Jeanne Savery

controlled with great effort in the short time available while he rebuttoned his coat.
    “You purchased them for us?” she asked, needing to say something, anything.
    “Yes. On Madame’s orders. Yves and I bought them when we went for our own. We believe we’ve left a misleading trail for the comte. With luck he’ll believe you and the others intend to transfer from this hotel to another. You will leave here, but will go straight to the quay where the captain will expect you to arrive at the last possible moment. He’ll leave port the instant you and your luggage are aboard.”
    “You’ve talked to the captain?”
    “Not yet. But I will.”
    “He will cooperate?”
    Frederick remembered his first crossing of the Channel nearly a year earlier on this same packet when he’d made an effort to meet the captain. He’d spent a fascinating crossing talking to the greying man, hearing of adventures in the Royal Navy. Later Frederick had listened while the captain complained about the boring but responsible job of crossing and recrossing the Channel. Boring, yes, but the man had collected some hilarious tales about his passengers and had passed those on, too. The man would remember him and would cooperate. Frederick said, “I know the captain. I’ll tell him enough of the story to gain his assistance. That is not the problem. The hardest part, Miss Cole, will be leaving you behind and boarding early. I must, you see, trust you to arrange things so that you reach the quay at exactly the right moment.”
    “You do not like leaving control in another’s hands, do you Sir Frederick?”
    “Not when I deem it important nothing go wrong.”
    He stood and Harriet rose as well. She pulled her robe around her slim form and, for the first time, remembered how she was dressed. Her cheeks warmed in embarrassment. Frederick tucked the loosened strand of hair back behind her ear. His touch left a trail of heat behind.
    “You must go,” she whispered, her voice tight.
    “Yes. It is highly improper for me to be here, but I cannot leave quite yet. Cob is to give us ten minutes and then, when the time is up, he’ll wait until the passage is clear before tapping at the door. If you do not trust me, you may join the others in the next bedroom.” Sir Frederick hoped the signal would come soon. He wasn’t entirely certain he trusted himself!
    Given the opportunity to escape, Harriet found herself, perversely, unwilling to do so. “I do not understand you.” The thought had become a litany inside her head. Once again she said it aloud. Someday, she thought, I’ll learn to keep my thoughts to myself.
    “You have a distorted view of me, gained I know not where. I’d like to change that once we’ve reached safety, Miss Cole.”
    She blinked. “Why?”
    “Why?” What reason would she accept? “Not long ago I discovered that a woman can be a man’s friend. It was a strange and wondrous revelation which has had months to take root and grow. I find I like the notion. I would like to be your friend, Miss Cole.”
    She shook her head. “The ultimate rake? The most dangerous man in England for womankind wishes a woman for a friend ?”
    “Yes. I am not such a dangerous man, Miss Cole.”
    “You have been our friend, more than once, now. I can make sense of it only if I believe you to have designs on Frani.”
    “But I do not. She is a delightful chit, open and trusting, much like a kitten. But she doesn’t interest me in the way you wish to believe.” A sharp rap at the door said time was up. Wishing it were not so, Frederick made a movement of dismissal. He sighed as he accepted he must go. “We will continue this conversation another time, Miss Cole. Eventually, perhaps, you will understand me.”
    “I think I wish to do so—I don’t know why.” The impulsive denial of comprehension brought more color into her pale cheeks.
    You don’t know why, my love? Oh, but I think you do! Even with that thought ringing in his head,