Midnight Kisses (Midnight Series) by Emily Bold Read Free Book Online Page B

if you don’t tell me right away what happened!”
    Danielle just about managed to put one foot in front of the other. Answering Eliza’s questions was a little too much to ask of her right now.
    Devlin Weston, the man who had haunted her memories on many a night, the man who for the past ten years had been fueling her imagination, whose touch she had been longing for all of her life—that same Weston had overheard her petty words and then ridiculed her in front of her dearest friends without so much as a second thought. Oh, if only he weren’t that good-looking, if only he didn’t hold that kind of power over her, then she would surely hate him!
    “Danielle! I’m begging you: please tell me how you know Lord Weston,” Eliza pleaded, grabbing Danielle’s hand.
    “He  . . .  ah  . . .  kissed me,” Danielle stuttered and touched her lips as if to recall that very kiss.
    “My god!” Eliza called out, clapping her hands over her mouth just as Colin and Devlin were entering the dining room.
    Other than meaningless small talk about the food, which everyone felt was perfectly delicious, the first course passed in relative silence. Colin still seemed worried about a scene, for he kept dabbing the sweat from his forehead, and Eliza was almost unable to eat owing to her observing everyone’s tiniest moves.
    Danielle found it hard to enjoy her soup, for all of her senses were honed in on the man sitting opposite her and pretending that everything was perfectly alright. Her stomach was in knots, and her nerves were completely on edge. Never before had she dared to take the time to look him over, for even without taking a good look, she was acutely aware of his immense presence and charisma. His dark hair fit his nefarious behavior, and his eyes clearly showed that he was the kind of man who was used to taking what he desired. And few would dare to stand in his way, given his sheer height.
    After Devlin had polished off his plate, he met Danielle’s gaze. With the hint of a smile he noted:
    “By the way, I’ve been meaning to tell you how lovely you look in this dress, Lady Langston. May I ask what brings you to London? When we last met, you had quite a lot of work ahead of you if I recall correctly.”
    Since Danielle found it impossible to swallow another bite, she put her spoon aside and nodded.
    “You are correct, but  . . .  ”
    “Just imagine, someone broke into her house while everyone was asleep. Isn’t that terrible? No wonder she no longer wants to live there,” Eliza interjected.
    Devlin knitted his brow and turned his attention back to Danielle.
    “A burglary? Was anything stolen? Nothing happened to you, I should hope?”
    His obvious concern touched Danielle, and she allowed herself to offer him a smile.
    “It’s hard to say if anything is missing, because the burglars only entered Matt’s study. You’ve seen the mountain of papers and documents. I couldn’t possibly tell if anything went missing. The only reason I even know that there was a break-in was because the window was broken and some drawers had been left open. Perhaps someone was hoping for objects of value.”
    It didn’t make sense to Devlin.
    “So someone broke into Lord Langston’s study without so much as taking anything of value?” The back of his neck tingled as he remembered an almost-forgotten conversation he had overheard at the village inn. Was it possible he had actually seen the culprits?
    “That’s right. Whoever it was, they were looking for something very specific. However, I can’t say for sure whether they found it or not.”
    Devlin rubbed his chin reflectively.
    “Is it possible that someone was looking for the scrolls you mentioned? After all, Lord Langston published a scholarly essay on the topic in several periodicals a few years ago.”
    “Oh, that’s absurd. That was so many years ago! Why should someone be interested in the scrolls now?”
    “For the same reason I am interested in them: