A Kiss With Scandal (Scandals & Secrets 4) by Janelle Daniels Page B

stand on her own while she said this. “Yes. We will. But I can’t hide. I can’t stay in my room, or the house, cowering, hoping they’ll make a mistake. They’re here. They’re at your estate. If Daisy wasn’t taken out by a servant, then that means they slipped inside or… or one of the guests is responsible.”
    He cursed. “We’ll move you to another location. Take you somewhere safe.”
    “And then what? They’ll only find me.” He didn’t argue. He couldn’t. “I need to stay here. I need to interact with others. Something they say, something they do, could trigger my memory. I’ve heard their voices. If they’re among the guests, I can identify them.”
    “What if the person who’s here, who killed your dog, is just a pawn? What if that pawn wasn’t in the Leatherbys’ sitting room that night? What if you don’t realize you’re in danger until it’s too late?” His eyes heated at the thought.
    “I have you, Derek. I’m safe here with you.”
    His mouth opened to argue, but she hushed him with a finger to his lips. “I know you can’t be there every moment, but you have eyes everywhere. I’m more safe here than anywhere else. You know I’m right. You know this is the best chance of identifying the threat.”
    He gripped her wrist, slowly moving her hand away. “I don’t like it.”
    A sad, rueful smile curved her lips. “I can’t say I’m fond of it either.”
    His jaw clenched. He nodded once and took her hand in his, holding it secure in his grasp. “You’ll never be alone. A guard will always be posted in the hall outside your room. No one will notice them, but I want you to know you’re safe. You needn’t ever fear as long as you’re on my estate.”
    Her heart stumbled at his words, at what his eyes told her. He cared about her as a man cares for a woman. To her surprise, she cared about him too, more than she ever thought possible. More than she expected to. She’d had a crush on him years ago, but that was when he was an unattainable dream. A handsome viscount from her imagination. But Derek was a man. A man she admired, respected.
    Desired.
    His kisses communicated he desired her in return. The thought left a ragged, gaping pain within her chest.
    She worried that when this was all over, she wouldn’t be able to walk away from him with her heart intact. Because for the first time, there was a very real chance she might love the viscount.

Chapter 12
    C harlotte tucked a curl behind her ear for the tenth time as she descended the stairs. The scavenger hunt started in ten minutes, and a crowd already gathered in the parlor. She smoothed the butterflies in the stomach one last time before taking a deep breath and entering the room full of excited chatter.
    Curving her lips, she tipped her head back, exuding a confidence she didn’t feel.
    Her mother rushed to Charlotte’s side, kissing her cheek. “Darling, I’m glad to see you made it.”
    “I wouldn’t miss this. You know how much I love scavenger hunts.”
    Her mother’s eyes lit in understanding. When Derek had held a private meeting with her parents, they’d both been horrified by what Charlotte had endured, by what she still endured. Her mother had scarce left her side in the last twenty-four hours, as if her presence alone could protect her.
    Charlotte would participate in the scavenger hunt today, but she wasn’t hunting down buttons or hatpins. She hunted a killer. Though exhausted and terrified, she had to do it.
    She’d never be free until Derek captured the Black Dahlia.
    She glanced around the room, noting half the guests mingling near the large area adjacent to the Queen Anne sitting arrangement. “Have they announced the teams yet?” No one seemed paired off yet, but that didn’t mean much.
    Lord Acton escorted Lady Pembroke and Lady Norland over to speak with her.
    Lady Pembroke fluffed the curls at her neck. “Heavens, no. They wouldn’t dare start the festivities without our host.”
    Lady