Page 33 of After the Spy Seduces

The door opened, and Kit spun around, his hand diving beneath his jacket for his pistol.

But instead of being flung wide, the door pushed open barely a foot. Just far enough for a slip of a little girl in a night rail to run inside. With wide eyes that reminded him of Diana’s, a head of curly chestnut hair, and her face red from sleep, the girl cried out a loud, “Papa!” and launched herself at the general, who scooped her up into his arms and brought her down onto the settee with him.

Heedless of dirtying her skirt, Diana dropped to her knees on the floor at the general’s boots. Her hand reached out to rest on the little girl’s back. But the frightened child didn’t notice, burying her face into the general’s shoulder, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck.

Diana shot Kit a look over the girl’s head, one he couldn’t fathom but that reminded him of a doe startled by hunters. Not one of fear, but—caught. As if waiting for judgment and recrimination.

But for what? The little girl had been safely tucked away in the nursery with her nanny, Kit had made certain of it during the past two hours when he’d worked with the general to secure the house. What did Diana have to feel guilty about?

“What is it, Meri?” she leaned toward the child, her hand rubbing circles across her small back to soothe her. “What frightened you?”

“The noise,” the little girl mumbled against the general’s jacket. “All the people walking up and down the stairs… I don’t like it.”

A soft sigh of relief escaped Diana, but even though she smiled, Kit sensed worry in her. And grief. “It’s all right, darling,” she assured her. “The party’s over. That was just the servants putting everything back into place.”

But her words and soft caresses did little to calm the child, who continued to cling to the general for dear life.

“It’s all right, Meri,” he told her, placing a kiss to the girl’s forehead. “All the guests are gone, and the servants are all heading off to bed, exactly where you should be. Is Mrs. Davenport still in her room?”

The girl nodded. “She’s snoring.”

“And so should you be.” He set her away from him far enough to tweak her nose, drawing a small smile from her. “So go on back to your bed, and in the morning, we’ll take the dog-cart out for a drive. How about that?”

The girl nodded, appeased by that bit of bribery. “Will you tell me a story, Papa?”

“Not tonight. I have a guest.” He nodded toward Kit, bringing Meri’s attention to him.

Shyly, she curled up against the general’s chest and eyed him uncertainly. His attempt to win her over with his most amiable grin only earned him an uneasy frown.

Apparently, his charms were failing with all the Morgan women tonight.

“Go with Diana.” The general handed Meri over, but the child visibly cast a pleading glance back at her father to let her stay. “Go to bed, and I’ll see you in the morning.” He rose to his feet and placed a kiss to the top of her head. When he placed another one to Diana’s cheek, Kit saw in him the same fleeting look of grief that had been on his daughter’s face just moments before.Odd… “Both of you.”

“Yes, general.” Holding the girl protectively in her arms, she moved toward the hall. She paused in the doorway to glance back. “And the house?”

A world of meaning lingered in that quiet question.

“Footmen have been posted, so have grooms, including one on the landing outside the nursery,” her father assured her. “In the morning I’ll request a few men from the local guard to keep watch over the farm until all is settled.”

“Thank you.” Pressing the sleepy child tighter against her bosom, she nuzzled her face against Meri’s hair. She inhaled a deep breath before asking, “Darling, do you want to sleep with me tonight in my room?”

“I want to sleep in my bed, with all my dolls and animals.” She considered a moment, then added, “But there’s room there for you, too.”

Hiding her smile in Meri’s curls, she rocked the little girl in her arms. From the gleam in her eyes, that small exchange had inexplicably pleased Diana more than Kit could fathom. “Up to the nursery, then.”

“Diana.” Kit took a step toward her, suspecting she was keeping secrets from him…I want answers. “Let me escort you upstairs.”

“No need.” When her eyes met his over Meri’s head as the sleepy girl finally rested it upon Diana’s shoulder, he felt a wall already being erected between them. “Goodbye, Mr. Carlisle.”Please leave me alone…But he had no idea what he’d done to become her enemy.“Have a safe journey back to London.”

Then she was gone, stepping into the hall and closing the door behind her.

Kit stared after her, resisting the urge to deny her wishes and follow after her anyway so that he could demand answers from her. And kiss her again. After tonight’s revelation about the Foreign Office, he wanted nothing more than to lose himself in her soft arms and forget the world for a few blissful hours.

He slid a sideways glance at the general, who was eyeing him closely.Thatwas never going to happen.

“So.” General Morgan collected his glass and came up beside Kit at the drink table. He reached for the decanter to refill both glasses. “She doesn’t know.”

Nodding his thanks for the whisky, he lifted the glass to his lips. There was much that he’d not told Diana about her brother and his connection to the French. “Know what?”