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go back to your room.”
    “I’ll get her back, you know.” The door thumped as if kicked. “I’ll find her. You can’t stop me.”
    Wary of another intrusion while she wore only undergarments, Velvet stepped into her corset. “You may have Eve back when you pick out four dolls to give away.” Velvet tried to sound calm. “Until then there will be no more discussion.”
    Tensed, she waited for the child to respond. But only quiet came from the schoolroom. Velvet was sure this wasn’t the last of it, but she needed to enlist Mr. Pendar’s indulgence for her plan. She finished dressing in the cleanest of her three serviceable gowns.
    A rapping on the passage door startled her.
    “Iris?”
    “No, ma’am. Evans.”
    Why was Mr. Pendar’s valet knocking on her door? She had yet to address her hair, but she didn’t want to make him wait. Or was she already being summoned to Mr. Pendar’s study to be dismissed?
    The chair screeched as she pulled it out from under the door handle.
    The slender man dressed in black held out a handkerchief wrapped bundle. “The master asked me to give you these, until new can be purchased.”
    Velvet frowned and looked up at the man’s face. She could make out nothing from his pale eyes and nearly invisible eyebrows. He practically shoved the bundle in her hands as if he couldn’t wait to be rid of it. His gaze transferred to the hard chair by the door.
    She lifted the corner of the bundle, revealing sturdy corset cords and gray shoelaces.
    Mr. Evans took an edgy step back. “As soon as Cook arrives, she will send up a pot of chocolate and hot cross buns.”
    The idea of an early breakfast sounded heavenly.
    The kindness of hot chocolate and replacement strings for her corset brought a sting to her eyes. “Thank you, Mr. Evans.”
    His Adam’s apple bobbed as he cleared his throat. “Would you like it brought to your room or to the schoolroom?”
    “It isn’t for Miss Pendar, too?” A stone dropped through her innards.
    “You wish it brought to the schoolroom, then?” Mr. Evans blinked his pale lashes, his expression portraying the utmost discretion.
    A valet was privy to his master’s affairs. His efforts to keep his thoughts far from his face made her suspect his master’s motives were less than altruistic. Had any other governess been treated so lavishly?
    “That won’t be necessary,” she said stiffly. Her stomach protested. “Please tell the cook not to bother with a tray for us.”
    He gave a slight shake of his head, then bowed. “Very good, ma’am.”
    He turned to walk away.
    “Mr. Evans?” called Velvet.
    He turned, his thin features twisted.
    She wondered at the pained look, but quickly dismissed it. “Is Miss Pendar allowed in her father’s room?”
    “No, ma’am. Of course not.”
    “Would you be able to store these dolls in his room until I can discuss their disposition with her father?”
    He looked rather startled by the idea, but seemed to consider a moment and then returned with a smile. As she watched Mr. Evans leave with the dolls, she felt like the worst sort of kidnapper.
    Hoping she’d not made a foolish blunder, she closed her eyes. She hadn’t considered how she would retrieve the dolls from a room that was off limits to her too.

Chapter 5
     
     
    L ucian clawed into the rowboat, physically exhausted but still on edge. He heaved in a deep breath, filling his lungs with briny air. His quivering muscles were on the verge of turning to mush.
    “Good swim today, sir,” said Bigsby.
    Lucian didn’t agree. He’d expected the swim to help him regain control, but it hadn’t calmed him. His skin was red from the cold of the water, but a pair of mossy green eyes fueled a furnace inside him. It had been a long time since he wanted a woman—or at least wanted a woman badly enough that the physical urges intruded in his waking hours.
    Bigsby held out the Turkish robe. Lucian buried his face in the thick material and rubbed off the water.