Immortal With a Kiss by Jacqueline Lepore Page B

But this was different. It seemed to call to me. It was curious, questing. It said . . .” I lost courage. Sebastian showed the patience of one who knows silence is the best form of persuasion, and finally, I blurted it out. “It called me sister .”
    His head snapped back, his body went rigid. “That is hogwash. Do not even begin to credit anything meaningful to that phrase. You know Alyssa is in her confinement now. Her child is due to arrive in a few weeks time. She has nothing to do with this.”
    “Of course not. I know it holds nothing of merit. It is only that it frightened me. It was so . . . intimate and just wretched.”
    Sebastian twisted his lips into his most scathing grin. “Well, then, I have made it in time, for we cannot have you wretched . It does not suit you.” He wagged a finger at me. “It makes you far too pale. And you’ve got shadows under your eyes. Why, look at your drab clothing. Gray is not for you, my dear. Promise me you will allow me to burn that dress.”
    I smiled, as he intended me to, and played my part. “Sebastian, I am a schoolteacher.”
    “Darling, these girls are going to return to wealthy families and shall attend the most prestigious parties in Town. They will know fashion. You must think of the advantages of giving them a proper model to view. And your hair is simply too plain. Ugh.”
    I laughed. “I do not know what is wrong with me, but here you are insulting me and it cheers me so.”
    He shrugged. “It is a talent, perhaps my only one. Oh, that and the ability to consume vast amounts of spirits.” And then we were smiling at each other again. “Did you think I would not come?”
    “You said you would not.”
    He angled his head in a silent admonition. “I did not mean it. Yes, I suppose I am a rogue, but I am not a cad. There is a difference. A rogue has principles.”
    I thought he was joking, although I wasn’t certain. Sebastian was so unusual it sometimes seemed he was being ridiculous when he was quite serious. And yet, just when you thought him sincere, his wicked grin would appear and you knew you’d been caught.
    “You do not know how happy I am to see you,” I said suddenly.
    Waving a hand, he pretended to dismiss me. “Oh, bother, that is enough sentiment. I may be an unconventional Englishman but I am an Englishman all the same, and you know how we dread these vulgar displays of sentiment. Decorum, please.”
    He made a production of straightening his clothing as if I’d mauled him. My spirits seemed to have taken flight, for I was so happy I could barely contain myself. I laughed.
    “Are you not at all cross with me for not coming sooner?” he inquired amiably, finally taking a seat, or rather draping himself in it.
    “I am beyond cross,” I countered pleasantly. “But it seems rather irrelevant now.”
    “Curious, at least?” He regarded me indolently.
    I narrowed my gaze on him, smiling. “You have something to tell me. Why do you not just say it?”
    “In that you are mistaken.” He surged to his feet and held out his hand to me. When I took it, he pulled me up beside him. “I have something I must show you. Come with me now. We must go into the village.”
    That was when I saw that behind his merry façade was a vein of dead seriousness. Sebastian was fond of foolery, but he was no fool. Whatever he had to show me was of the utmost importance, I could tell.
    I sobered immediately. “Let me just fetch my cape, and send word to my friend Mrs. Boniface that I am leaving, in case anyone looks for me.”
    S ebastian gave no hint on the ride down the Fell as to what surprise lay in store for me. I could see by the tension around his eyes that it was not a pleasant one, though he tried to divert me with the tale of how his latest light o’ love groomsman had stolen a jeweled snuffbox from him and taken up with a wealthy widow. He cursed the fellow, but I could see he was not hurt. In fact, the man’s ingenuity was a thing