To Catch A Thief (Saved By Desire 2) by Rebecca King

nodded.
    She was still smiling half an hour later when he took his leave. Mainly because he had kissed the back of her hand before he left and his lips lingered far longer than necessary while his eyes held her captivated. The sensual promise hidden in that gaze sent a shiver down her spine at the same time that a wild thrill of excitement made her day that bit more enjoyable.
    Unfortunately, that joy didn’t last as soon as the door closed behind him.
    “Be careful of that one,” Delilah warned her darkly.
    “He is nice. I like him,” Sophia replied with a hint of defiance. “You would too if you didn’t have so much to hide.”
    She didn’t wait to hear what her aunt had to say. Her gasp of outrage said it all. 
     
    Jeb reluctantly left the house and made his way over to Squire Trelawney’s next. Although he hadn’t planned to move things along so quickly, it was evident that he needed to find the thief before they stole too many more items.
    He wouldn’t say so to anyone else, but deep inside rather suspected that he needed to get to work investigating the thefts with a bit more determination. If he didn’t, his stay in Framley Meadow would stretch into several weeks, or a month or two, and he would never want to leave again, especially with Sophia in the village.
    Still, he made no attempt to consider the suspects as he walked. Instead he began to mull over his stay in Framley Meadow. In just a few days it had already started to feel like home. In fact, as he made his way over to the Squire’s house, he tried to think of ways to persuade Sophia to stay in the village so he could become better acquainted with her. She had made it clear that she was due to return to Buckinghamshire soon but, hopefully, she could extend her stay in the village if he found an adequate reason for her to do so.
    He then realised that if he did persuade Sophia to stay then he had to remain in the village as well. Strangely, he didn’t find that prospect disconcerting at all.
     
    Back at the house, Sophia only managed to get halfway up the stairs before Delilah’s sniping began.
    “How dare you be so pious in my house?” she demanded loudly.
    “Pious? Me?” Sophia gasped in outrage. “You are a thief. I am merely pointing out your crimes and the consequences. I am sorry if you don’t like it, but I am sure the people whose things you have stolen don’t like you helping yourself to their belongings. You are a thief, Delilah. Does that not mean anything to you at all?”
    “I am running out of money,” Delilah snapped. “You are here to remind me of that fact, remember? You have no idea how expensive things are these days. There are household bills, food to buy, and I need a new dress.”
    “No, you do not,” Sophia all but shouted at her.
    Before her aunt could protest, she grabbed Delilah’s arm and marched her up the stairs to the spare bedroom. Throwing open the door, she waved into the cluttered room.
    “Look at all of that. There must be a hundred dresses in here, with ribbons, hats, shawls, boots, and gloves, and anything and everything else you need to go out to a hundred occasions. Believe me when I tell you that you do not need another dress. You want a dress, but do not need a dress. This is rampant greed. It is ridiculous to purchase more.”
    “They are old,” Delilah protested.
    “Look at these,” Sophia demanded. She knew she had just made her aunt angry but didn’t care. “Some of these have hardly been worn. You don’t need to spend money you don’t have to on anything else. You can use these.” She randomly picked up a dress and sneezed when a cloud of dust billowed out of the disturbed fabric. “This needs airing a bit, that’s all. It hasn’t been worn for an age. Nobody would be likely to remember it. Look at it, Delilah? When did you wear it last?”
    When Delilah merely frowned at it but didn’t speak, Sophia felt that age old sinking feeling. “Have you even worn it?”
    She knew