“So fast,” Karl groaned. “I"ll spend too soon. I want more. Oh God, slow down.
Kiss me.” He breathed an astonished sigh of laughter and pressed his head back into the pillow. “Oh, no, no. You"re ruthless.”
He thrust up even as he begged and cursed in a low voice. “I want you, Jonathan Reese. Please, please.” He cried out, and his cock swelled and spasmed as he pushed deep.
The hot spurts filled Reese"s mouth and throat, and he swallowed instinctively.
He was close to orgasm too, dizzy with need, but he ignored his lust and concentrated on the groaning body under his hands and mouth.
When the last of Karl"s spending pumped out, Reese wiped his mouth on his wrist, gave Karl"s cock a final, careful lick all over, and pulled the underlinen up.
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“That must hold us both for a time,” he said, too briskly because he felt his body"s disappointment in an ache that filled him from his toes up.
Karl twisted onto his side and heaved a sigh. He stroked Reese"s hair. “I wish I could do the same for you, my friend. I promise I will.”
Reese gave a single nod, then slid off the bed. He wished he could wait until his cockstand subsided, but the pressure was more likely to ease if out of Karl"s presence. “I"m going to lock you in, then slide the key under the door so you won"t be trapped should there be another emergency.”
“More bombs,” Karl said with a bark of unamused laughter. “Please beg my uncle to forgive me for bringing this to his home.”
Reese moved to the door.
“Wait,” Karl said. He got off the bed and grimaced. That rib injury had to hurt.
He hurriedly fastened his trousers and went to Jonathan. “Thank you, Jonathan, for all you"ve done for me.”
Reese glanced down at Karl"s semierection, visible against the press of the dark trousers, and Karl laughed. “I meant thank you for saving my life, you single-minded gentleman. Ah, Mr. Reese, you are the best thing to have come into my life.”
Reese waited for the rest—
the best thing since
…? But that was all Karl said.
The erbgraf wrapped his arms around Reese and pulled him close for a fast embrace before backing away. “I eagerly wait for your return. Perhaps you will discover who is behind all this soon so I"ll be freed. I"ll be patient for a time, but I worry…” He shrugged.
“About hurting your father and friends.”
Karl"s eyebrows went up. “Yes. I worry about my friends, and I don"t want to stay hidden for long.”
He didn"t mention being anxious for his father, and Reese remembered what Gilley had said about the father and son who didn"t get along. Reese would find out The Nobleman and the Spy
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about that eventually. He felt an unfamiliar frisson of interest. So much he would learn about Karl. Later.
“My first priority is to keep you safe. If you were a normal sort of chap, you could go off on your own, but I don"t see your father"s servants letting you sneak off to the country alone under these circumstances.”
“All right, Jonathan. I will let you go weave your plans with Lord Merridew and Cohen.”
“Perhaps not Cohen,” Reese said.
Karl"s blue eyes grew cold. “There is no need to suspect him. I told you as much.”
“Tell me why you trust him.”
Karl shrugged. “I know him. He"s shrewd and loyal. And I have seen him act bravely more than once. Did I tell you about the time we visited Vienna two years ago? Of course I haven"t. We rarely speak of our past, do we?”
Reese knew Karl was needling him, but only said, “No, I haven"t heard about Vienna. Tell me what happened.”
“There was a fire at the estate where we were staying. A terrible one. It destroyed the main building entirely. Cohen and I worked together that night. He put himself in danger to save lives and only stopped when the place was empty of everyone. Servants as well. We sucked up so much smoke, we coughed for days. I find it difficult to mistrust him for many reasons.”
Reese understood that Karl had also acted selflessly that night, but he would lose that solemn air and laugh if Reese pointed that out. He might dismiss his own bravery with,
but I enjoy throwing myself into the fray.
“I suspect everyone,” Reese said. “I will talk only to your uncle and Gilley because I must. And I won"t even alert my employer about the details of the situation.”
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What would they do to him when they understood that he"d failed at his duty?
No more than he deserved. The thought of that explosion nauseated him, and he had a cast-iron stomach.
Karl gave a weary sigh. After a long minute, he said, “Very well. For now, only Gilley and my uncle.”
“Good. Thank you.” Reese walked out the door, locked it, and shoved the key under the door. He felt a sense of urgency not only because he wanted to catch the bastard who threatened Karl, but because he suspected that the erbgraf, a man used to action, would soon chafe at being held quietly.
He"d worried that Lord Merridew wouldn"t be able to aid in the deception of Karl"s injury, but soon after he walked into the back parlor where the guests were assembled, he felt reassured.
Merridew was arguing with one of erbgraf"s attendants and doing a fine job.
The other guests had been seated around the large room and were talking excitedly together. No one appeared injured or upset except Karl"s servants, who were gathered in a semicircle around Lord Merridew.
“I don"t care who you are,” Merridew was saying in a peevish old man"s manner. “He is my nephew, and I know what"s best for him. And I won"t have any of your foreign ways in my house. My doctor"s been sent for, and that"s all there is to it. No, you may not speak to my nephew. He"s just barely conscious and said he wished to be alone. Besides, I don"t want your kind jolting him all about the place.
Here now.” He looked up and waved at Reese. “This man"s been with him. Any change?”
“No, sir.”
“I must examine him.” Smelter, the usually benign round man, was furious.
“And I say if you raise a fuss, you"ll have to leave. I won"t have this in my house. Too melodramatic by half. Isn"t it bad enough that my poor nephew is injured? I must put up with you lot insisting this and that?” The quavering old man was autocratic. Reese wanted to applaud.
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Smelter clasped his fingers in front of his chest, as if he were praying. “But Lord Merridew, I"m a doctor. I"m here precisely to take care of His Excellency.”
“You"re here as my guest. And that is all.”
The butler came into the room and whispered in Lord Merridew"s ear. “The doctor is here. A good British doctor, I tell you,” Lord Merridew said. “He"ll make an examination, and that"s that. We can rest assured my nephew is in the best possible hands.”
He pulled out his handkerchief and wiped his hands dramatically. He turned to the butler. “Do make certain all my guests are comfortable and have something to drink.” He looked at Reese and said, “The constable on the beat has assured me that authorities have been notified and will come speak to us soon.”
“He said that a full ten minutes ago,” a well-dressed lady with blue gloves said from a chair in the corner. “They are taking their time. This has all be very upsetting, Lord Merridew.”
Lord Merridew hurried over to the lady and made reassuring noises as he pressed her hand.
“I will go and meet this doctor,” Cohen said. For the first time, Merridew looked flustered. He scampered back across the room.
“No, no, Herr Cohen, you stay here and help my butler. I will bring news down of young Karl after the doctor"s had a chance to look him over.”
Cohen"s deep-set eyes didn"t blink, his gaze remaining fixed on Merridew.
He knew.
Reese"s heart beat too fast. He could see it in the other man"s eyes—Cohen knew Lord Merridew and Reese were lying.
Reese would have to get up the stairs in front of him. Perhaps he could race into the bedroom, grab Karl, and drag him out the back door. Damn Merridew for being too obvious as he tried to keep the count"s servants back.
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Reese tensed, ready for Cohen to push past his host and rush the stairs.
Instead he clicked his heels together and gave a smart bow. “Very well, Lord Merridew. Please report back to us as soon as you are able.”
* * *
When Reese and Merridew entered the room, Gilley walked over to them and began complaining at once. At least he was smart enough to speak quietly instead of bellowing his displeasure. “Good evening, Lord Merridew. I"m terribly sorry to hear about the dreadful incident. Yet I can"t understand why I"m here, Reese. Why did you summon me? The police are on the job, and I"m sure they will get in touch with Scotland Yard.”
“Reese? I thought your name is Reed.” Merridew shook his head. “My hearing is terrible these days, and that explosion didn"t help.”
Reese stepped forward and grabbed Gilley"s hand as if to shake it, but held on tight. Gilley went pale.
“Mr. Gilley, thank you for coming here,” Reese said pleasantly. “I require your help, and I would never have bothered you if it wasn"t an urgent matter.”
Gilley pulled at his hand a little, but not enough to free himself from Reese"s grasp. He met Reese"s gaze, and his own eyes widened slightly. “Er. Well, put it like that…” He gave another furtive, ineffectual pull at his hand.
Reese went on. “Tonight I shall need you no more than a half hour. You"ll simply mount the stairs, wait above with me for a few minutes, then come back down and make a pronouncement to the erbgraf"s servants.” He released some of the pressure on Gilley"s hand.
“Of course.” Gilley wrenched his hand away. “Glad to help in an emergency, of course. I hadn"t understood it was so important, and I"m always delighted to be of service to Lord Merridew.” He turned to Karl"s uncle. “What do you require from me, my lord?”
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Reese was about to tell him all about the role he was to take on when he remembered Gilley"s work might be of help. “Gilley. Do you happen to know what our friend Volkovsky is doing tonight?”
Gilley adjusted his monocle and peered at Reese. “Him? He"s in East Dulwich.”
“Are you sure?”
“Certain of it. He"s addressing a crowd of at least fifteen, one of whom is my man.”
“No chance he"d got away to do this?”
Gilley gaped at him, then around the room. “This mess? Volkovsky? No, no.
Why on earth would he?”
Reese was determined to push as hard as possible. He described the two incendiary devices, then asked one more time, “You"re convinced it"s not him?”
“Yes, absolutely. We"ve been watching the man. He and his associates haven"t purchased so much as an ounce of kerosene. And he"s most definitely been in an entirely different part of town all day.” He nodded solemnly at Lord Merridew.
“What you have here tonight is someone adopting his style.”
“Perhaps he has some apprentices?”
Gilley wrinkled his nose. “Perhaps, but I don"t know of any.” He gave a cluck of disgust. “They"re all a bunch of damned fools, every man and boy of "em.”
“I think it best if we don"t let anyone know the authorities are aware Volkovsky"s innocent,” Reese said slowly.
“I understand you,” Merridew said. “Let the real culprit think he got away with it.”
“Very good thinking, Lord Merridew.” Gilley pulled his watch from his waistcoat and looked at it. He gave Reese then the door a sidelong look, reminding Reese of a schoolboy trying to make a break after a run-in with his headmaster.
“Sorry I can"t be of more help telling who is responsible for this, but if that"s all you want—”
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“We need more, I"m afraid. Those men who are keeping watch over Volkovsky, for instance—”
Gilley interrupted. “What about them? They do important work.”
Reese nodded. “We"ll only need a few of them for a few days. We require another group watched.”
“Ask your own crowd for help,” Gilley said. “The fewer people who know, the better. You"ll be in London. You can control them and keep an eye on who comes and goes. No need to tell anyone, not even your own men, who is or isn"t on the premises.”
“As a favor to me, Mr. Gilley,” Lord Merridew said. “And of course, I"ll speak to Lord Maxwell.”
“Of course if he says yes, I"d be more than delighted to help, my lord.” Gilley beamed at Lord Merridew.
Reese examined Gilley top to bottom. With his fastidious little mustache and gray suit and monocle with its gold chain, the civil servant could easily pass as a slightly out-of-fashion Harley Street expert. “There"s also the matter of the little show I described. You are now going to be Dr. Gilley.” Reese explained what they required.
“Oh, I say!” Gilley opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, as if he wanted to protest more.
But at that moment, Lord Merridew stepped in again. Smiling warmly, he put a firm hand on Gilley"s shoulder and told him he"d heard such wonderful things about him from Lord Maxwell.
It took some urging and a great deal of bracing talk from Lord Merridew, but Gilley at last agreed to act the part of a doctor.
Reese pulled him aside. “I"ll need you to visit my section and deliver a message.”
Gilley sniffed and looked uncomfortable. “Oh?”