EscapeWithMe by Ruby Duvall Page A

with half of a smile, but it
didn’t last long. “It is impossible that you are alone in London. Why does
someone cross an ocean alone only to arrive a pauper? I wager you came with
your husband, who was the true Loyalist, but he perished at sea and you’ve no
money to return. Otherwise, the widow before me would not be so impoverished as
to need the shelter of Mrs. Hayes.”
    She held up her left hand. “Why am I not wearing a wedding
ring? Do you think I’m the kind of woman who would sell the only memento of her
dead husband?”
    His gaze was unwavering. “Is that not a memento hanging from
your neck?” Sam’s lips fell open and she touched the face of her locket. How
had she forgotten it?
    “No one gave this to me. I found it.” That was a lie. She
had “found” it at the shop and had decided to keep it as her birthday present
to herself. Brian hadn’t seemed to notice.
    “Someone as beautiful as you should not have to resort to
thievery. You would have all the gifts you could ever want.”
    Sam scoffed at the backhanded compliment, even if he had hit
upon some truth. “Your flattery is misplaced. You’re trying too hard.”
    “Madam, I haven’t even begun to try.” Amusement pulled at
the corners of his mouth, but his eyes conveyed something far different. “And
no man in his right mind could ever say you were anything but beautiful.”
    That got her heart racing, but she couldn’t let him persuade
her into anything, no matter how his words made her feel. She wondered again
why a man like him would patronize a brothel. He could easily scratch his itch
with lots of other women, no matter her circumstances, and at least save
himself the fee. Was it simply the times?
    “How much did you pay Mrs. Hayes?” Perhaps what he wanted
from her wasn’t sex, but information. Did he want to know how much she had
overheard?
    It was a few seconds before he answered. “I’d have paid ten
times what she asked, if you are referring to the worth of a few hours of your
time.”
    She slid closer to him, hoping her questions made him
uncomfortable. Maybe she could turn the conversation around. Maybe she could
guilt him enough to make him leave. “I’m curious, lieutenant. What was the
price of my evening?”
    “More than twice a month’s wages for a typical laborer.” Her
eyes bulged. Holy shit.
    She recovered quickly. “The Royal Navy must pay well.”
    “My small fortune is thanks to the prize money from sinking
and capturing enemy vessels.”
    “American ships?”
    “Most of our engagements were with the French.”
    “Is that why you paid so much for me tonight, to claim
another prize?”
    “Come now, madam. You were eager for my attention at the
theater. I did not hide my regard—”
    “But you saw me with Mrs. Hayes and you knew what she was.”
    He rested his elbows on his thighs, and Sam realized just
how close she was sitting to him. His knees were only a couple of inches from
hers.
    “Tell me that you did not feel an attraction,” he
challenged. “Tell me you did not feel a pull between us when our eyes met in
the market.” His voice became a whisper and his eyes watched her mouth. “Tell
me you do not want this.”
    She swallowed hard. Okay, so maybe he did want sex from her.
“I did feel an attraction.” His knee touched hers as he eased closer. “But with
payment comes expectation and obligation. There’s no desire or choice.”
    The corner of his mouth curled. “Only because the payment
was given to Mrs. Hayes, the choice made by her, but if I were to present the
decision now, what would you choose?”
    Sam pressed her lips together, afraid they might betray her
feelings, but she couldn’t stop the voice in her head that eagerly shouted that
she would concede, would lie beneath him the entire night, but why now and not
any other opportunity with Brian? She knew the answer to that, though. Brian
had never intended to have sex with her—it hadn’t interested him and she
stupidly