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Poppy turned toward the stranger, who had come into the room and closed the concealed door
It was difficult to ascertain his age--he appeared to be on the early side of his thirties, but there was an air of hard-bitten worldliness about hi surprised by anything He had heavy, well-cut hair, black as ht, and a fair co contrast And he was as handsoht and defined, the le of his jaas sharp, tenacious, anchoring the grave features of ahimself--a bit too seriously
Poppy felt herself flush as she stared into a pair of rereen with dark riaze see every detail She noticed faint shadows beneath his eyes, but they did nothing to ientle, but the stranger remained silent
Why did he stare at her like that? Who was he, and what authority did he wield in this place?
She had to say so, to break the tension "The smell of books and candle wax," she remarked inanely, "it reminds me of my father’s study"
The man stepped toward her, and Poppy shrank back reflexively They both went still It seemed that questions filled the air between them as if they had been written in invisible ink
"Your father passed away soo, I believe" His voice matched the rest of hi accent, not fully British, the vowels flat and open, the r’s heavy
Poppy gave a bewildered nod
"And your mother soon after," he added
"Howhow do you know that?"
"It’s uests as possible"
Dodger wriggled in her grasp Poppy bent to set him down The ferret pranced to an oversized chair near a small hearth, and settled deep into the velvet upholstery
Poppy brought herself to look at the stranger again He was dressed in beautiful dark clothes, tailored with sophisticated looseness Fine garments, but he wore a siold buttons on his shirt, or any other ornaentleray waistcoat
"You sound like an American," she said
"Buffalo, New York," he replied "But I’ve lived here for a while"
"Are you ele nod was her answer
"You are one of hislike that"
She began to inch toward the door "Then I will leave you to your labors, Mister"
"You’ll need a proper companion to walk back with you"
Poppy considered that Should she ask him to send for her co It had been a difficult night for her Miss Marks was sohtmares that left her shaky and exhausted the next day It didn’t happen often, but when it did, Poppy and Beatrix tried to let her rest as er contemplated her for a moment "Shall I send for a houseree But she didn’t want to wait here with him, even for a few minutes She didn’t trust him in the least
As he saw her indecision, histo molest you," he pointed out, "I would have done so by now"
Her flush deepened at his bluntness "So you say But for all I know, you could be a very slow lanced back at her, his eyes were bright with amusement "You’re safe, Miss Hathaway" His voice was rich with unspent laughter "Really Let ed his face, i such warmth and charin to puh her body
As she watched hio to the bellpull, Poppy recalled the proble letter "Sir, while ait, would you be so kind as to look for the letter that was lost in the passageway? Ito her
"Personal reasons," Poppy said shortly
"Is it fro glance she had seen Miss Marks give to ientle that occurs in this hotel isher "It is fro, Poppy turned her back to him She went to look more closely at one of the ilded, enae knife in a beaded sheath, collections of priyptian headrest, exotic coins, boxes made of every conceivable material, what looked like an iron sith a rusted blade, and a Venetian glass reading stone
"What rooe’s curiosities rooifts fron visitors Have a look if you like"
Poppy was intrigued, reflecting on the large contingent of foreigners a European royalty, nobility, and ifts had been presented to Mr Rutledge
Browsing aurine of a horse, its hooves extended in ift from the Crown Prince Yizhu of China," the man behind her said "A Celestial horse"
Fascinated, Poppy ran a fingertip along the figure’s back "Now the prince has been crowned as the E nalanced at her alertly "Why do you say that?"
"Because it means ‘universal prosperity’ And that is certainly not the case, considering the internal rebellions he is facing"
"I’d say the challenges froer to hiurine back into place "One wonders how long Chinese sovereignty can last against such an onslaught"
Her coh that she could detect the scents of pressed linen and shaving soap He stared at her intently "I know very feomen who are able to discuss Far East politics"
She felt color rise in her cheeks "My family has rather unusual conversations around the supper table At least, they’re unusual in that my sisters and I always take part My coht to do that at home, but she has advised me not to appear too learned when I’m out in society It tends to drive away suitors"