She nodded, but made no effort to free herself. Her gaze stayed locked to his. Watching. Waiting.

Just when she was certain he wouldn’t, he accepted her silent invitation and brushed his mouth across hers. Their lips clung together and he groaned. The mask fell from her nerveless fingers to clatter atop the gravel.

“Good-bye, Amelia.”

He steadied her, then fled in a billowing flare of black, leaping over a low hedge and blending into the shadows. He headed not toward the rear of the manse but to the front, and was gone in an instant. Dazed by his sudden departure, Amelia turned her head slowly toward the garden. She found Ware approaching with rapid strides, followed by several other gentlemen.

“What are you doing over here?” he asked gruffly, scanning her surroundings with an agitated glance. “I was going mad looking for you.”

“I am sorry.” She was unable to say more than that. Her thoughts were with Montoya, a man who had clearly recognized the whistle of warning.

He had been real for a moment, but no longer. Like the phantom she’d fancied him as, he was elusive.

And entirely suspect.

“Would you care to explain what happened last night?”

Amelia sighed inwardly, but on the exterior she offered a sunny smile. “Explain what?”

Christopher St. John-pirate, murderer, smuggler extraordinaire-returned her smile, but his sapphire eyes were sharp and assessing. “You know very well what I am referring to.” He shook his head. “At times you are so like your sister, it is somewhat alarming.”

What was alarming was how divinely handsome St. John was, considering how devilishly his brain worked. Despite the years she’d lived within his household, Amelia was still taken aback by his comeliness every time she saw him.

“Oh, what a lovely thing to say!” she cried, meaning every word. “Thank you.”

“Minx. Fess up now.”