Companion to the Count (The Seductive Sleuths Book 1) by Melissa Kendall

Author:Melissa Kendall [Kendall, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2024-08-16T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

Saffron sat cross-legged in the middle of Leo’s office on a beautiful, multicolored rug imported from India, cradling a fuzzy ball of purring warmth in her hands. A breeze entered through the open window and swirled around the room, ruffling the papers on his desk.

The white-haired maid, Mary, had followed them up from the entryway and slumped on a chair near the open window. The act did not fool Saffron. She caught the woman looking through her eyelashes twice, and her snoring was suspiciously regular.

What am I doing here? she thought, not for the first time. I should be searching for Ravenmore, or tracking down the thief, or keeping an eye on Angelica, or… Her eyes drifted to Leo, at his desk, one hand buried in his hair, a scowl across his face.

As promised, she had reviewed the receipt from the grocer and had quickly pointed out that the numbers quoted did not match the supplies she had seen in the pantry.

“Is there not a person in the country who is not trying to fleece me?” Leo asked, sliding the papers in front of him aside. “Thank you for your insight. I shudder to think how long it might have taken me to realize the problem without your help.”

His praise warmed her cheeks and elicited a fluttering sensation in her chest. How many men would have accepted her help in a similar position, much less recognize the value of her opinion?

The Duke of Canterbury would not, of that I am certain.

“I believe it is time for a break,” Leo said. “I see you have become fast friends with my painting companion.”

She rubbed her nose against the kitten’s gray fur and ignored the taunt. “She’s adorable. What’s her name?”

He chuckled. “I have not yet named her. I was thinking Cinder, because the footman who found her said she was curled up next to the remains of the kitchen fire.”

She cupped her hands around the ball of fur and deposited it in her lap. The ball unfurled and stretched out both arms, claws extended. Large, yellow eyes peered up at her.

“Ow.” She gently disengaged a claw from her wrist and moved both hands away before the kitten decided she was fair game as a playmate. It reminded her of how Leo treated her, although his claws were not so sharp.

Spoiled, Cinder jumped from her lap and waddled away, toward a string twitching across the floor beneath Leo’s desk.

“She will be a mighty hunter,” he said, pulling the string away as Cinder pounced. The kitten skidded across the wooden floor, tumbled onto her back, and was up again in a flash as if nothing had happened.

Saffron clapped a hand over her mouth but couldn’t stop her giggle. Leo began laughing shortly after, and soon both were clutching their stomachs while Cinder chased a beetle on the floor, oblivious.

“Oh, she’s lovely,” she said, wiping away her tears. “I must tell Angelica. She will be in raptures. She loves animals.”

He scooped up Cinder with one hand and deposited the kitten in a wicker basket filled with a soft blanket.

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