Julie Garwood - Guardian Angel

"You smell worse," he told her quite cheerfully. He gave her an affectionate squeeze, then remarked,

"I'd say it's more like rotten meat than dead fish though."

She started to gag. Caine slapped his hand over her mouth. "If you lose your supper, I'll become very angry with you. I have enough to contend with now. Don't you dare complicate matters by getting sick."

She bit his hand, gaining both her freedom and another blasphemy from him. "I didn't have any supper," she announced. "I wanted to die on an empty stomach."

"You still might," he muttered. "Now quit talking and let me think. Why the hell did you want to die on

an empty stomach?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Some people become ill when they're frightened. I thought I might, you see, right before you… oh, never mind. I just didn't want to go to my Maker in a messy gown, that's all."

"I knew I shouldn't have asked," he replied. "Look, when we get to Lyon's place, you can have a hot bath. You'll feel better then."

"Is Lyon the interfering friend Monk mentioned?" "Lyon isn't interfering."

"Monk said he'd find out what happened to you this black night," Jade replied. "Those were his very words. That certainly sounds interfering to me." "You'll like Lyon."

"If he's your friend, I have my doubts," she returned. "Still, I will try to like him."

They lapsed into silence for several blocks. Caine was on his guard now and Jade wasn't nearly as worried as she pretended to be.

"Caine? After we've had our baths, what will we do?"

"You're going to sit down and tell me everything that happened to you."

"I've already told you what happened to me. You didn't believe me though, did you?"

"No," he admitted. "I didn't."

"Besides, your mind is already set against me, Caine. You won't believe anything else I tell you. Why should I make the effort?"

"My mind isn't set against you," he answered. His irritation was obvious in his tone.

She let out a rather inelegant snort. Caine vowed he wouldn't let her draw him into another argument.

He led her through another maze of back streets. She was so exhausted by the time they'd reached the steps to the impressive, redbrick town house, she wanted to weep real tears.

A giant of a man with a rather sinister-looking scar creasing his forehead opened the door on Caine's insistent pounding. The man had obviously been asleep. He wasn't happy about being awakened, either. Jade took one look at the stranger's dark scowl, and edged closer to Caine.

The man she assumed was Lyon wore only a pair of black britches. The frightening scowl quickly turned to a look of true astonishment as soon as he saw who his visitor was. "Caine? What in God's name… come inside," he rushed out. He moved forward with the intent of clasping Caine's hand, then abruptly changed his mind. He'd obviously just gotten a good whiff of the two of them.

Jade was horribly embarrassed. She turned to glare at Caine, a silent message that she still believed her foul condition was all his fault, then walked into the black and white tiled foyer. She saw a beautiful woman hurrying down the winding staircase then. The woman's long, silvery blond hair flew out behind her. She was so lovely, Jade felt all the worse.

Caine made hasty introductions while Jade stared at the floor. "This is Lyon, Jade, and his wife, Christina."

"What happened to you two?" Lyon asked.

Jade whirled around, raining drops of sour water ki a wide circle. She lifted her hair out of her eyes and then announced, "He threw me in the Thames."

"He what?" Lyon asked, a hint of a smile in his expression now, for he'd only just noticed what looked very like a chicken bone dangling from her hair.

"Caine threw me in the Thames," she repeated.

"He did?" Christina asked. Lyon's wife sounded astonished.

Jade turned to her. "He truly did," she announced yet again. "He didn't apologize afterward either."

After making that remark, she burst into tears. "This is all his fault," she sobbed. "First he lost his

carriage wheel and then he lost his instincts. My plan was really so much better. He's just too stubborn

to admit it."

"Don't start on that again," Caine warned.

"Why did you throw this poor dear in the Thames?" Christina asked again. She hurried over to Jade,

her arms outstretched. "You must be chilled to the bone," she said in sympathy. Christina came to a

quick stop when she got close to Jade, then backed up a space.

"It was necessary," Caine answered. He was trying to ignore Jade's glare.

"I believe I hate him," Jade told Christina. "I don't care if he's your friend or not," she added on another sob. "The man's a scoundrel."

"Yes, he can be a scoundrel," Christina agreed. "But he does have other nice qualities."

"I've yet to see them," Jade whispered.

Christina wrinkled her nose, took a deep breath, and then put her arm around Jade's waist. "Come with me, Jade. We'll have you cleaned up in no time. I think the kitchen will serve us better this night. Lyon? You best wake up the staff. We'll need help heating the water. My, you do have an unusual name," she told Jade then. "It's very pretty."

"He ridiculed my name," Jade whispered, though loud enough for Caine to overhear.

Caine closed his eyes in vexation. "I did not ridicule your name!" he shouted. "I swear to God, Lyon,

that woman's done nothing but complain and weep since the moment I met her."

Jade let out a loud gasp, then allowed Christina to prod her along toward the back of the house. Both Caine and Lyon watched the pair depart.

"Do you see how insulting he is, Lady Christina?" Jade asked. "All I asked was one little favor from

the man."

"And he refused?" Christina asked. "That certainly doesn't sound like Caine. He's usually very accommodating."

"I even offered to pay him silver coins," Jade announced. "I'm a pauper now. Caine threw my cloak in the Thames, too. The coins were in the pocket."

Christina shook her head. She paused at the corner to look back at Caine so he could see her displeasure. "That was terribly ungallant of him, wasn't it?"

They rounded the corner on Jade's fervent agreement.

"What was the favor she asked of you?" Lyon asked.

"Nothing much," Caine drawled out. He bent over to pull off his water-soaked boots. "She just wanted me to kill her, that's all."

Lyon let out a shout of laughter, but stopped when he realized Caine wasn't jesting.

"She wanted it done before morning," Caine said.

"She didn't."

"She was willing to let me finish my brandy first."

"That was thoughtful of her."

The two men shared a grin. "Now your wife thinks I'm an ogre because I've disappointed the woman."

Lyon laughed again. "Christina doesn't know what the favor was, friend."

Caine dropped his boots in the center of the hall, then added his socks to the pile. "I could still change

my mind and accommodate the little woman, I suppose," he remarked dryly. "Damn, my favorite boots are ruined."

Lyon leaned against the archway, his arms folded across his chest, while he watched Caine pull off his shirt. "No, you couldn't kill her," he replied. His tone was mild when he added, "She wasn't really

serious, was she? She seems quite timid. I can't imagine…"

"She witnessed a murder," Caine interjected. "Now she has several unsavory men chasing after her, obviously intent on silencing her. That's all I know, Lyon, but as soon as possible, I'm going to find out every detail. The sooner I can solve her problem, the sooner I'll be rid of her."

Since Caine was glaring so ferociously, Lyon tried to hide his smile. "She really has you rattled, doesn't she?" he asked.

"The hell she does," Caine muttered. "Why would you think a mere woman could get me rattled?"