The following day passed much the same as the previous day had. Rose was gone by the time Liam came downstairs. No more notes. No telephone calls. No communication of any kind.

He called Eleanor from his office phone halfway through the afternoon. Rose hadn't rung the house. However, Daphne Lancaster had.

Rose was going to supper with Jimmy tonight. No matter how useful that was in Liam's plan to thwart Gallagher, he still found himself disconcerted. Rose had expressed concern regarding Jimmy's inability to keep his hands to himself. An employee doing her job or not, she didn't deserve to be molested.

He frowned, picturing Jimmy's hand moving up Rose's thigh. It didn't sit well with him. But to get involved personally would tip his hand to Gallagher.

Well, if he couldn't watch out for Rose himself, maybe he could employ someone else to watch out for her in his stead.

Resolute in his decision, Liam picked up the telephone receiver and dialed a number.

The line rang several times before a youthful, flamboyant voice greeted him. “Aye? Talk to me!”

Liam expelled an irritated sigh. “That ain't the proper way to answer Audrey's telephone, Crispin,” he scolded his youthful cousin.

“Sorry, Will. Sorry,” Crispin amended. “Just fuckin' around. Whatcha need?”

“Elijah with ya?”

“He is. Aye. Right here.”

“Good,” Liam said, nodding against the mouthpiece. “Put him on. Got a favor to ask him.”

【♖】

After her shift, Rose was escorted by Jimmy to a restaurant called the Seven Bells. It wasn't upscale, per se, but Rose was glad of that as she wasn't exactly ‘dressed to dine,’ and she had no idea what excuse she could've rattled off to Jimmy had he offered to take her home so she could change.

The interior was cozy, tidy, and smelled divine. Catching a welcome whiff of blackened cod, Rose realized just how hungry she was. As she had no desire to eat in the company of William or Daphne, this date may serve a useful purpose. Two, in fact, if she was able to pry some viable information from her unwanted beau.

“Lovely place,” Rose remarked as they were shown to a secluded table near the back. The calm atmosphere was a welcome change to the constant stimuli of the factory.

“Me mate's father is the owner,” Jimmy told her, his voice boisterous. “I always get treated like a right prince in here. My lady-friends, too. Royal treatment. Don't you worry.”

Rose choked back the obnoxious retort that sprang to mind and smiled at him. “Are you trying to impress me?” she teased.

“Always,” he confirmed. “It workin'?”

“I'll let you know after I've sampled the cuisine,” she replied, the faintest bit coy.

“Hungry?” he asked. The glint in his eyes suggested he wasn't inquiring after her appetite.

“Positively ravenous,” she told him, allowing the implications to run wild.

He grinned at her answer. “Glad to hear it.”

【♖】

Furious, Kitty glanced at the clock on the wall for the umpteenth time that day. Try as she might to let it go, she was still seething from Liam's curt dismissal the night before last. She'd spent the day mentally debating whether to give him a piece of her mind, or continue giving him the cold shoulder. The former would be more satisfying. The latter was easier. Neither option made her feel like justice would be done.

Kitty glanced at the clock again. It was long past time to leave, but she hadn't seen hide nor hair of Liam all day. Not since he'd come in that morning and walked past her desk without a word.

Unable to stomach her anger in silence any longer, she let out a frustrated huff and stalked to his office door. With more force than necessary, she rapped on the wood, hard enough to make her knuckles sting.

No answer.

Kitty didn't bother knocking a second time. “I'm leavin' soon,” she called through the door. “There's zoning expansion paperwork for the Clementine Mercer Institute at my desk that needs your signature. If ya still care about that at all.”

She returned to her desk without awaiting a response, sick to death of the massive amounts of her time she sacrificed for Liam's sake.

In truth, she wanted to ask him point blank if he'd slept with Rose. She knew Liam. When he was hot and bothered he needed a fix. Simple as that.

But if there was one thing that could trump the need for sex, it was business. And the conversation Kitty had overheard in his study had sounded strictly like business. However, that would never excuse his treatment of her the other night. That was irreparable.

Kitty sighed. Were the Mercers not so difficult to escape, she'd seek employment elsewhere.

【♖】

The food was delicious. Savory, expertly prepared, and it softened the blow of listening to Jimmy prattle on ceaselessly about himself.

Rose took strategic bites so that she could get away with responses consisting mainly of “Mm-hmm”s and nods. She had grown accustomed to William's less-is-more approach to conversation, therefore Jimmy was the paradigm Merry Andrew by comparison. His lack of marital status was certainly no mystery.

The server came by, momentarily rescuing Rose's ears. “More wine, Miss?” he asked.

“Please,” Rose said.

“Don't be stingy,” Jimmy told the server. “You just keep her glass full so's long as we're here.”

He winked at Rose in a way that made the food in her stomach attempt to perform a somersault. Why must he leer so?

“My, my, Jimmy!” Rose giggled. Through her disgust, she tried to keep her voice light and cheeky. “Is your goal to lower my inhibitions?”

“Your inhibitions, sure,” Jimmy agreed with a sly grin. “Among other things.”

‘Other things’ like my knickers, no doubt, Rose thought. This was precisely what she'd feared entering a courtship with Jimmy: his inability to keep from pawing her. But what could she do? This was the assignment. If she wanted her affair with Elton Willoughby to remain a relative secret, she must complete her task. She was clever. She'd come up with a plan to avoid physical contact.

Rose cringed inwardly even as she lifted her glass in a toast. “To inhibitions. And other things that may be lowered due to good wine.”

“Cheers to that,” Jimmy declared, clinking his glass against hers.

【♖】

Fed up with waiting, Kitty donned her coat to leave for the night. As she thrust her arms through the sleeves, Liam wandered out of his office, a distant look in his eyes. She huffed and turned away.

“The documents for the Institute are in that folder,” she stated with a flippant gesture toward her desk. “They're time sensitive. You said you wanted me to post them today, but they're worthless without your signature.”

“Could've brought them to me,” he remarked, crossing the room to her desk and retrieving a pen.

“I told ya I had them when you arrived this morning,” she clapped back. “You walked by without a word. Didn't know I was s'pose to chase ya down.”

Liam let out a rough breath. “I'm signin' now. Alright?”

“Makes no difference to me,” Kitty retorted with a brusque shake of her head. “Funny, though, how you'll come runnin' for a stack of papers, but ya can't be bothered to keep a date with me. Puts things in perspective, anyway. Isn't that right, Liam?”

“Kitty! Enough!” Liam barked.

The sudden aggressive exclamation caused her to startle, and she spun around to face him.

He slammed the folder shut and tossed the pen down on the desk. “What the fuck is wrong with you? Eh?” he questioned, his volume elevated to a near shout.

Kitty scoffed. “Have a guess.”

“You're upset. We got interrupted the other night,” he said, his voice thick with frustration. “Yeah, we did. Unfortunate, but it happened. I said we could pick it up another time, and I meant it. But I've had a lot on me fuckin' mind, Kitty. You know that.”

“A lot on your mind, hm?” she echoed, her words coated in sarcasm. “Such as how to go about seducin' your little live-in Countess?”

“What are you on about?” Liam demanded. “My mind is occupied with destroying Gallagher, not seducing Rose. I know you're not stupid, so knock it the fuck off!”

“Why not do both?” Kitty countered, her volume rising to match his. “Destroy Gallagher and fuck Rose. At the same time, if ya can manage it! Get me to hold your calls, why don't ya?”

“Kitty. For fuck's sake.” He began to rub his brow the way he did when at wit's end. “Seducing Rose is the furthest thing from my mind right now.”

‘Right now’?

Seducing Rose was the furthest thing from his mind right now.

Kitty sighed in resentment as she watched Liam rub his brow. He never lied outright, he didn't need to, but the devil was in the details. If he said ‘right now,’ then that was exactly what he meant.

“Don't bother lyin' to me, Liam,” Kitty snapped. She felt her hands involuntarily ball into fists. How dare he get exasperated with her after the shit he'd pulled? “I know you. Somethin' worn and comfortable will never be as attractive as somethin' fancy and new, will it? First Clementine, now Rose... I'm only important to you when ya got no other, more expensive options. Might as well admit it.”

He dropped his hand and glanced up, giving her a hard icy stare. “You wanna fuck that bad? Fine. Let's fuck. Right here.” He smacked his palm against the surface of her desk. “Come on, we'll pick up where we left off in my study. But if ya want me, you're gonna hafta stop with the naggin'.”

Kitty returned his stare, a sound of disgust emanating from the back of her throat. “I don't want a goddamn thing from you, Liam.”

“Now who's lyin'?” he questioned her, his eyebrows elevated. “Rose ain't here to interrupt this time, Kitty.”

“But she is,” Kitty differed. She murmured the words aloud even as she recognized the truth behind them. The realization stung. “Rose is here. In this room, with us. Because you can't quit thinkin' about her. And even if you have me, it will actually be her you're fucking. At least, in your mind.”

Liam offered no response.

Hot, angry tears prickled in Kitty's eyes. She couldn't bear to play second fiddle to another well-to-do privileged girl. Not again. She didn't have much that was her own, but she had her pride.

“Right. I'll take those documents for the Institute to the post first thing in the morning,” she said as she picked up her handbag and buttoned her lightweight coat. “You can always count on me to be an efficient secretary, Mr. Mercer.”

Whether Liam replied or not, she didn't know. Turning on her heel, Kitty strode through the front door and out into the night.

She didn't look back.

【♖】

Dinner was winding down, yet Jimmy seemed content to continue drinking and talking about himself. Rose tried not to sigh. Of all the topics regarding his family that Jimmy could incessantly blather on about, the only one that interested Rose was Mr. Gallagher's safe. During their first outing to the Lion's Den, Jimmy had bragged at length about being able to access the safe ‘whenever he wanted.’ Naturally, tonight he was determined to talk about everything but.

“...and me da' is always up in arms about the legalities of it all, but I say ‘fuck that,’ y'know? Soon enough we'll be runnin' this town. Who's gonna give two shits about proper licensing when…”

Rose's mind had long since begun to wander. She wondered what Teddy was up to at that moment. Her arms longed to hold him. Hopefully Miss Pimms was paying him mind, for she knew William wasn't.

She nearly scoffed aloud as his name made an unwelcome appearance in her mind. William. What, or whom, was he doing? He was probably making up for lost time with Kitty, either in his study, or in his bedroom. Maybe in his office here in town. What did he see in that volatile woman? And what did she see in him? Was theirs really just a relationship of convenience?

Rose shuddered as she recalled William's vulgar words regarding Kitty from the other night: We fuck on occasion. Clearly, that was all women were good for in his eyes. Sex and following orders. Horrid man.

“...so whatcha think?”

Rose blinked out of her reverie when she realized Jimmy had asked her a question. “Hmm?”

“This weekend,” he said. “Ya wanna go to the pictures with me? Got Sunday off, don't ya? I hear there's a comedy playin'.”

“That sounds like a welcome reprieve,” Rose replied, surprised by her sincerity. “Yes, why not?”

“Summat on your mind, gorgeous?” Jimmy asked. There was an odd expression on his face that almost resembled concern. “Ya seem kinda distracted.”

“Oh, do forgive me for that,” Rose said, chuckling daintily into her napkin. An idea had dawned on her. Jimmy had already polished off three glasses of wine, and he wasn't the brightest lad to begin with. A little prompting couldn't hurt. “It's quite silly,” she went on. “Nothing for me to worry about, surely. But my cousin Henry has recently acquired a safe for his wife's family heirlooms. A string of pearls, a sapphire brooch, all manner of precious pieces. He needs to select a three-digit combination for the safe, but he doesn't want to choose a random series of numbers that he'd need to write down in order to remember. I've been trying to help him think of a solution.” She gave Jimmy a sheepish smile and sipped from her wine glass.

“Ah! Yeah, I see!” Jimmy cried. “Yeah, don't wanna be writin' that combination down nowhere, does he?”

“No,” Rose said with another demure chuckle. “Seems like an invitation for easy robbery.”

“You ain't wrong, Rose,” Jimmy said. He squinted and pointed a knowing finger at her. “Tell your cousin Henry to choose the birth date of a loved one. Not himself, that's too obvious, but someone close. That's what me da' did.”

My Queen to yours, Rose thought. Checkmate.

“The birth date of a loved one,” Rose repeated, her eyes lighting up as though Jimmy were the one true genius of his generation. “Yes, how inspired! I'm sure that will do the trick. Thank you, Jimmy. I'll pass that along.”

【♜】【♞】【♟】

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