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hide his reaction from the other two men in the carriage.
    Oh please, someone say something , he pleaded mentally. Neither man had spoken since they’d left the club, and the silence was becomingdeafening.
    He was so close to comingapart now. Whenhe’d beenplaying at the tables, he’d been able to distract himself. But now, with the strange, intense mansittingacross fromhimandAshtonsittingsullenly next to him, obviously in trouble, his composure was slipping away at analarmingrate.
    He looked back and forth between the two other men, hoping to distract himself, and in the light from the passing streetlamps, a detached part of his mind finally realized why the older man had seemed familiar at the ball. It was obvious that he and Ashton were related. They had the same warm brown hair and eyes, the same strong nose and chin, but there the similarities ended. Ashton was nowhere near as imposing as his relation. The older man’s head nearly brushed the roof of the carriage, and his shoulders and chest were so broad Kyle felt sure the man could break him in two if he wished to. The thought sent a strange shiver throughhim.
    The silence in the carriage continued until Kyle felt sure he would break under its weight when, finally, Ashton came to his rescue.
“Were Mother and Father really angry, Uncle?” he asked meekly, confirmingKyle’s supposition.
     
The man across fromthemsimply raised his brows and glanced brieflyinKyle’s directionbefore returninghis gaze to Ashton.
    “Oh, I’m terribly sorry.” Ashton blushed. “Uncle, this is my friend Mr. KyleAllen. Mr. Allen, please allow me to introduce youto myuncle, Lord James Warren, Viscount Sudbury.”
“Apleasure to meet you, Mr. Allen,” a surprisingly deep voice murmured.
    “The pleasure is mine, my lord,” Kyle replied. His voice was much weaker than he had intended, perhaps due to what the other man’s voice was doingto his innards.
    Lord Warren continued to frown sternly at his nephew for another few moments before he raised a hand to rub his forehead. Then, like the suncuttingthroughthe clouds, his face split into a smile, and he chuckled, causingKyle to catchhis breath.
    “Ah, nephew, don’t look so glum,” Warren said, clapping Ashton on the knee. “You know it’s not the gallows or the pillory for you. You’ll face your mother’s wrath, serve your sentence, and be back out withyour friends inno time, I’msure.”
    His brief glance at Kyle set his heart pounding, and all he could do was stare at the man. Warren’s teasing and merriment had transformed his face from simply handsome to nearly breathtaking. Lines had appeared at the corners of his mouth and eyes, showing that he must smile and laugh often, and the warmth radiating fromhis voice and eyes spilled out into the rest of the carriage, making Kyle’s skintingle.
Of a sudden, all he could think of was basking in that warmth, ofwhat it would feellike to have that smile directed at him.
    Where did that come from? And what is wrong with me? he wondered for the hundredth time that night. After everything that has happened to me, how can I be thinking such things?
    He closed his eyes and leaned a little further back in his seat, hoping his heart would slow and the pounding in his ears would cease. He felt miserable, sick and confused to the point where he wasn’t evencertainofwho he was anymore.
    I’m just tired , he decided. It’s just the shock and worry that has me thinking this way. What Victor did to me…. Kyle’s mind flinched away from the memory, and he sat further back in his seat, tryingto think ofsomething, anything else.
    They arrived at their destination before Kyle could finish collecting himself, and Warren stepped out without waiting for the footman. Ashton followed, stepping into the street before turning to look back as Kyle hesitated inthe doorway.
    “Ashton, wait,” Kyle said shakily. “I… can’t go in with you.” His words stumbled to a halt under Lord Warren’s