Chapter 55
Vincent jumped to his feet, grabbed his cloak in one hand, and as he rushed towards the balcony said over his shoulder, "I will see you tomorrow at sunset Catherine."
Catherine had no knowledge of how long she sat there staring in open mouthed shock at the still open balcony doors. She was actually stunned motionless. Her mind however, was screaming questions that had no answers.
Why did he leave?
What had scared him off?
Was it something that she had done?
How could he just leave her like that?
Didn't he know how that would make her feel?
Hadn't he been enjoying the kiss as much as she had been?
And last but not least, would he explain himself when he returned tomorrow?
The last question actually spurred her into action. She got up off the couch and went to the French doors. Closing them with a bang, she wondered how he would react if she wasn't there when he arrived for dinner the next night?
Yes, she was a bit miffed at Vincent now. How could he have so rudely left her like that without even a hint of explanation? She would make sure that he clearly understood actions like that were NOT acceptable! But to do that she would have to be here tomorrow. Well she could do that! But he would not get the warm welcome that he would be expecting! She was not going to stand for that kind of behavior and the sooner Vincent realized that the better!
Vincent had been so completely focused on how fast he could get out of there that it wasn't until he reached the safety of the tunnels that he even slowed down. Because of his large physique as well as his increased lung capacity, he wasn't even out of breath from sprinting that distance. With the park entrance door closed behind him he could take a deep breath and slow to a walk. At this late hour if he were seen running through the passageways the sentries would be sure to raise an alarm.
As he traveled through the empty halls, Vincent was finally able to focus on his Bond with Catherine once again. He knew his abrupt departure was probably causing her to wonder what had happened. However when he tuned in, he was rather surprised to discover that Catherine was upset about something. Opening the Bond farther, he realized that she was more than upset and he was the cause!
He'd had no idea that his departure would cause this reaction and was at a loss as to what to do about it! He couldn't go back and explain for fear of the same thing happening again. It was much too late to send one of the children with a message. They had all been in bed hours ago. He might have tried to send a note through one of their Helpers, but it was the middle of the night and they would rightly think it must be some kind of emergency to be awakened at that hour. All he could do was hope that Catherine would forgive him tomorrow evening when he arrived with dinner.
Vincent was up bright and early the next morning. He had many plans to set in motion. His first stop was to the kitchen to talk to William. Because he had always needed much less sleep than anyone else, Vincent knew the only other tunnel residents up at that hour would be William and his breakfast crew.
Asking if he could speak to William in private for just a moment might have raised a few eyebrows if it had been later in the day, however at that hour more eyelids were still at half-mast. Explaining to William what he wanted was easy, but he hadn't thought that such an unusual request by him would cause William to ask why.
He didn't even think of lying to the jovial cook, but he did ask that his reason be kept a secret. William readily agreed and was shocked, but happy by the answer he got. He promised Vincent that it would be an extra special meal!
To be continued….