Where did you come from?” she whispered, mostly to herself. “What are you wanting here?” One hand shot out, catching her by the hair. Violet gasped at the sharp yank on a thousand nerve endings. His eyes flew open, clear and intense. She read his answer in them. You. I’m wanting you.
She sketched songbirds when she was supposed to be minding her lessons, and she sketched church mice when she was meant to be at prayer. When she had time to ramble out of doors, anything in Nature was fair game- from the shoots of clover between her toes to any cloud that meandered overhead.
Oh, what fun it was to vex him. He made it so easy to do. Hunting and fishing were all well and good, but truly, Jemmy-baiting had always been her favorite autumn sport. Lucy viewed his staid countenance as an unending challenge. A smooth, thick-shelled egg that begged to be cracked. Any rearrangement of his features constituted a victory, be it a wince, a scowl, or that rarest of expressions – a smile. A smile that showed teeth counted double. Last.
I don’t meet that qualification, either.” “I don’t care if you’re gently bred, roughly bred, or a loaf of brown bread with butter.
Damn, she would be a delight to spoil. If she weren’t his employee, he could shower her with little gifts and luxuries. Remove all the small worries that came between her and the sky. “Do go on,” he said. “I’m listening.” And looking. And noticing.
A sham sandwich, indeed. One that sat on a tray of lies.
Oh, Penny. He must truly love you,” Emma said. “Ash and Chase ate the sham. Gabriel made more.
So it’s a marriage of convenience you’re proposing. A simple transaction. Your wealth for my womb.
He said simply, “Because I choose her.” “Truly?” Oh God. Truly? As in, had Minerva truly just said that aloud? At least she’d stopped herself from voicing the rest of the thoughts running through her addled brain, which went something like, Truly? That whole determined, dangerous saunter across the room was for me? In that case, would you mind going back and doing it all over again? Slowly this time, and with feeling.
Geologists might seem boring, but we’re really renegades.
Dedication Because little girls don’t stay little forever.
Then came the lies. Her heart told her lies. Wicked, insidious falsehoods, resounding with every beat. He’s a broken man. He needs you. You can heal him. Rationally, she knew better. Untold numbers of women had already tried their hands – among other body parts – at “healing his broken soul,” with no success.
I’m telling you, it’s impossible. If she’s not in the mews or the back garden, I keep her on a short lead.” His eyebrow quirked with derision. “Spoken like the guardian of many a ruined young female in this neighborhood, I’d wager.” “I beg your pardon. Marigold is not that kind of goat.
How was it that men could be so big and strong in body, and yet so fragile when it came to pride?
As though it made perfect sense. As if all the talking and not-talking and arguing and ignoring they’d done over the past eight years – no, so much longer than that – had all been entries on one long list of “Things We Do to Avoid Kissing.” And now that they’d reached the end of it, they had a great deal of lost time to make up. They.
With her kiss, his whole body came alive. Not just his body. Something stirred in the region of his heart, as well. Jesus. Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene. Delilah, Jezebel, Salome, Judith, Eve. Trouble, every last one. Add Minerva Highwood to the list. A woman like this could ruin him. If he didn’t ruin her first.
Your cookery book is a book of lies.
I knew yours to be the more resilient spirit.
Penny embraced her in farewell. “Do keep trying with your cat. The creatures most difficult to reach make the most loving companions in the end.
Onion tartlets, pastry puffs stuffed with cheese, a terrine of mushroom and hazelnuts. There’s an pharaoh-sized pyramid of exotic fruits. The pineapples alone must have cost a small fortune. And, of course, there’s the sham.