A Daring Arrangement by Joanna Shupe

Author:Joanna Shupe
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2017-10-31T04:00:00+00:00

“I am quite looking forward to meeting Mr. Hatcher’s mother,” Aunt Bea said, breaking the silence as the large Cortland carriage arrived at the Hatcher mansion. “Do you know much about her, Nora?”

“No, not really. She and Julius are not close, from what I understand. I was surprised to get the invitation, really.” Stunned, more like it. Julius had been adamant against this happening and she had no idea what had changed his mind. All she knew was that her aunt had arranged the entire thing with Julius’s secretary at Mrs. Hatcher’s request.

Icy wind and sharp rain pelted the sides of the Cortland carriage. Shivering, Nora drew the sides of her heavy cape more tightly about her and longed for the vehicle to turn around and take her back to her uncle’s. How on earth could she play the loving, cheerful fiancée when her mind was such a scattered mess?

You are turning my life upside down—all to return to a craven fortune hunter who doesn’t deserve you.

The past few days had been spent trying to sort through her feelings for both Robert and Julius, while examining herself in the process. Nora didn’t care for what she had discovered: a woman who could feel such intense attraction—and yes, interest—for Julius when she had promised her loyalty and soul to someone else. A month ago she wouldn’t have believed it possible. Yet here they were, posing as an engaged couple while stealing very real kisses in secluded spots.

Kisses her brain hadn’t been able to erase, no matter how many times she reread Robert’s letters.

Briefly, she’d considered confessing all to Robert but couldn’t bring herself to put pen to paper. Julius was a scoundrel, a charming rogue who attracted women like flies. Nora could hardly be faulted for succumbing to his easy smile and handsome face, could she? Years from now, when she and Robert were far from New York and secure in their marriage, she would tell him of her brief fling here and how little it had meant.

Only . . . the burst of happiness she experienced each time she thought of Julius did not feel little. It felt huge and all-encompassing. Distracting. To dismiss it seemed like the worst kind of lie, even to herself. Whatever was happening between her and Julius, though inconvenient, was genuine. Perhaps more genuine than anything Nora had ever experienced before . . . and that scared her to her toes.

The wisest course of action was to avoid Julius. To admit he was a temptation she couldn’t resist and never allow herself to be alone with him. Remain in public and forgo sneaking off with him down secluded paths. Stop daydreaming about the desperate, determined way he’d kissed her, as if he’d been afraid she’d vanish at any moment. Cease imagining what it would be like if their kisses went further and he satisfied this terrible ache inside her.

I would never allow the woman I love to be taken away from me.

His honesty and recklessness made him dangerous, if only because she found those qualities so disarming and dashed appealing.

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