A Duel of Hearts by Holland Rae

Author:Holland Rae [Rae, Holland]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Liquid Silver Books
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

MARY sat out on the patio with Amalie, drinking sweet peach tea that had been brewed from the Dacre orchards, and thinking about a new fencing move that Nate had taught her the previous night, when her dear cousin turned to face her straight-on, the strength of her gaze pulling Mary from her thoughts.

“What have you done to Nate?” she asked, her voice more teasing than accusatory, though a deeper question stayed hidden in its light depths.

Mary faltered. She hadn’t done anything to him other than spend every night fencing and talking and daydreaming about his backside and—

“What do you mean?” she asked, aware of the pinched quality of her voice, and how it seemed to register two octaves above normal. Amalie narrowed her eyes, her gaze on Mary’s face deepening.

“Zen why is he constantly looking at you,” she paused, gesturing wildly with her hands, “like zat?” Mary’s shock manifested in an actual movement backward in her chair.

“Like what?” she questioned, feeling a light heat rising up her neck. Surely, she hadn’t noticed any such attentions from the wayward lord. If he was apparently looking at her some way, her own thoughts on his charm and beauty must be county-known.

Amalie huffed in a way that was entirely French, then pursed her deep red lips.

“Like he wants to eat you az though you were a peach from the garden,” she said with a measure of impatience. The flush was no longer slight, it now thoroughly covered Mary’s bosom and neck.

“Like he—” She faltered at the words. As long as she had been in the house of Lord Arlington, she’d been in her mother’s home far longer. “What?”

Amalie’s eyebrow rose in a dangerous sort of way. Mary had seen that expression on her dear cousin’s face before, and it always, always meant that trouble was to follow.

“So you haven’t tangled with the lord, zen,” she asked, her eyebrow arching even higher. “You haven’t even thought about it?”

Mary leaned across the patio table, sure that her face was as red as the strawberry jam sitting between them. “Amalie,” she whispered sharply, trying to keep herself calm. So her appreciation of the lord’s good form hadn’t gone completely unnoticed after all. “Keep your voice down.”

Amalie smiled, it was a genuine and knowing smile, but it didn’t do anything to ease Mary’s growing discomfort. “So you have thought about it?” Amalie asked. “About him?”

Mary shook her head. She didn’t want anything from the lord, only to appreciate the handsomeness of him and move on. She bore the man no wifely duties, and thus was absolved of the kind of behavior that most married women agreed to be a manageable chore.

“You needn’t worry,” she told Amalie. “Mama has taught me all of the basics. I’m sure it won’t be too difficult to keep from that path.”

Amalie’s amused expression contorted. “Surely you don’t believe what your mother had told you in the way of intimacies?” she asked, her voice rising to a pitch that Mary worried the others would certainly hear.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.