A Glimpse of Heaven by Barbara Dawson Smith

Author:Barbara Dawson Smith
Language: ron
Format: mobi
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Catherine watched in dazed astonishment as Burke leaped to his feet. A moment ago, he had been about to kiss her again. A moment ago, she had been about to surrender to him. The heat of anticipation still flowed through her veins.

Now he streaked like a dark blur across the grass and plunged into the gloom beneath the sycamore.

A squawk of fright disturbed the night air. The noise of a brief scuffle carried to her ears. Then Burke emerged, dragging a hunched figure by the scruff of the neck.

“D-don’t hurt me. P-please don’t.”

Shocked awareness cooled Catherine’s blood and abruptly returned her to reality. She scrambled up, the folds of her petticoat tangling her legs. She strained to see the captive through the shadows. “Fabian? Is that you?”

He snuffled loudly in reply.

“Fabian,” Burke said in a hard voice, “was watching us from the bushes. Like a bloody Peeping Tom.”

“I wasn’t hurting anyone. I-I only wanted to protect Mrs. Snow.”

“By invading her privacy?” Burke gave him a rough shake. “I ought to throttle you.”

Catherine hurried forward. “Release him at once.”

“Only if he apologizes.”

“I w-will. Gladly.” The gangly blond man sank to his knees before Catherine and held up his clasped hands. “Forgive me. I d-didn’t mean to bother you. I-I would never do you harm.”

“I know you wouldn’t,” she said, embarrassed by his humble posturing. “Please, stand up.”

As if he hadn’t heard, Fabian rushed on, “B-but I c-can’t let him disgrace you like this. He-he’s leading you astray. He’ll b-break your heart.”

Fabian had witnessed their kiss. And more.

Her skin crawled. He had been lurking behind the tree and observing that intimate interlude on the grass. In another few minutes, she and Burke would have been coupling out in the open for all the world to see. The beautiful sensations he had wrought in her now seemed sordid, illicit. Was she so starved for love that she could forget all scruples?

Burke stood watching her, his shadowed features inscrutable in the faint moonlight. Even now her insides clenched with wanting him.

Was he leading her astray, using his erotic appeal to lure her from the path of independence? Was she just another conquest to him, a challenge, like winning a high wager?

She had to admit, though, she been an equal partner in the seduction. She had invited his kiss and much more.

Fabian closed his clammy palms around her hands. “I would never dishonor you, Mrs. Snow,” he said earnestly. “I-I know this is hardly the t-time to say so, b-but I must c-c-confess. I-I want to marry you.”

Burke bit out a startled oath. “Like hell! I’m not the only one leading a woman astray… .”

Catherine waved him to silence. She kept her eyes on Fabian, who knelt before her, his pale hair spilling untidily around his shoulders. His proposal jolted her, and she regretted the prospect of hurting him.

“You’re a dear, kind man,” she said. “If only I shared your feelings—”

“D-don’t say no. Please. I-I-I love you.”

Dear God. His voice wobbled as if he were on the brink of tears.

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