Courting Seduction (Infamous Ladies Book 3) by Nicole Bennett

Author:Nicole Bennett [Bennett, Nicole]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-03-09T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

If Arthur thought she was going to stand around like a ninny while he investigated what was likely just Jasper and Ashford being a pair of idiots with a flintlock, then he had another thing coming.

Arthur… Strange how easily she slipped into his Christian name, though she supposed such a thing was warranted after what they’d shared. She could hardly call him Mr. Barrow after his mouth had been… certain places. Francesca thought she'd melt away just thinking about it, along with the wanton enthusiasm she’d felt the entire time. And in the middle of the forest trail, no less. Anyone could have come upon them, a fact made quite real with the realization that Jasper and Ashford were likely a short stroll away from them.

“You shouldn’t follow me. It is dangerous,” Arthur said without turning around.

Francesca rolled her eyes. “I will be fine. It is likely just my cousin and His Grace.”

He kept walking. “Suit yourself.”

His continued refusal to coddle her was one of the things that Francesca liked most about Arthur Barrow. James had treated her like a delicate rose, and while at the time she had preened under the new attention, Francesca recognized that he would have driven her insane had they actually married. Arthur treated her as an equal, complementing her when warranted, but never failing to hold her to task when she made a misstep. And though now uncertain of his romantic intentions, she knew his compliments about her character were genuine. Another gunshot went off, one that sounded more explosive than normal. She heard Ashford shout something unintelligible, his voice tainted by fear. Arthur picked up his pace, and Francesca struggled to keep up, her earlier consternation being replaced by concern and then fear once they emerged from the forest. The two men were on the other side of the pond, her cousin prone on the ground while Ashford crouched in front of him.

“Jasper!” Francesca took off at a run, heart in her throat at the sight of his unmoving form. A flintlock lay sprawled at his feet, and she feared the worst. And then, just as she felt the burn of terrified tears, her cousin’s chest bobbed with laughter.

“You’re a bloody fine idiot, Amberwood,” Ashford remarked with a shake of his head.

Jasper sat up on his hands, his face covered in soot. One of his platinum eyebrows was singed. “I told you I’d never shot a gun before,” he said with a goofy smile. He turned his head, eyes widening in surprise at the sight of her. “Oh, hello there, Francesca.”

“I thought you were dead, you idiot!” She angrily crossed her arms.

Jasper laughed. “No, no. Ashford was trying to teach me to shoot, and I bungled it up. The pan blew up in my face. How is it, by the way?” He turned his soot-stained head from side to side. “Not too singed, I hope?”

“Sophie is going to kill you,” Francesca snipped back, ignoring his vain question entirely.

“She very well might,” he replied playfully.

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.