Fate Is A Stranger: Regency Romance by Gay Gloria

Author:Gay, Gloria [Gay, Gloria]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gloria C. Gay
Published: 2016-06-13T07:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 14

Next day, after a stroll in the garden with Sadie, Violet accompanied her mother back to her room. And after she had settled Sadie by the warm fire and assured her that she would only be gone for an hour, Violet left the house through a back stair so that her walk to the little jewel of a wood would go undetected.

As she entered the wood she breathed deeply of sorrel and laurel, pine cones and fir. She sighed deeply as she realized how much she enjoyed nature. Nature never let her down. Trees were there to fill her senses with a feeling of wellbeing and the earthy soil was pungent with life when wet, dry or hot from the sun. She was filled with joy at the antics of birds, rabbits or squirrels or the scent of a flower. The crunch of nettles and dried leaves under her feet made her feel part of the wood, as though they had waited for her patiently and now she was here and they were happy to have her be part of them.

"You make me very jealous, Miss Durbin."

Violet jumped at the sound of the duke’s voice behind her.

"You startled me, your grace."

"You seemed so at one with the nature of this place as to make me quite envious. You were positively enraptured. Were you to glance with such a look in your eyes at me some day, I would consider myself the luckiest of men."

"Were you on your way somewhere, your grace?" asked Violet. Solitude, apparently, was unattainable here or in London. And to be truthful, a solitude that would be a shield that would protect her treacherous heart that was beating wildly at the sound of Hawk's voice. She resolved not to look directly into his eyes, for they were in a completely isolated place and such a setting was very dangerous.

"I can guess at your thoughts, Miss Durbin. You are wondering if there can possibly be a place where you can escape my presence. Were you not?"

Violet did not answer, for she was intent on controlling her legs which felt heavy and unable to hold her. She reached for the trunk of a tree, to steady herself.

He came closer to her and looked into her eyes. Was she the only one who saw beyond his title and wealth and was so affected by his intense moss-gray eyes and disturbing nearness?

Remember, he made wagers at White's as to when he would succeed with you.

These words rang discordant in her mind. The duke did not appear to be the type of man who would stoop to such pettiness. Yet Souten had challenged her to ask him about it. Surely if it were not true he would not have dared risk Hawkinston denying it.

She glanced at his hands, for he held a walking-stick before him and rested his hands one on top of the other on it.

Why was it that the more she looked at the duke the more attractive he became? She realized it was dangerous that she saw no flaws in him.

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