Harlequin Historical August 2021--Box Set 1 of 2 by Terri Brisbin

Author:Terri Brisbin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2021-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Dear Josh,

Sometimes I wish I had your way with words. To be able to reassure Annabelle with just a sentence or two...that is powerful.

‘Lord Wilstow and his wife have invited us for dinner,’ Leo said, fingering the note and glancing up at Annabelle. She had been quiet since their brush with the young men who had looked at her with such horrified fascination, but he had been too lost in his own confusion to draw her out. He’d meant it when he’d said she was a beautiful woman. When he looked at her he barely saw the scars, he noticed instead the bright blue of her eyes, the curve of her lips as she smiled and the way the sun glinted off her hair making it look like molten gold. All throughout their acquaintance he’d been aware of those features, but suddenly it was as if he saw her for the first time. His body had reacted to her and he’d had the urge to pull her towards him and kiss her until neither of them knew where they were.

‘We should go. They’ve been so kind giving us the use of this cottage.’ He heard the trepidation in her voice and wondered what it would be like to always dread meeting new people. He wasn’t one to socialise a lot, but he never had to feel nervous about it when he did so. Wherever he went he was welcomed, people wanted to talk to him, to be part of his circle, more than he wanted often, but he didn’t worry about what people would say about him. He knew he was seen as serious and aloof, but that was how he portrayed himself, and he certainly didn’t mind being thought of that way.

Annabelle had spent years shut away at Birling View, first by her mother who was ashamed of having a daughter so scarred, and then by herself when she realised how cruel the world was to someone who didn’t look quite like everyone else. Gradually she was becoming more comfortable in his company, eschewing the veil most of the time if she thought it was just going to be the two of them. He wanted to make her feel comfortable enough in herself that she didn’t care what other people whispered behind their hands and could walk down the street with her head held high, ignoring the stares.

‘We don’t have to go if you don’t want to.’

She took a deep, shuddering breath and shook her head. ‘No, we should go. I’m sure it’ll be a pleasant evening.’

‘I don’t know his wife, but Wilstow is a good man. A kind man.’

She nodded and gave him a slightly forced smile.

‘They can give us some tips on what to do for the rest of the week.’ It surprised him that he wanted to stay for so long. He’d been non-committal initially on how long they were going to stay for, but he didn’t feel the need to rush back to Kent.

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