Mission_Improper by Bec McMaster

Author:Bec McMaster [McMaster, Bec]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance, vampires, Fantasy
ISBN: 9781925491050
Goodreads: 25791377
Publisher: Lochaber Press
Published: 2016-08-16T00:00:00+00:00

"You sound surprised."

Fabric rustled as the duchess smoothed

Ingrid's hair off her head. "I'm not surprised you

protected her. You're a Nighthawk, after all. I might

be a little shocked to find you sitting here at her

bedside, however. The Caleb Byrnes that I know is

not the sort of man to hover at a woman's bedside."

There was a question in that.

"She asked me to stay the other night when

she was injured. I don't think she likes to wake up

alone in the middle of the night. I think—" He

stopped in his tracks. Why the hell was he

explaining himself to Rosa?

And the truth was, he was lying. He was here

because he wanted to be here, and because he

didn't want Ingrid to wake up alone in the dark and

not know where she was.

Rosa saw it all, judging from her expression.

"I thought we had an agreement?"

To hell with that. "I'm not giving her up,

Rosa."

The duchess's lips thinned.

"I'm not," he told her firmly, standing and

retrieving his coat. "Whether you like it or not." He

slung his coat over his shoulders. "As Ingrid's

friend, I respect your concern about our

relationship, but this is between Ingrid and me, and

I'll thank you to stay out of it."

Those dark brown eyes watched him as he

headed for the door. Then she smiled, very faintly.

"As you wish."

It was the smile that unnerved him. Far from

looking like she was about to leap between them

with pistols raised, Rosa seemed to be dwelling on

some secret thought that amused her.

"I'll give you a moment alone with her," he

murmured, slinking through the door and finding

Lynch in the hallway beyond.

"You've just cost me one of my finest bottles

of blud-wein," Lynch sighed.

It wasn't what he'd expected the duke to say.

"What?"

"Garrett," the duke replied, sliding his hands

into his pockets. "I should have known better than

to bet against that bastard. Come. Walk with me."

Together they strolled into the garden at the

back of the house. Fog lingered in the corners, and

a single gaslight lit the yard.

“Should I be worried about Rosa coming after

me?” Byrnes muttered, leaning against the wall.

“I think she’s reconciling herself to the idea of

welcoming you into the family.”

That disconcerted him a little. Rosa as a

sister-in-law. Jesus. Byrnes shifted. “Let’s not get

ahead of ourselves. Nothing’s been decided, and…

there are still some problems for Ingrid and me to

work through, as soon as we get a chance to

breathe.”

“Oh?”

His first instinct was to clam up, but to hell

with it. He couldn’t do this alone any more. "She

wants children. I've never— I didn't—" It was

uncomfortable terrain for him to stare into a future

he'd never examined before, never dreamed of.

"I'm not good with children, and I've never wanted

to be a father. I've never wanted to be a husband."

Not until she'd walked into his life and turned it

upside down. "But I cannot stay away from her."

"Mmm. This doesn't have anything to do with

your father, does it?"

Byrnes shot him a shocked look.

"You've always been the one I worried about

the most," Lynch admitted. "Emotion frightens you.

It's never been a problem until now, but it always

used to worry me that one day you wouldn't be

able to control everything you felt, and.

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