To Tame a Scandalous Lady by Liana De la Rosa

Author:Liana De la Rosa
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Historical Romance; British Historical Literature; Women's Historical Fiction; Regency Romances; Historical European Fiction; Co Worker; Boss Employee Romance; Steamy Historical Romance; Late Regency Romance; Spring; English Countryside; Once Upon a Scandal; Liana De la Rosa; Entangled Publishing; Amara; Racehorses; Single Title Romance; Stand Alone Romance; Boss Employee Romance; Horse Trainer;
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Published: 2020-05-19T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

“Where are you and Banrigh off to this afternoon?”

Looking over her shoulder, she spied the marquess coming out of Bonnie’s stall, dusting bits of hay from his coat and breeches. Breeches that highlighted his firm, athletic thighs.

Tearing her gaze away, she looked at the ground. The sky. The horses in the nearby pen. Anywhere but him—for, abruptly, she was nervous. “We’re both itching for a ride.”

“Are you well enough to ride?”

Flora hated the concern that tinted his words, even though she knew it was sincere.

Lifting her chin, she said, “I am well. Any aches and pains I sustained in the accident have long since healed.”

“I’m pleased to hear it.” He studied her, his gaze probing and intense. “Would you care for some company?”

She blinked. “I beg your pardon?”

“May I join you?” He cocked his head. “I was about to retire to my study to handle a stack of estate business my secretary left for me, but a ride sounds much more enjoyable.”

Flora nibbled the inside of her cheek. An afternoon ride with Amstead could be fraught with danger. Since their kiss in the paddock office, their busy training regimen had allowed them no private time together. Not that it stopped them from stealing kisses and caresses in dark corners of the stables. But a private afternoon ride, with nothing on their schedule to claim their time, presented the perfect opportunity to explore the passion that had flared to life between them. Her mouth went dry.

“Of course, you want your privacy.” He tapped himself on the forehead, and she swallowed back a smile. “Why would you possibly want your superior to join you when you’re probably trying to get away from him?”

“Why indeed?” Flora flicked a hand. “You probably wouldn’t be able to keep up, anyway.”

“Is that a challenge?” He took a step closer. She tried not to notice how wicked he looked with a smirk playing about his lips.

“How very astute you are, my lord.”

He considered her for a long moment, and Flora sensed he was giving her an opportunity to decline his request. But she had no intention of telling him no.

“Meet me at the gate leading out to the east pasture.” She led Banrigh to the mounting block, calling over her shoulder, “Try not to be late, my lord.”

Ten minutes later, they were riding side by side on a narrow path that wove around the east pasture. A bucolic scene unfurled before their mounts’ trotting hooves. Sheep dotted soft rolling hills, their distant bleats blending with the sounds of bees and grasshoppers and the avian predators who hunted them. With every bit of distance they placed between them and the barn, the scents of horses and hay and manure faded and were replaced by lavender and wisteria and jasmine. Flora breathed deeply and closed her eyes, delighting at the feel of the sun on her face and the wind in her hair.

Well, it was still pulled back under her hat, but she allowed herself to imagine it wasn’t, and that she and Banrigh were as free as they were at Loch Kilmorow.

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