When a Rogue Falls: A Rogues of the Road Novel by sasha cottman

Author:sasha cottman [cottman, sasha]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cottman Data Services Pty Ltd

Chapter Twenty

He must be a magnificent lover. There can be no other reason why all these women are staring at him.

The lust-filled glances that were shot at Stephen from every direction as they arrived at the party later that night had Bridget gritting her teeth. She could have sworn she heard the flutter of eyelashes being batted. And if come-hither looks had a voice, it would be a dull roar.

Her faint hopes that the experience of the first time she had appeared with Stephen in public might have been an anomaly were quickly dashed. Women hungered for him.

They are not even attempting to be subtle.

He leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Ignore them. We have more important things to consider. Besides, you are with me, which means to all intents and purposes we are together.”

Stephen placed his hand in the small of Bridget’s back, and it was all she could not to grin. He was hers for the evening, and the other women were just going to have to keep their distance. And while it was good to have a man beside her, she resisted the temptation to once more indulge in a private fantasy of them being a real couple.

This is just for show.

Their progress into the ballroom came to a sudden halt when an elegant raven-haired matron stepped in front of Stephen. She placed a hand on his chest and dramatically sighed. “My dearest Stephen, when I heard of your recent loss, I was devastated. You poor man.”

Bridget held her nerve, doing everything not to show the slightest hint of jealousy over the woman’s behavior. Stephen Moore was an imposing, handsome specimen of the male species. It was natural that he attracted attention. She just wished it didn’t bother her as much as it did.

“Thank you for your kind words. Would you please excuse us?” he replied.

He grabbed a hold of Bridget’s hand and dragged her toward the nearest exit leading out into the garden. Once outside, he kept walking. They were well away from the rest of the gathering when Stephen finally stopped. “That woman . . .” he began.

“Is none of my business. I understand how this works. You don’t need to explain yourself to me,” she replied.

Their gazes met, but instead of the usual calm look on his face, he appeared flustered. Dare she think embarrassed?

“I had a brief liaison with her some time ago. I made my position clear both before and after, but unfortunately some ladies find it difficult to take ‘no’ for an answer.”

“Of course.” Bridget hated the edge of disappointment in her voice. She might not appreciate the woman throwing herself in front of Stephen in such a public way, but she could understand it. What she couldn’t fully accept was why he was so determined to keep a real relationship at bay.

“Affairs create expectations, and I cannot fulfil any of them,” he replied.

“So, you just sample the delights of female company but never stay for the main course?”

Stephen’s brows furrowed.

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.