Read Online A Timeless Romance Anthology: European Collection by Annette Lyon, G. G. Vandagriff, Michele Paige Holmes, Sarah M. Eden, Heather B. Moore, Nancy Campbell Allen - Free Book Online Page A

lights.”
    “Yes, Lord Kent. He has taken up a stand for the repeal of the Corn Laws.”
    “I know this is a ridiculous question to ask of you at this time, but have you any strong feelings about the Corn Law Tariffs? I agree with Papa’s stance. A tariff keeps the price of grain so high that poor people cannot buy bread.”
    “I grow grain on my estate, Melissa. If the tariffs remain in place, the price I get for my crops will be stable and adequate to make a profit. This benefits you and our future children.”
    Melissa swallowed but remained silent. Yes, our children will have plenty to eat, but what about the poor?
    “Such talk is absurd,” she said, forcing a little laugh and tightening her grip on Thomas’s hand. “What matters is that I love you and you love me. Not the price of corn.”
    Her new husband took her in his arms and looked into her face. His eyes were remarkably expressive. The fires that had stirred within them when he was aroused were now banked somewhere in their depths. At the moment, they caressed her with a tender light.
    “I do love you,” he said.
    He began kissing the nape of her neck. She quivered at the slightest touch of his lips, the quivers growing into shakes as he kissed her along her hairline until he met her ear. He whispered, “You are my wife. Is it not wonderful?” There was a catch in his voice, but then he moved his lips to Melissa’s closed eyelids, to the tip of her nose, and finally, to her mouth. His passion grew steadily until it engulfed her, warming her from the inside out. She was glad they had had at least three days together in wayside inns before returning to London and facing the consequences of their actions. There was bound to be scandal, and her mother, at least, would not be pleased.
    On their wedding night, they stayed at the King’s Arms in Lancaster. For dinner, they had shepherd’s pie and wine then spent the night in each other’s arms. The next day, by making an early start, they got all the way to Birmingham. For a bit of diversion, Melissa played cards with her new husband and won three guineas.
    “I hope you are not a gambler, sir. Either you are letting me win, or you play very ill indeed.”
    He laughed and managed to look like a mischievous boy. His tanned complexion and sun-kissed hair, mussed from running his fingers through it, told her that he spent much time in outdoor sport. She ought to know more about him than she did. Was he indeed a sports-mad Corinthian? Melissa hoped that he avoided excessive addiction to betting and dangerous horse-racing.
    Casting these thoughts aside, she put her head on his chest, and recalled the first time she had looked into those expressive brown eyes. Melissa remembered the delicious sensation of falling headlong into bliss with a man who seemed to see her innermost self. It had been during her first waltz at her come-out ball. That night, as she recalled the sensation from the warmth of her bed, she had written in her journal, “Our souls kissed.”
    Now, as his hand rubbed circles on her back, she asked, “What did you think of me when you first met me?”
    He kissed her forehead. “It was uncanny, actually. There seemed to be no barriers at all between us when we waltzed. I thought you could see straight inside me. But later, I thought I must have been mistaken. It was several weeks before you even looked my way again.”
    “I felt the same way about you, but I convinced myself that it was only because I was such a green girl.” She put up a hand to caress his face. “Thank heavens you were persistent. The night of the masquerade ball, it all came back to me. I think it was because of that daring Red Indian costume you wore.”
    He chuckled. “Planned with you in mind, my love. I was a peacock, fanning my tail for you.”
    “It worked,” she said, initiating a burning kiss.
    The following day, they arrived in London at ten o’clock in the evening. Exhausted by three long days in the