Read Online An Affair of Honor (Rebel Hearts Book 2) by Heather Boyd - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Heather Boyd
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moment of scrutiny.
“I’ll lurk if you’ll lurk with me.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’ll convince them today, and you will pay me well enough for the trouble,” she insisted.
She gathered up her skirts in one hand, and William caught a glimpse of her slender ankles encased in dowdy stockings. She still needed the new ones he could have paid for last year if she’d accepted his gift of coin for the purchase, and once he considered her stocking covered legs his mind traveled upward to her well-rounded bottom. He gritted his teeth. Damn, but dressing her up for this little play might not have been his best idea for continued peace of mind.
“Where is dear William?” Maria asked in a shrill voice that carried into the hall with perfect clarity.
Matilda’s eyes rose with a question and he nodded. “That’s her,” he whispered.
William held on to Matilda’s elbow just a little tighter as his father replied, “Nothing could keep him away.”
Father had wanted this alliance since he’d been a boy, never understanding why William fought the connection.
“He’ll be here when he’s ready,” his grandfather proclaimed in a raised voice, surely meant to reassure William that at least someone in the room might be on his side.
William drew in a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and braced himself to face his family with his new and scarred face. He did not look the same as they would remember, and he was sure they would be taken aback when they saw him for the first time.
He kept his gaze down and only when he passed the arch and the thick rug appeared in his line of sight did he lift his face and show them the changes. “Here I am, for better or worse.”
Audrey, Evelyn, and Victoria screamed and ran to him like wild creatures of the woods.
Feminine arms wrapped around him tightly, and through the overwhelming babble he discovered they didn’t care one whit about the alteration of his features. They proved they missed him, as they always did when he’d been away, but this time their enthusiasm toppled them to the carpeted floor in a tangle of arms and legs. William came to rest on his back among the trio.
“Dear God, you’re all heathens,” he cried out as Eve prodded his scar with no fear or evident revulsion and Victoria scrubbed his head, disturbing his hair.
“Does it hurt?” Eve asked boldly, rubbing her fingertips over the rough and bumpy scar just as Matilda sometimes did when applying a cream to ease an itch.
He’d much rather Matilda’s gentle fingers than Evelyn’s prodding, so he moved out of danger. “Not now.”
“You talk funny,” Audrey said after adjusting her gown. At least she held back from attacking him with affection. “Your words slur just a little too.”
“So they do.” Despite his best efforts to cure himself, he still had trouble making his mouth do what he wanted all the time. When he smiled, he was left with the suspicion that he was utterly terrifying to others.
“It doesn’t matter,” Victoria insisted with a grin. “You still sound enough like our surly brother that you could never be mistaken for an impostor.”
He sat up, shaking his head. “I cannot believe we’re having this conversation on the floor.”
“We don’t care where we are,” Victoria claimed. “We are so very glad to see our big brother.”
He took in the faces of three women most dear to him, noting how much they’d grown, changed, in the past year while he’d been at sea. They were stunning, and his hope for a quiet and uneventful season died a sudden death. They would undoubtedly be popular with the gentlemen in society, and that meant he’d have to be right by their sides for each event they attended. He needed to keep a watchful eye over them and make sure they were not pestered or imposed upon and that his family didn’t marry them off to unworthy men.
“Girls, girls,” Maria said as she broke into their conversation.
William looked up into the
“I’ll lurk if you’ll lurk with me.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’ll convince them today, and you will pay me well enough for the trouble,” she insisted.
She gathered up her skirts in one hand, and William caught a glimpse of her slender ankles encased in dowdy stockings. She still needed the new ones he could have paid for last year if she’d accepted his gift of coin for the purchase, and once he considered her stocking covered legs his mind traveled upward to her well-rounded bottom. He gritted his teeth. Damn, but dressing her up for this little play might not have been his best idea for continued peace of mind.
“Where is dear William?” Maria asked in a shrill voice that carried into the hall with perfect clarity.
Matilda’s eyes rose with a question and he nodded. “That’s her,” he whispered.
William held on to Matilda’s elbow just a little tighter as his father replied, “Nothing could keep him away.”
Father had wanted this alliance since he’d been a boy, never understanding why William fought the connection.
“He’ll be here when he’s ready,” his grandfather proclaimed in a raised voice, surely meant to reassure William that at least someone in the room might be on his side.
William drew in a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and braced himself to face his family with his new and scarred face. He did not look the same as they would remember, and he was sure they would be taken aback when they saw him for the first time.
He kept his gaze down and only when he passed the arch and the thick rug appeared in his line of sight did he lift his face and show them the changes. “Here I am, for better or worse.”
Audrey, Evelyn, and Victoria screamed and ran to him like wild creatures of the woods.
Feminine arms wrapped around him tightly, and through the overwhelming babble he discovered they didn’t care one whit about the alteration of his features. They proved they missed him, as they always did when he’d been away, but this time their enthusiasm toppled them to the carpeted floor in a tangle of arms and legs. William came to rest on his back among the trio.
“Dear God, you’re all heathens,” he cried out as Eve prodded his scar with no fear or evident revulsion and Victoria scrubbed his head, disturbing his hair.
“Does it hurt?” Eve asked boldly, rubbing her fingertips over the rough and bumpy scar just as Matilda sometimes did when applying a cream to ease an itch.
He’d much rather Matilda’s gentle fingers than Evelyn’s prodding, so he moved out of danger. “Not now.”
“You talk funny,” Audrey said after adjusting her gown. At least she held back from attacking him with affection. “Your words slur just a little too.”
“So they do.” Despite his best efforts to cure himself, he still had trouble making his mouth do what he wanted all the time. When he smiled, he was left with the suspicion that he was utterly terrifying to others.
“It doesn’t matter,” Victoria insisted with a grin. “You still sound enough like our surly brother that you could never be mistaken for an impostor.”
He sat up, shaking his head. “I cannot believe we’re having this conversation on the floor.”
“We don’t care where we are,” Victoria claimed. “We are so very glad to see our big brother.”
He took in the faces of three women most dear to him, noting how much they’d grown, changed, in the past year while he’d been at sea. They were stunning, and his hope for a quiet and uneventful season died a sudden death. They would undoubtedly be popular with the gentlemen in society, and that meant he’d have to be right by their sides for each event they attended. He needed to keep a watchful eye over them and make sure they were not pestered or imposed upon and that his family didn’t marry them off to unworthy men.
“Girls, girls,” Maria said as she broke into their conversation.
William looked up into the
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