Read Online Rory by Julia Templeton - Free Book Online Page B

brother’s room in the dead of night. Apparently her employer hadn’t been the one to open the door minutes before.
    “Lord Graston, I did not expect you home so soon.”
    “When I received the news, I left Harlech as soon as I could.”
    “And Lady Rochester, is she here?”
    “No, she is making her way back with Marilyn, but at a more sensible pace, and by carriage, not horseback.”
    That much was a relief. She feared the other woman would take one look at her and know what had transpired. Lady Graston had such a way of reading a person. “Well, I shall not keep you, then, my lord. I know you must be anxious to see Lord Ambrose.”
    He nodded, his hand on the doorknob. “Edward told me that you have been watching after my brother quite diligently. Thank you for that.”
    “Of course,” she replied, anxious to be away, in her room where she could once again think straight.
    Victor opened the door and Rory glanced at them. His lips spread into a wide smile seeing his brother, and Shannon walked away, her mind returning to the heated moments in the bedchamber.
    Her nipples were still sensitive from where Rory had touched and kissed them, and she still felt an ache between her thighs.
    Heated memories rushed through her, and she hid a smile as she entered the room to her small chamber. She stopped short seeing Zachary sitting in the chair beside the window, his expression one of concern.
    She swallowed hard. “Zachary, what are you doing?”
    He ran a hand down his face. “The question is: What are
ye
doing, Shannon?”
    Her heart lurched. “What do you mean?”
    “Did you not hear the door open, or were ye so enraptured by that rakehell that you did not hear me?”
    Heat rushed to her cheeks and she shifted on her feet. What could she possibly say to defend herself? He had caught her red-handed.
    “I had been roused to receive Lord Graston and I came to wake you, because I did not know if Lady Graston was with him, and I thought she would want you to assist her, but you were gone, and I was concerned. I see that I had every reason to be.”
    How utterly humiliating. She had been naked beneath Rory, and there was no misinterpreting what he had seen.
    If there was one saving grace about the entire situation, it was that she could trust her brother not to say anything. No one else would keep their mouth closed.
    “Shannon, do not be foolish. You know the man’s reputation.He is dangerous, and I know for certain he came from a night with Lady Anna. Johnny could not quit speaking of it after he brought him home.”
    There was a part of her that wanted to know what the other man had said about Rory and Anna, but Shannon realized the two had a history together. Anna was a lady, Rory’s peer, while she was a servant. A plaything and nothing more.
    “Perhaps ye should ask to return to your other duties?” He stood and crossed his arms over his chest. “Shannon, the worst mistake ye could make is giving yourself to him.”
    He was right. She did not need to give up her maidenhead to a scoundrel. It would be a huge, irreversible mistake. “I shall … first thing tomorrow.”
    Taking a deep breath, he released it and shook his head. “Get some rest, and be sure to speak with Edward in the morning. Lord Ambrose is obviously well enough that he does not require constant care.”
    Rory was happy to see his brother. He just wished Victor’s timing had been better.
    Like half an hour later.
    The bed dipped beneath Victor’s weight as he sat down beside him. He could not recall the last time he had seen such a concerned expression on his sibling’s face.
    Victor leaned close and eased the bandage back. Seeing the wound, he frowned. “Bloody hell, Rory, you nearly got yourself killed this time.”
    Touched by his concern, and yet oddly annoyed at his paternal tone, Rory shrugged. “I think you forget that I got off lightly compared to Lord Cordland.”
    “Indeed, I heard,” he murmured, fixing the bandage. “I’m