his hands to his sides.
"Very nice,chérie, " he said. "Very nice indeed. One could only wish that Belgian forests came equipped with mattresses and that chaperons-even ones as lax as yours appears to be-came with no sense of time at all. But we must, alas, be returning to my guests and the safety of numbers."
He offered her his arm with a courtly bow.
And so, Morgan thought, giving him a hard look before taking his arm, he had perhaps won this round of hostilities after all. For of course, he had not kissed her properly, not as one imagined a rake would kiss, not-surely-as he had intended to kiss her.
He had toyed with her instead.
He was a wily foe. She wondered if he would now have tired of the game and would be content to forget her existence after this evening while he went in pursuit of other prey.
Wulfric and Aunt Rochester would have an apoplexy apiece if they could see her now, she thought suddenly. And with good reason. She had taken on the challenge of outfoxing an experienced rake who for some unknown reason had marked her as his newest victim. And she was really not sure which of them had won.
Perhaps it was a stalemate.
CHAPTER IV
ASIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF HIS GUESTS NOTEDtheir return to the main picnic area, Gervase observed, and the direction from which he had come. The same people would have noted his circulating among them earlier with the same lady. They would remember how long he had been with her at an entertainment where even husbands and wives were not expected to remain in each other's company for long.
By tomorrow-or even later this evening-they would have remarked on their observations to others who had perhaps not noticed. He and Lady Morgan Bedwyn would be an item within a very short while, he did not doubt.
As he had planned.
The trouble was that he found himself rather liking her. She was not by any means a simpering chit. And she had backbone. She had played him very well at his own game, and he still had not decided if she had won or not. He had, of course, intended to kiss her far more lasciviously than he had.
He had decided instead to throw her off balance.
But here she was walking at his side, looking cool and ever so slightly bored and oozing aristocratic hauteur from every pore. He might have resented her cool demeanor if he had not been almost sure that hehad ruffled her somewhat.
"Alas," he said with a great sigh, "there is one duty I could not avoid no matter how hard I attempted to run and hide from Monsieur Pepin. I must announce the beginning of the dancing, and I must lead off the first set with the lady of my choice-or the first lady who will consent to dance it with me. And let me see now-I ought to know since Pepin showed me the program and suggested that I commit it to memory. Yes, yes, the first set is to be a waltz. You must dance it with me,chérie . You really must. You waltz well, and I can be sure of not shaming myself before all my guests by treading on your toes.Will you dance it with me?"
He looked at her with a mocking smile and was gratified to see her lips twitch.
"Oh, very well," she said with every evidence of disdain.
It was interesting that she had accepted. Very interesting indeed-though she was very careful not to show that she waseager to waltz with him, of course. She was such a worthy foe. He was sorry that hatred had led him to her and that hatred kept him in pursuit of her. But it was an irresistibly pleasurable thought that word of this evening and her indiscretion in spending so much time in his company would almost without a doubt reach Bewcastle in England.
He led her toward the wooden dancing floor. He handed her up onto it, joined her there, and addressed himself to his guests in the expectant hush that fell. The dancing would begin, he announced. The first set was to be a waltz. He invited them to take their partners and join him andhis partner. Then, without waiting for the floor to fill with prospective dancers, he nodded
"Very nice,chérie, " he said. "Very nice indeed. One could only wish that Belgian forests came equipped with mattresses and that chaperons-even ones as lax as yours appears to be-came with no sense of time at all. But we must, alas, be returning to my guests and the safety of numbers."
He offered her his arm with a courtly bow.
And so, Morgan thought, giving him a hard look before taking his arm, he had perhaps won this round of hostilities after all. For of course, he had not kissed her properly, not as one imagined a rake would kiss, not-surely-as he had intended to kiss her.
He had toyed with her instead.
He was a wily foe. She wondered if he would now have tired of the game and would be content to forget her existence after this evening while he went in pursuit of other prey.
Wulfric and Aunt Rochester would have an apoplexy apiece if they could see her now, she thought suddenly. And with good reason. She had taken on the challenge of outfoxing an experienced rake who for some unknown reason had marked her as his newest victim. And she was really not sure which of them had won.
Perhaps it was a stalemate.
CHAPTER IV
ASIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF HIS GUESTS NOTEDtheir return to the main picnic area, Gervase observed, and the direction from which he had come. The same people would have noted his circulating among them earlier with the same lady. They would remember how long he had been with her at an entertainment where even husbands and wives were not expected to remain in each other's company for long.
By tomorrow-or even later this evening-they would have remarked on their observations to others who had perhaps not noticed. He and Lady Morgan Bedwyn would be an item within a very short while, he did not doubt.
As he had planned.
The trouble was that he found himself rather liking her. She was not by any means a simpering chit. And she had backbone. She had played him very well at his own game, and he still had not decided if she had won or not. He had, of course, intended to kiss her far more lasciviously than he had.
He had decided instead to throw her off balance.
But here she was walking at his side, looking cool and ever so slightly bored and oozing aristocratic hauteur from every pore. He might have resented her cool demeanor if he had not been almost sure that hehad ruffled her somewhat.
"Alas," he said with a great sigh, "there is one duty I could not avoid no matter how hard I attempted to run and hide from Monsieur Pepin. I must announce the beginning of the dancing, and I must lead off the first set with the lady of my choice-or the first lady who will consent to dance it with me. And let me see now-I ought to know since Pepin showed me the program and suggested that I commit it to memory. Yes, yes, the first set is to be a waltz. You must dance it with me,chérie . You really must. You waltz well, and I can be sure of not shaming myself before all my guests by treading on your toes.Will you dance it with me?"
He looked at her with a mocking smile and was gratified to see her lips twitch.
"Oh, very well," she said with every evidence of disdain.
It was interesting that she had accepted. Very interesting indeed-though she was very careful not to show that she waseager to waltz with him, of course. She was such a worthy foe. He was sorry that hatred had led him to her and that hatred kept him in pursuit of her. But it was an irresistibly pleasurable thought that word of this evening and her indiscretion in spending so much time in his company would almost without a doubt reach Bewcastle in England.
He led her toward the wooden dancing floor. He handed her up onto it, joined her there, and addressed himself to his guests in the expectant hush that fell. The dancing would begin, he announced. The first set was to be a waltz. He invited them to take their partners and join him andhis partner. Then, without waiting for the floor to fill with prospective dancers, he nodded
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