He moved his rook. “Of course. Thewhobeing you.”
She frowned in concentration and moved hercastle, taking one of his pawns. “Well…it lent to my fantasies thata prince would come and sweep me off my feet. I embellished thestory, how they met when she had fallen off her horse and brokenher ankle…which had happened to me months before in a neighboringvillage. How the prince had come at that precise moment with hiscoach and how they immediately fell in love.”
“In no time the whole village was preenedand outfitted waiting for the illustrious guest to arrive…who nevercame. Molly asked if I knew anything about the rumors. I couldn’tlie.”
“After my admission, Molly was in a terribletemper. What kind of daughter was she raising to be part of thisdeceit and befalling a trap of the devil? She marched me over tothe Cornett sisters and made me apologize.” Alexandra studied herhands in her lap.
“And?” Nicolas prompted.
He saw her glance drift over his open shirtand caress him there.
She swallowed hard and said, wistfully,“Well, there are some roads I do not need to travel. Mollyregretted it the minute we left. The Cornett sisters do not forgetan offense and made my life miserable.”
He didn’t need to ask what trouble twospiteful old harridans would cause. Despite the difficulties thrownher way, Alexandra rose above her hardships, showing no bitternessor acrimony.
Her turquoise eyes, her smile, her sweetnesssnared him. He didn’t want to feel this way. He had so manyresponsibilities facing him in England. He had a lot to learn aboutthe ducal properties and a lot to prove to his father, if hisfather were still alive, and if they ever got off this island. Andresponsibility? He shouldered a huge burden, preserving the Rutlandlegacy. No. He couldn’t be sidetracked with an attraction toAlexandra.
But they could be there forever, and whatthen? What harm would there be, especially if they were neverrescued. They could be fated to live out their lives together.
He reviewed her story, divulging she was abaron’s daughter. Was she a con artist in addition to a thief? Thesimplest truth was more powerful than an elaborate lie and hadeasily trapped Nicholas’s friend in a scam that lost him thousandsof pounds. Could Alexandra weave such a web? Perhaps she was aseasoned seductress.
On the chance he did get off the island andreturned to England he could make inquiries. He’d ask Lady Ursula.Yet if what Alexandra said about her history was true, Lady Ursulawould lie.
Nicholas drummed his fingers on the table.But Alexandra seemed without guile, and the soul of honesty andsincerity. He remembered the words of his brother, Joshua who waswise beyond his years.
Men would rather deny a hard truth thanaccept it.
Nicholas fiddled with his chess piece. Ifshe was telling the truth, she was the sort who deserved a foreverkind of man, but with her unproven background, her insertion intosociety would be difficult. To introduce her to a lesser kind oflord bore possibilities. Alexandra in the arms of someone else?Some stuffy aristocrat, caressing the line down her back andbeyond…her slim legs wrapped… A demon of jealousy rose and twistedinside him. He’d lock her up before he’d allow that.
She moved her queen into final position andher eyes met his with a force that licked through his body. Why didhe have the sense he had been waltzed backward?
Alexandra had his king surrounded. “LordNicolas, am I playing the game correctly?” She pasted a benignexpression on her face while she twirled his king.
Oh, how she loved the dawning realization onhis face. With a flick of her finger, she knocked his king over.“Checkmate.”
He stared her down. “I have beenoutflanked.”
“To think I defeated the Oxford ChessChampion on my first try. I must be terribly lucky.” Shelaughed.
“You have the presence of a hummingbird withshark’s teeth. I’ll never underestimate you again.” Nicolas jammedthe chess pieces away. “You could have let me win.”
Alexandra scoffed. “You wouldn’t wantvictory that cheaply. It would be an insult. Looks like a trip tothe shore tomorrow to confirm we reside on Alexandra Island,” shereminded him.
“I promise I will repay you.”
“Is that so? With coconuts and mangos?”
“You do not think I will get even?”
“Does an ape flinch when a monkey throws abanana at him?” She laughed, and then the candle sputtered out,concealing them in darkness, the last red speck of the taper lightglowing like a firefly. She walked outside, an unexpected ache inher heart growing from the evening concluding. She stumbled. Beforeshe could react, Nicholas’s hand closed around her upper arm tosteady her. She started at his touch, his breath grazing hercheek.
He murmured an apology and released herarm.
She had not realized he was walking almostat her heels or that he had been observing her.
Alexandra glanced over her shoulder, but hewas staring ahead.
His lonely hammock clung to the gloom.Behind her the cottage surrendered to a sphere of twilight.
