Was she ill?
Was it because she knew she was safe with him? She gave her head a little shake, hoping that by doing so, she could escape this confusing euphoria.
“My brother?” She focused her gaze on the whiskers just above his lips. What had he just asked her?
“Did Captain Edgeworth mention speaking with your brother?”
“No.” Her voice rasped. “Did you?”
His eyes widened in surprise, and then one side of his mouth curled up. “Your brother and I understand one another.”
“And so.” It was Diana who looked away this time. “Because of thisunderstanding, it is acceptable foryouto pin me against a tree?”
Lord Greystone would never court her in earnest. He was only one title away from being a duke.This is only pretend.
So, why was her body responding to him as though it wasn’t?
“Like comparing apples to oranges,” he said. “This is different.”
Precisely what I’ve been saying!
But she was too overwhelmed to attempt to explain. “How?” She wanted to know if he was experiencing even a fraction of the feelings she was.
“If you tell me to move away, I will. And the very second you appear threatened or give me any hint of fear, I will step away and return you to where you feel safe.”
Diana inhaled. That wasn’t the answer she wanted to her question. She already knew she was utterly safe with him.
“And Captain Edgeworth wouldn’t do the same?”
“By not speaking with your brother or ensuring you are well-chaperoned, he’s shown disregard for your well-being and reputation. He’s set a less than impressive precedent for future behavior.”
The marquess leaned forward, and the taste of his breath on her lips reminded her of falling on him in the middle of the lake. At one moment, her mouth had been scandalously close to his.
Only this time, neither of them was laughing.
He was only pretending. This was a game—a scheme.
“And is that the only difference?” she asked. Was that breathy sound coming out of her mouth her voice?
Kiss me.
She tilted her head back and licked her lips.Kiss me.
This wasn’t at all the sort of husband-hunting Bethany had had in mind for her. Wrong man, wrong circumstances, wrong, wrong, wrong.
She wasn’t supposed to invite intimacies with a man who had no interest whatsoever in marrying her.
Besides, he was her brother’s friend, and she’d always considered him stuffy and ancient.
He did not seem at all ancient tonight. His silver gaze focused on her mouth and then lifted again to her eyes, slightly hooded now. Ah, yes, he too felt the weight of this dubious attraction. She might be young and naïve, but she was still a woman. And any woman would comprehend the meaning behind that look.
Diana licked her lips once more. Perhaps she wasn’t so very naïve after all.
She was to be disappointed though, because instead of closing the distance between the two of them, he straightened his shoulders, dropped his hand, and stepped back.
Leaving her feeling oddly bereft and—slightly devastated.
“You don’t want to kiss me?” She wouldn’t ask such an embarrassing question if she didn’t believe that he too had wanted it.
