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When she had put down the candlestick on the dresser, A
A
She read curiosity and desire in his eyes before his mouth lowered to hers. And the woman in her came fully awake again after four years. She had not been kissed like this since De
But suddenly his face was above hers and he was talking to her. She stared up at him, dazed.
"Have you not been touched before, A
"My lord?"
And then he spoke words that brought her jolting back to the full and horrible reality of her situation, to the degradation of what she was doing and about to do.
"Have you had no man inside you, girl?" he said.
The words shocked her so deeply that she completely lost all control over her reactions. His words meant the same as if he had asked her if she were a virgin. But they so graphically described what she had been about to do-with a complete stranger.
She hardly heard the gentle words of reassurance, hardly comprehended that she was not going to be taken by force. The only fact that she did realize finally was that he had stood aside and was indicating that he expected her to leave. A
She did not know what the morning would bring. In all likelihood Viscount Merrick would leave as soon as the snow had melted enough to make the roads passable. She would never see him again. But surely he had given her the incentive she needed to come out of the sleep that had lasted far too long. She was a woman and still young. She could never be a beauty, but she could make herself at least passable if she lost weight and if she made an effort to dress and to style her hair more fashionably. A
Chapter 3
"I-I don't understand, my lord," A
Viscount Merrick was in the library, standing at the window. His back was to the room. He stared out at the snow that still blanketed the gardens outside, even though water was already dripping from the roof. He did not immediately answer her unstated query. Finally, he turned to face her, a smile on his rather white face.
"I meant just what I said, Miss Parrish," he said. "Have you never had an offer of marriage before? I would be honored if you will consent to become my wife. Is that clear enough for you? And will you, ma'am?"
A
A
But this was not a dream. She was fully awake in the library, the most familiar room in the house. The logs were crackling in the fireplace. And the breathless nervousness she was feeling was not the sort of reaction that she ever felt in her dreams. In those, she was always very much in command of a situation. Viscount Merrick had asked her to marry him. She took a deep breath.
"I do not understand," she said again. "You do not know me, my lord."
He moved from the window and came to stand a few feet in front of her, his hands clasped behind his back. A
"Bruce?" she said, dazed. "You have asked Bruce?"
"Yes, indeed," he said, and smiled anew. "Did you believe I was asking you to run away to Gretna Green with me?"
"Oh, there would be no need," she said seriously, a split second before she realized that she was being teased. "I am of age, you know."