Page 76 of The Lord Meets His Lady
Samuel crossed his arms, straining his blue coat. “I know what you’re thinking. Let it go.”
“What am I thinking?”
Samuel shook his head. “She’s a fine young woman with more spirit than most. Don’t think to use her for sex and cast her aside.”
“Coming to her aid all of a sudden?” Marcus taunted.
Samuel stalked to the fireplace, his voice low as he faced Marcus. “She’s a lowborn woman. Don’t use her for sex. We both know you’ll leave someday and find a woman of your station.” A mischievous smile flashed. “Why not let her swan about as Lady Marcus Bowles? Then she could cry impotence to the courts as reason for leaving you.”
“Very funny.”
“I’m serious.” The smile faded, and Samuel’s eyes were keen. “Impotence is another option. You want to help Miss Turner, don’t you? How far will you go to protect her?”
Marcus rubbed his breastbone with the heel of his hand. Allow ravaging testimony about his manhood in court? He hoped his brother had a bride ready and would wed her soon…before damaging gossip drifted south.
“The noble thing would be to give her the protection of my nameanddeliver her to her grandmother. It’s why she came north in the first place.”
Samuel slapped his shoulder. “Now you’re thinking.”
A parched sensation clawed at Marcus’s throat. His sight line wandered to the lone cabinet in the parlor, empty save a few books. Those tomes sat in place of whiskey bottles. His vices. He’d exiled himself to become a changed man, but he’d never expected to pay such personal costs.
How far should a man go to rescue a woman in need, a woman he harbored deep affection for?
Miss Turner appeared in the doorway, her face washed, her gloves on, and her red hood framing her pretty visage. Big dark eyes shined with depth. However absurd this marriage idea was, she was ready to take charge of her life.
Marcus pasted a smile on his face. Samuel thought he wanted her for convenient sex. It was his own fault that Samuel saw him that way. He couldn’t deny Genevieve Turner’s ripe curves appealed to him. Pushing off the mantel, a deeper question gnawed at him.
What if he never let her go?
