Page 48 of Tempting the Earl

Losh! He was bluidy gorgeous.

Refined. Elegant. And so understatedly yet unapologetically handsome. Very simply heart-flutteringly male.

Of course, in the back of her mind she’d realized he would also be attending the party tonight. But she hadn’t actually allowed herself to consider that they’d be going together. As in...he’d be her escort for the night, even if only in appearance.

Then suddenly, she recalled his elusive behavior over the last few days and her spine stiffened.

How awful for the poor man. After so intently avoiding her, he was now going to be forced to have her on his arm at such an important—and public—event. He must be absolutely dreading the evening.

If she could endure the torment, so could he.

With a lift of her chin, she continued across the hall. Forcing a somewhat smirking smile, she gave an intentionally casual greeting. “Good evening, my lord. I dinnae realize I was keeping you waiting.”

“Not at all, Miss Morgan.” He cleared his throat. “You look very lovely.”

Searching his face for some indication he might be patronizing her, she saw nothing to suggest such. But neither did she see any clear evidence of admiration.

Just being polite, then.

“Thank you,” she replied with forced lightness, then added, “And you look quite dashing.”

He really did, but for some reason, her words caused a quick, barely noticeable press of his lips. A sure indication of dissatisfaction.

Before she could respond, Shaw stepped out from the shadows with her cloak draped over one arm and the earl’s top hat and gloves in the other hand. The earl stepped forward to take his hat, but as soon as he placed it on his head, he took her cloak from the butler as well.

Before Ainsworth could protest—not that she would have when it would’ve been a rude and rather odd reaction, indeed—the earl shook out the cloak and held it up, clearly intending to assist her. She had no choice but to approach and allow him to set the garment around her shoulders.

It should have been a simple maneuver, one she wouldn’t even have thought about if it had been Shaw holding the cloak. But as she neared and caught a heady whiff of the earl’s scent, something ignited inside her. It was swift and intense and impossible to ignore. And quite likely, impossible to hide.

His expression remained as stern as ever, but the minute tightening of his jaw and subtle flare of his nostrils suggested he’d noticed her reaction to him.

Or perhaps he was simply fighting his own reaction to her?

She greatly preferred that possibility and the thought made her smile as she turned in place to give him her back. She almost missed the flash of confusion in his eyes when he saw the curve of her lips.

He set the summer cloak over her shoulders with gentle ease as his low-spoken words flowed past her ear. “We don’t have to stay long if you’d rather not.”

She understood he was trying to be considerate of the fact that she was unaccustomed to such formal socializing, and she appreciated it, but his recent behavior still irked her and she couldn’t stop herself from being contrary.

“Not at all, my lord,” she replied lightly as she turned back to face him. “I’m looking forward to the evening.”

He stared at her for a moment, as though trying to gauge her mood. She intentionally flashed another bright smile.

With a quick inhale through his nose, he took his gloves from Shaw and slipped them on before offering his arm. “Shall we, then?”

“By all means.”

She slipped her hand into the bend of his elbow and her breath caught unexpectedly. Even through the layers of his clothing and her soft gloves, she could feel the warmth and lean strength of his arm. The image of his half-bared body flashed in her mind and heat roared through her blood.

Because as soon as she recalled what he’d looked like in the kitchen that night, she recalled what he’d felt like. And then she recalled what he’d kissed like. What he’d tasted like—rich and heady with an inexplicable hint of something mysterious and ardent.

She realized with sudden clarity what bothered her most about his abrupt departure that night. She’d finally started getting a sense of who he was beneath his staid reserve and she liked it. She really liked it. But he’d put an end to it all before she could fully explore the depths she’d only just discovered.

She felt as though she’d been cheated out of some prize. A prize she suspected was worth far more than anyone knew.

As the earl assisted her into the carriage, she slid a glance in his direction.

His expression remained as always, but when his gaze flickered to hers, she saw just a hint of that mystery there in his eyes. Carefully shielded. Fully restrained.

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