Page 14 of Dare to Risk it All

She returned a faint smile that only worsened the sensation and made his chest hurt.

“You must have admirers?” he pressed, wondering if she’d give him names so he could make a list of potential victims.

“Not that I am aware of. I have a lot of friends, though, because I’m great fun,” she added with a quick grin that made him want to haul her into his lap and ravish her again. “But men don’t want a fun wife. They save that for their mistresses. They want a wife to entertain and elevate them in society, someone elegant who will make them proud, never say the wrong thing, and who will make perfect young ladies and gentlemen of their children. Does that sound like me?”

“No, thank God. It sounds tedious beyond bearing.”

“For the wife, certainly,” she retorted, putting up her chin.

Raphe laughed. “Certainly.”

“I’d make an excellent mistress, I suppose,” she said with a sigh, bending down to retrieve her bonnet, which still lay where he’d tossed it to the ground.

“Christ! Don’t say things like that!” he exclaimed, horrified.

She gave a helpless shrug, turning the bonnet in her hands and tugging fretfully at the ribbons. “And there you have it. That’s why no one wants to marry me.”

I do! a voice inside him insisted furiously. Raphe jolted, shocked beyond words. He certainly did not; he told himself sternly. He didn’t! They’d just met, for heaven’s sake. Besides, he didn’t wish to marry anyone. Well, no, not anyone, but….

“Anyway,” she carried on, blithely unaware of the explosions going off in Raphe’s brain. “Never mind that. We’d really better get back or you’ll have to explain yourself to Papa, and I think we’d best avoid that so early in the visit.”

Raphe got up at her urging. His head was still reverberating with shock at the recent revelation that he did not wish to remain a bachelor for the rest of his days, so he did not notice her implication that he would have to explain himself to her father at some point. Chastising himself severely for the entire walk back to the house, he made a solemn vow to put as much distance between himself and Miss Cadogan as possible.

Greer avoided her sister on returning, which gave her a little time on her own while she changed out of her walking dress. This was a blessing, for she was not at all prepared to face her twin. Elspeth knew her far too well.

She had known exactly what Greer was doing in remaining behind after the others had left for the house. Mama had known too, she was certain. Why Mama would allow her to behave in a manner most people would believe forward and wicked, Greer was not entirely sure. Except that Mama had her own rules about life, and certainly about love. She thought perhaps her mother had seen in Raphe what she too had seen. Before she had met him, she had been all agog to meet the shocking libertine who was always in such outrageous scrapes in the scandal sheets. She had thought she knew what kind of man he would be, and in some ways she had been right. He was dangerous and seductive, as she had experienced first-hand. When passion had got the better of him, he’d had the instincts of a predator. That was far from all, though. She had been unprepared for the lost quality she saw in him, the loneliness that clung to him like a heavy cloak, shutting out the light and keeping him apart from everyone else. No wonder he sought comfort in the arms of all those pretty light skirts. It was probably the only time he did not feel so alone. Her chest ached at the thought, and she felt the irresistible desire to take care of him, to make sure he realised he was valued and cared for. That way lay danger, though.

Innocent she might be, but not stupid and certainly not ignorant. Mama had told them all about wicked men and their wiles, and the seductive way he had drawn her into that kiss had not been the least bit surprising. Only the kiss itself had shocked her. She had not expected to feel so much. She had wanted to cry and to laugh at once. It had been so beautiful, so devastating, and yet not nearly enough. Her desire for him had shocked her. Even Mama’s frank warnings about how desire could overwhelm one had not prepared her for the way she had wanted him. All she’d been able to think about was how good it would feel to have the weight of him pressing down upon her, to feel his skin against hers. She’d wanted him to possess her in a way that had frightened her a little, but had not made her want him any less. It would not have been so terribly difficult for him to seduce her. Though she had laughed at him for being dramatic when he had pointed that out, it was closer to the truth than she was comfortable with. Greer was a hoyden, and she knew it, but she was not fool enough to get herself compromised if there was no hope of marrying the man she wanted.

She wanted him. That was undeniable. The only question was, did she want him for always, or was this simply a passing attraction that would fade in time? More pertinent still, would he ever consider marrying at all, let alone marrying her?

Pondering this question as she made her way downstairs, and consumed by memories of that decadent kiss, she was not as prepared as she ought to have been to meet Elspeth.

“Where were you?”

Elspeth stood waiting for her in the grand entrance hall, arms folded.

Greer sighed, knowing her twin was looking out for her, but rather wishing she wouldn’t.

“In my room, getting changed,” she replied, all innocence.

Elspeth snorted, aware that Greer knew that was not what she’d been asking. “I know he can be charming, but he’ll ruin you without batting an eyelid and then go on to the next girl.”

“Oh, Elspeth, I am not entirely witless.”

Elspeth’s expression was taut, but she reached out and took Greer’s hand. “I know that, and I know you think I’m interfering and trying to lord it over you because I’m married, but that isn’t it, Gee. It really isn’t.”

“I know,” Greer grumbled.

“When he arrived here,” Elspeth said, lowering her voice as they walked, “he was in a shocking state. I’ve never seen a man so out of his head. He… well, he was vile, there’s no two ways about it.”

Greer nodded. “And you think he might do it again.”

Elspeth nodded, her eyes filled with concern. “He is trying to reform. I can see that. Indeed, he is unrecognisable from the man I saw all those weeks ago. But since then, he’s not left the estate. He’s been busy working with Dare, but what happens if he returns to town?”

“I understand,” Greer said, knowing it would be foolish to disregard the warning.

“Do you?” Elspeth asked. She stopped, turning to take both Greer’s hands in hers. “You are impulsive like Mama. You know you are. And he’s dreadfully handsome, and charming when he wants to be. And you have a tender heart, Greer. I just don’t want you to fall in love with him and get hurt when he lets you down.”