The Highlander's Forbidden Mistress - Anna Campbell Page 0,8

when she was with the lout she was engaged to. Whenever she mentioned her son, she smiled. If Brock got her to himself, he’d make sure she smiled all the time.

She firmed her grip on his hand. His heart gave a mighty thump. Dear God, she was holding his hand, and he was about to go up in flames. He hadn’t been in such a lather about a female since he was a lad. Not even then.

She went on in a low voice. "I’m not nearly so proper as I like to pretend I am."

Oh? Now that was intriguing. "So you’ll do this?"

"I should say no. It’s mad that I’m even considering it."

"This is our chance, Selina. Don’t pass it up because you’re afraid."

She gave a choked laugh and to his regret tugged her hand free. "I am afraid."

"And interested?"

"And interested." She studied him with a worried frown. "But how would we manage it? I have to marry Cecil after Christmas, and I can’t let any harm come to Gerald. If you know of a way we can do this safely, I’d like to hear it."

Brock gave a shout of laughter and threw himself back onto the settle. "You’re magnificent, Selina. More magnificent even than I thought, and I’ve spent the week wondering why nobody else has marked what an extraordinary treasure you are."

She frowned, deep brown eyes still troubled. His extravagant praise didn’t ease her concerns, he could see. "I still don’t understand why you would."

"Don’t you?"

When she sat beside him, he settled his gaze on her. He’d watched her all week, careful not to attract the other guests’ attention. It was a relief and a pleasure to stare at her and drink his full.

"No, I don’t. I truly am as dull as everyone believes. If we do this reckless thing, you’re going to end up being frightfully disappointed."

He laughed again on a gentler note, and cupped her cheek in one hand. She started under his touch but didn’t pull away. "I doubt it. You’re the most enchanting creature I’ve ever met. And the most elusive."

Her lips turned down. "That’s what I fear. The lure of the chase made you notice me. Now I’ve stopped running, you’ll decide I wasn’t worth hunting in the first place."

"You make me sound like a cat torturing a mouse," he protested.

When her eyes ate him up, possessive yearning twisted his gut. He knew Selina had no idea that whenever she looked at him, her gaze sharpened with carnal hunger. He’d caught this avid expression a few times, and every time he’d ached to seize her in his arms and tell the curious world to go to hell.

"There’s something a little cruel about you, Lord Bruard."

"Brock."

She hadn’t objected when he called her Selina. Now he watched her delicate features soften. When she spoke his name, it sounded like a benediction. "Brock."

Tenderness sliced through him, sharp as a knife, and he leaned in to kiss her. He kept enough grip on strategy to rein in his passion – although passion stirred as powerful as a dragon waking in its cave.

She made a faint sound of surprise, and her lips fluttered beneath his. She tasted like honey. She kissed like an untried maiden. For a burning second, sweetness overwhelmed him.

Brock wasn’t a man who did sweetness. Or tenderness. But something about this slender woman with her dark blond hair and sad eyes sparked protective instincts that he hadn’t known he possessed.

She pulled back. Which was probably a good thing. Because now wasn’t the time to push her to greater intimacies. The settle concealed them from the doorway, but as she said, anyone could come in. If they were discovered alone like this, it would cause scandal enough. If they were kissing, the fat would truly hit the fire.

He dropped his hand from her face. In part because he hadn’t counted on the heady effect of touching her. During this house party, he’d slept alone, despite plenty of opportunities for company. But compared to Selina Martin’s refined beauty, every other woman here seemed overblown and obvious.

As Selina raised a trembling hand to touch her lush lips, her eyes were round with astonishment. He had plans for those lips, plans that had kept him randy and restless all week. How could a woman with a mouth made for sin imagine that any man could find her disappointing?

"That was…"

"A promise of more to come." He caught her hand again. Now he’d touched her, it was impossible to stop. "Will