Abandoned to the Prodigal - Mary Lancaster Page 0,66

the house and closed the door by leaning on it. All without breaking the kiss.

Laughter broke from her, and his lips smiled on hers, slowly releasing them. His arms were under her cloak, one palm flat across her semi-naked back, the other resting intimately on her hip, burning through the thin silk of her gown.

“I have to stop kissing you,” he said huskily. “Or we have to talk.”

“Talk,” she said and kissed him again.

He deepened it for a breathless moment, sweeping both hands over her body, then held her close and pressed his cheek to hers.

“Soon?” he said.

“Soon,” she agreed, smiling, for washing through her was the knowledge that had been growing since she’d met him.

His thumb touched her lips, even as he fumbled open the door behind him, and stepped out, drawing it closed behind him.

She blinked at the door, for tears had started to her eyes, and yet she wanted to laugh and run and shout with joy. For this was what she had been struggling with all week. What she had waited for all her life without even knowing.

Love. I love Dan.

Chapter Sixteen

How can I not have known before?

She laughed at herself as she ran back across the hall and up the staircase. Because I have not yet known him a fortnight! Can one really fall in love so quickly?

There were no rules. She could not deny the way she felt. She reminded herself that two weeks ago, she had imagined she loved Jeremy. That had been an illusion, pleasant while it lasted. This—this overwhelmed her, consumed her.

And yet in another two weeks would this illusion not have faded too?

Her lips, the lips he had kissed, curved into a smile of self-knowledge as she slipped past the drawing room door. Inside, her mother and aunt were talking. Everyone else, it seemed, had gone to bed.

“My dear, it was a long time ago,” her aunt’s voice soothed. “I cannot imagine him carrying a torch for her still. Not when you and he have a lifetime together, three beautiful children…”

Juliet passed on, a hint of concern for her mother piercing her own selfish happiness. Could the countess truly be concerned by Mrs. Stewart’s reappearance in her husband’s life? Did she trust him so little?

Juliet had always assumed her parents’ love for each other. They supported each other, rarely quarreled, and had always been perfectly comfortable in each other’s company—at least according to Juliet’s observations and recollections.

But her mother thought she was second best, married only when Jenny Myerly rejected him. And now Jenny was back, still a fascinating woman.

Juliet paused with one foot on the next flight of stairs. A lock of hair had fallen across her neck, and she hastily pulled out the other pins, letting down all her tresses before twisting them into a hasty knot and holding it in place. She blushed and smiled all over again as she remembered how her hair had been ruffled against his arm, his shoulder, his lips…

Further along the gallery, a light shone under the library door. Her father’s retreat. Impulsively, she withdrew her foot from the step and walked on to the library. She hesitated a moment outside the door, but hearing no voices, she knocked and went in.

Her father sat in his favorite armchair, his legs stretched out in front of him as he frowned down at his clasped hands. His gaze lifted. “Juliet.” His voice sounded pleased, although the frown did not vanish.

“Papa? Is everything well?”

“I think it is. Both Alford and Jeremy are impressed by the dignity you have shown in this difficult situation. And it hasn’t hurt that our friends and neighbors have welcomed you back among them as though nothing happened. According to Alford, Jeremy is now prepared to resume the engagement.”

It was like a splash of cold water, halting her in her tracks. “But I don’t want to marry Jeremy anymore. He does not love me, and frankly, I have come to despise him.”

Her father’s frown deepened. “Don’t be so childish, Juliet. This scandal hangs over you like the sword of Damocles. Marriage with Jeremy Catesby is your best hope. Our best hope. It is the only thing that will counter Barden’s continued fanning of the flames.”

“Barden? The man is a total blackguard. After what he has done, what we know he has done, he actually believes I will marry him!”

“Yes, well, if you don’t take Jeremy back, Barden is your only other option,” her father said brutally. “If you marry Barden, he’ll