Tall, Duke, and Dangerous (Hazards of Dukes #2) - Megan Frampton Page 0,24

her arm and held it in front of her as a barrier.

Which he chuckled at, but at least he couldn’t get his hands on her.

He lunged toward her, and she swung the bolt up over her head, slamming it down on top of him, making him stumble.

And then she heard a growl from behind her, and a long arm shot past her and into the man’s face, sending him straight down onto the cobblestones.

That must have hurt.

She spun around, finding herself nose-to-chest with Nash. Of course.

“I had it handled.”

One dark eyebrow rose. “Didn’t look like it.”

“That’s because you interfered.”

He peered over her shoulder at the man lying on the ground, then his gaze darted to the bolt of fabric. “Your plan was to smother him?”

“I’ll have you arrested!” the man moaned, his hand cradling his chin.

Nash strode past Ana Maria to stare down at the man, his hands curled into fists at his side. “You won’t.” His words settled, the threat in them nearly palpable. “In fact, you’ll beg pardon of the lady.”

“I will not!” the man replied.

Nash bent down to stare into the man’s face, not moving, just staring. The man responded by glaring at Nash’s feet. Ana Maria suppressed a giggle.

“Beg pardon,” the man said at last.

“Apology accepted,” Ana Maria replied, tucking the bolt of fabric back under her arm. Nash was still towering over the would-be assailant, and she tugged on his sleeve. “Why don’t you escort me home, Your Grace?”

He snarled. Whether it was because he wanted an opportunity to get into more altercations or because she’d reminded him of his title, she didn’t know.

“Your Grace?” the man echoed.

Ana Maria raised her voice to address him. “Yes, you’ve just been punched by the Duke of Malvern.”

“Ohh.”

“Let’s go,” Nash said in his usual abrupt way. He took the bolt of fabric from her, tucked it under his arm, and held his other arm out for her.

She opened her mouth to inform him she was perfectly capable of carrying her own things, thank you very much, but it wasn’t as though he didn’t know that. He was just being Nash—assuming all the physical duties around him, taking charge without asking, being proprietary about the things and people he cared about.

Oh. That was an unsettling thought. He did care about her, of course. He cared about her because she was Sebastian’s sister, and Thaddeus’s cousin.

But did he care for her as Ana Maria? A person in her own right?

Because she had always been so keenly aware of him, but she’d known he hadn’t paid much attention to her. Ever. Until the night of the ball.

And now it seemed he was turning up everywhere—not so much like a bad penny as a brutal force of nature.

There was something rather primitively exciting about it all. Though she should not be having those kinds of thoughts about her brother’s best friend.

She gave herself a mental shake, then realized he was guiding her toward a pub. Not the King’s Arms, but another one. What was it about men wanting to buy her ale?

“I thought you were escorting me home?” Unless he was so determined to get into a physical altercation he couldn’t wait until he saw her to her door.

“We need to talk.”

She snorted. “You? Talk?”

He pushed the door to the pub open, leading her inside, and heading toward a table where one lone man sat. “Off,” he said, and the man scurried away.

Nash grunted, and settled her in the man’s seat.

“I can talk,” he said at last.

Ana Maria rolled her eyes. “Yes, and I can sing. But neither of us can do those things very well.”

A barmaid appeared at the table. “What’ll ye have?”

Nash looked at Ana Maria. “Well, I don’t know what to order,” she said.

“Two ales.”

“Right away.”

“What do we have to talk about?” She didn’t mean to speak in an aggressive tone, and yet here she was. “Because I don’t think we have anything to talk about. Except for you agreeing to let me handle things on my own.”

“Not going to do that.” His eyes held an intensity that made her tingle. “I’m going to handle things for you.”

Oh.

Chapter Seven

Even in the relative dark of the pub, Nash could see the angry spark in Ana Maria’s eyes. “You’re not going to do that? And who are you to decide how I am to comport myself?”

I’m your protector.

And her brother’s best friend. That was all.

But he couldn’t rid himself of the memory of walking into that room where that oafish lord