“It’s just that…” She drew in a long breath.“Whenever I ask about your life, your answers are always very vague.”
Inwardly, he grimaced.What had Ralph said?He kept people at a distance.Could she understand what being raised by a man very similar to Eugene had done to him?And what would Priscilla think if he told her about Angela?About how a woman had decided he wasn’t fit to be a husband?
“Vague?”He grimaced as he scrubbed the back of his neck.
“Yes,” she pulled a section of lace from the rack.“For example, when I asked you about boxing.”
Ah.He had been vague.Because she was uncommonly intelligent and too much information might lead to very probing questions.How many people had met Ralph and never made the connection that he was his brother?And if he shared a little, she was bound to start following the trail to his secret life.Did one tell a prospective bride he spent his nights fighting crime?
Or that the demons of his dead father spurred him to do so?
Truth be told, he hadn’t intended to share much about himself at all.And certainly not those dark and gritty parts.
When he’d answered the ad, he assumed she’d be a ready-made bride.Few questions asked.But now, Priscilla wished to be persuaded.He had that effect…
And she had assets she wished to guard.
“You wish to know more about my boxing?”
“That’s an excellent place to start.”
He drew in a breath.“I told you how I received the scar.”
Her hand lifted as though she might touch it but then she dropped it back down on his arm.“You did.”
“Well, after that happened, I decided that I needed to know how to fight.And Ralph has been training me so that I’ll be able to defend myself should it ever happen again.”
She stared up at him as though searching for more information.He resisted the urge to shift uncomfortably.
“Ralph hurt your leg so that you limped the other day?”She finally asked.
He didn’t wish to lie to her, but he didn’t want to tell the whole truth either.“No.There are other places I can fight with other men besides Ralph.They’re not posh clubs you see…”
She gave him a small smile, her eyes still searching.“I see.”
Did she?Good.He longed to pull her closer, kiss her lips.It had been a long time since he’d wanted a woman the way he did her.
Was it a boon or a cross that he felt this attraction toward the woman he wished to marry?While it made the idea more enjoyable…it would also make it a great deal harder to keep her at a distance.
There were parts of himself he never meant to share.
She picked up another spool of ribbon, now holding three in her hand.“I think I’ve gotten what I need.”
“If we’re going to get to know one another, it would be nice to see each other again,” he said, making their way toward the clerk.
Priscilla placed a finger on her chin.“You’re right.I’ll have to think on it, but my mother can contact you with a place and time?”
“I’m at your disposal,” he said with a wink.
The clerk stopped, staring at them both with mild horror as he took in the jagged scar on Wyatt’s face.
Mentally, he cursed.He’d been so caught up with Priscilla, he’d nearly forgotten how people reacted, how he usually kept his face averted.
People were frightened by ugly things inside and out.
Priscilla cleared her throat.Loudly.The clerk blinked, looking at her as she began to fire off instructions for amounts of ribbon, colors and cuts.
The clerk rushed to obey, the chastisement in her tone clear even if she hadn’t spoken the actual words.
