Page 83 of Miss Wylde and the Wynd

Damian frowned. Were Georgie’s thoughts because Grace would be seen as ruined and she was preparing to defend her sister to the end?

“Women who willingly take lovers for a short duration are usually widows,” he finally said, though it was a weak argument for acceptance.

“I am aware. The proper widow who waited until she wed remained true to her husband and then when he was gone, and after she had waited an appropriate time, could now take lovers without her reputation being tarnished.”

“For the most part, that is true, but she would also need to be discreet.”

“And it is unfair! What of the women who have no desire to wed? Women who don’t want to be property of their husband. Women who want to retain what little independence they are allowed? Should they be denied the enjoyments that men eagerly seek without punishments simply because they are female and decided on a different path for themselves?”

Damian had no answer, though it would make life more interesting if there were more women available to be lovers without the costly expense of setting up a mistress or risking disease from visiting a brothel. Someone who he liked and would enjoy being intimate with without obligation or promise.

Yes, that would be a perfect situation.

He studied Georgie. Was there a reason she was so adamant in her arguments? She herself claimed that she was nearly on the shelf. She was the most independent woman he had ever met, and she desperately wanted to save Grace and then protect her. She clearly did not trust that Fisher would do what was right or he would have taken Grace back to Italy and gained permission instead of trying to get to America as soon as possible.

His gut tightened. Had Georgie experienced something similar to Grace? Had she been seduced and abandoned?

Was that why she was so set on rescuing and protecting her sister?

It would certainly explain her passion for how unfair it was for a woman to be seen as ruined.

“Who was it?”

“Who was who?” she asked.

“Who seduced you?”

Her eyes opened slightly and no doubt she was wondering how she had given herself away.

“It does not matter,” she answered.

She was not the innocent miss he thought her to be, not that it made a difference because he would still protect her.

“What happened, or how have you…was your life…?”

“Ruined?” she smirked.

His face heated because this was the very thing she had been protesting since they entered the cabin.

“As with all misses in similar situations, I was crushed, heartbroken, and nearly destroyed because I believed everything that I had been told—that I was destined to become a spinster, as if it were a fate worse than death. I was also young and foolish, and as I grew older, I realized that I had not met any other man that I wanted to kiss, let alone marry. My heart never increased tempo at a handsome face, my pulse did not race if someone attempted a flirtation. That was when I realized that even if I had not been seduced by a silver-tongued devil at the age of eight-and-ten, I still would be a spinster because I had not met anyone that I was willing to sacrifice what freedom I do have.”

Georgie looked up, her eyes intense.

“However, as you probably already realize, it angers me that a woman cannot enjoy the same freedoms of a man, which includes the freedom to take a lover.”

Damian’s mouth went dry as his manhood stirred to life.

“Is that what you want, Georgie? A lover.”

She drew a deep breath through her nose, straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin. “Yes.”

Damian’s pulse pounded, but just because she claimed to want a lover, it did not mean she wanted him.

“Could that be me?”

For the first time she glanced away. “Not if it is only because of my speech and you pity me.”

“Pity?” How could she…Except, she’d been seduced and abandoned, so her confidence in this one area may be lacking. “Georgie, I found myself attracted to you the first time I saw you in a dress.”