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“Aye. Take Hazel down to the competition and secure two spots right in the front row for the ladies.”
“Of course,” he said, escorting Hazel from the room. As soon as they left, Conrad rushed over and closed the door.
“What was that all about?” he asked.
“What was what?” Willow acted as if she really didn’t know what he meant. She collected her crown and placed it on her head.
“You know damned well what I’m talking about. You seduced me; it wasn’t the other way around.”
“I never said you seduced me. That was Hazel who said it.” She continued to fuss with her crown.
“I was the one to stop it before we both made a big mistake.”
“Mistake?” The hurt in her eyes was evident. “Is that what you call what happened between us? Because it was something special to me.”
Now he honestly felt like a cur because he didn’t mean it that way. “I didn’t mean it was a mistake.”
“Then why did you say it?” She batted her long, lush lashes looking so innocent and sweet that it made him want to pull her into his arms again and protect her from men . . . that is, men like him.
“I’m not sure why I used that word.”
“Our words are important. We need to choose them wisely, or else someone might misinterpret what we are trying to say.”
“Aye, that’s true,” he told her.
“Yesterday, I might have kissed you to thank you for watching over me, but you were the one to carry me over to the bed, throw me down, and cover me with your body as well as with your kisses.”
“I – well, I guess I did do that.”
“And I wasn’t the one to pull off my clothes. That was you, too. The way I see it, it was a good thing that it didn’t go any further. After all, if my father ever heard about this, I would shudder to think what he’d do to you.”
“Your father,” Conrad mumbled under his breath, envisioning Rook’s angry face – three times – as he and his triplet brothers all hunted him down for touching his daughter when Conrad was supposed to be protecting her instead. He supposed he was to blame. A knight never acted that way with a lady. What the hell was the matter with him? “Lady Willow, I beg you to keep this between us and let it go no further.”
“I agree,” she said, taking his arm. “After all, I would hate for anything to happen to you. You just need to learn to control your lust, and it’ll be fine.”
“I will,” he said with a nod. “Please excuse my inappropriate behavior and let me escort you to the lists for the competition.”
“Thank you, Lord Conrad. And don’t give it another thought. Now, let us go to the competition so I can see who might win my hand in marriage.”
As Conrad headed to the door with Willow gliding along at his side, he wondered what just happened. He’d entered the room expecting to get an apology from Willow, but he ended up apologizing to her instead. Aye, the wench had a way with words and the power of persuasion. Once again, he fell for her tricks. The odd part was that he was now convinced that the whole thing really was his fault.
