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Nora’s breath caught. She looked up at him, her gaze locking with his. “I never doubted it.”
He let go of her hand, and she slowly, reluctantly let it fall to her side. Frissons of excitement danced up her arms and spread, awakening her senses.
“You are correct, however, that others perhaps view me differently,” he said. “I don’t allow them the opportunity to be this close.”
Yet he was permitting her. Again, she considered that he did so only because she was his stepmother’s ward. But because she was curious and impetuous, she asked, “Why am I different?” Immediately she wanted to take it back. Shewasn’tdifferent, of course. She was simplyhere. “Please forget I asked. You are too kind to pay attention to me and support my cause.”
His lips twisted into a slight frown. “I’m not doing this out of kindness.”
She wasn’t precisely certain what “this” meant, but she wasn’t going to ask for clarification. “Then why are you doing it?”
“I don’t know.” He fingered a wisp of hair that grazed her ear. It was a singular moment, as if time ceased to exist between them. But it was fleeting too. He quickly retreated from her, turning his back as he went toward the fireplace. “I didn’t mean to overstep.”
He turned once he was a safe distance from her. “I wanted to ask if you were all right after Haywood insulted you at the picnic.” His tone was crisp, almost businesslike, but it didn’t calm the sudden tumult of anxiety that spilled through her.
She’d so hoped her encounter with Haywood would go unnoticed, but it seemed scandal might plague her again. “What did you hear?”
“I don’t listen to gossip. My stepmother informed me of his unwanted attention toward you.” His brows pitched low for a brief moment. “I’ve ensured he won’t bother you again.”
She couldn’t begin to imagine what that meant. “What did you do?”
He glanced away from her and shrugged. “He knows he’s not to speak with you or even speakofyou. Not only do I not listen to gossip, I don’t tolerate it concerning people I care about.”
Nora froze. Hecaredabout her? The rush of panic she’d felt at being at the heart of another scandal faded and was replaced with a warmth she couldn’t quite name. “I still don’t know what I did to gain your family’s support. I…thank you.”
“Why do you think you have to have done something?” His dark brows drew together, and while he didn’t look exactly fierce, he possessed an intensity that could very well be intimidating. “Are you that unused to kindness?”
Yes, in fact, but she couldn’t bring herself to admit such a shameful truth. She laughed, but it held a ring of discomfort. “You must agree that it’s a bit extraordinary for a prominent family—a duke’s family—to take in a young woman like me.”
“Like you,” he repeated. It wasn’t a question, but he said it in such a way he seemed to want to know what she meant. Surely he knew of her background. They hadn’t spoken directly of it, but of course he knew.
She wanted to be certain. She looked him straight in the eye. “A woman who has been ruined by scandal.”
He slowly arched his brow. “You deserve to be here. You deserve to find happiness—everyone does.”
A kind and thoughtful Untouchable who seemed to find her interesting… She couldn’t tear her gaze away from his potent stare. “What about you, Your Grace? Are you happy?”
“I’m notunhappy.”
She resisted the urge to smile. “That’s not exactly a resounding proclamation of joy.”
“I am quite happy at Lakemoor. I enjoy working with my tenants. I enjoy my horses.”
“And reading tawdry romance novels. Please don’t leave out the most interesting thing about you.”
A laugh erupted from his chest, and Nora gave in to her grin. “Yes, let’s not leave that out.” He walked across the room toward her, coming as close as he’d been before. “Shall we resume our walk?”
He took her hand and curled it around his forearm. His heat, his scent, his proximity filled her senses. She clasped him more tightly with the need to anchor herself.
The familiarity she’d believed to have sprung up between them at dinner and over the course of their other encounters suddenly transformed into something else—intimacy. And with it came a hunger for this man who said she deserved to be happy, who danced with her, and who’d come to her rescue with Haywood. She longed to stroke her fingers along the firm line of his jaw, perhaps feel the hairs sprouting there now at the end of the day. Would they be prickly or soft? Tantalizing or abrasive? Tantalizing, she was certain.
More than that, she wondered what his lips would feel like on hers. The solitary kiss she’d experienced nine years ago hadn’t been pleasant, even before the scandal had broken. She hadn’t been in a hurry to try it again, not that she’d had the chance. But now, standing here so close to Kendal, she couldn’t help but think his kiss would be different. His kiss would be everything she’d dreamed of and more.
She reminded herself that she couldn’t kiss him, and that she probably shouldn’t even be alone with him. This was precisely what had landed her in trouble in the first place. Oh, but if she could kiss him without anyone finding out…
Walking with him in the garden was perhaps a foolish idea, but Nora still couldn’t bring herself to say no.
Chapter Nine
