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“We’ll be back in time for dinner,” he saidsmoothly.
“That quick, are you?” sheasked.
“For just astroll, yes.” He wiggled his fingers in her direction. “Docome.”
“Go on.” Juliet sighed once more. “I’ll see you in the box. I’m sure Luke is on his waytherenow.”
Caroline knew Juliet thought she was being helpful, but…perhaps shewasbeing helpful. A little time alone with Marc would give Caroline the opportunity to straighten a few things out with him. Things that needed to be straightened out without lavender drop-loving little girls hovering nearby. So she took his hand and ignored the flutter in her belly at histouch.
Traitorous belly. There were important things she needed to say to him, and her belly should have the decency not toflutter.
“I think I’m growing on her,” Marc muttered only loud enough for Caroline to hear once they started downthewalk.
“Juliet?” Caroline shook her head. “Do not deludeyourself.”
“Well, she likes me better than Olivia Kelfield, in anyevent.”
“It would be impossible for her to like you less than Livvie does.” After all, hehadmade a rather horrible first impression on her cousin and had never made any sort of attempt to remedy thesituation.
“As long asyoulike me,” he said, changing directions and leading her toward what would very soon be adarkenedpath.
“I do like you,” she said honestly. “More than I probably should.” Liking him, however, was hardly the issue, and they truly did need to get a few things straight. “But, Marc, I’m not certain this is the best course for us,forme.”
His step faltered slightly as he asked, “You’re not certain what is the best courseforyou?”
“I didn’t think this whole thing through properly.” Caroline shook her head. “I thought it would just be…well,us, in the privacy of my bedchamber, but…” Oh, heavens, this wasdifficult.
“But…?” Marc urged when she saidnothingelse.
“Well, I didn’t anticipate this would spill over into every aspect of my life. You being involved with my children. Lavender drops andpaintingsand—”
“What did youthink?”
That they’d engage in a torrid affair and he’d leave once he tired of her. That’s what he’d always done, wasn’t it? But somehow those words were stuck in her throat. “It’s not just me I have to worry about, Marc. And Iamworried, or concerned, I suppose, about what happens after allthisends.”
He did stop then, and spun her to face him, a rather dark expression on his face. If she didn’t know him so well, she’d think he looked menacing in that moment. But then again, perhaps she didn’t know him as well as she thought she did. He had kidnapped that poor Burke girl after she’d jilted him, hadn’t he? That was a lifetime ago, but, still hehaddonethat.
“Who says thiswillend?”
Was he serious? “History.”
“History?”
“Yourhistory,” she stressed. “I’ve lost count of the number of women you’ve been involved with over theyears,and—”
“So you’ve beencounting?”
Blast him. He was exasperating. “Marc, my children have already been through so much with David’sdeathand—”
“So you want me to keep my distance from your children?” he clipped out, which was an unusual sound to his voice, honestly. She couldn’t remember a time when he ever sounded angry. Seduction, amusement, and very often boredom. She’d heard all those sounds in his voice before, but neveranger.
“You don’t see how Emma looks at you, like you’re the most amazing man to have everbeenborn—”
“Emma has excellenttaste.”
Caroline scowled at him. “I don’t want to see her get attached to you and then suffer a heartbreak when youleave.”
Marc stepped closer to her and cupped her face with his hands, peering down at her most earnestly. “Caroline, I’m not certain where you got it in your mind that I’llleaveyou.”
