Free Wicked Angel by Julia London Page B

admirable traits, he made her skin tingle in a strange sort of way, made her giggle for no apparent reason, and when he looked at her, dear
God
, her knees turned to water. Lauren sighed miserably as she tromped the path to the pumpkin field, pulling a battered wooden cart behind her.
    All right, so she was smitten. What exactly was she to do about it? Mope about like some lovesick schoolgirl? Mr. Christian was not coming back. He was probably at home right now, probably with a
wife
for Chrissakes, and probably had already forgotten the whole thing.
    If only
she
could forget.
    "Miss Lauren!"
    Lauren closed her eyes and moaned softly before turning to face Leonard as he came bounding down the path. "Paul said I should help you."
    It took every ounce of energy Lauren had to muster a smile. Damn Paul! Now that he was twenty, he had decided it was his duty to look after her. Sometimes he treated her as if she might break with the slightest breeze! She loved Leonard with all her heart, and at any other time, would have welcomed his company. But not today.
    "All right. You may watch for pirates while I pick what is left of the pumpkins." She took his hand in hers, and pulling the cart with the other, continued her march to the pumpkin field.
    Leonard did a fine job of guarding her after finding a stick that made a suitable sword. For nearly an hour, he climbed again and again onto the fence and leapt to the ground, shouting
en garde
before he tackled a swarm of imaginary pirates. Despite her miserable mood, Lauren could not help smiling at his exuberance. Tossing the last pumpkin in the cart, she quickly counted. There were fourteen in all, which would pay for only one month's supply of tallow. It was not enough; she needed at least two months supply, if not three, to last the winter.
    As she stood in the middle of the field pondering that little problem, Leonard ran up behind and punched her in the back with his stick. Startled, Lauren shrieked and whirled around.
    "Arm yourself!" he cried.
    Lauren's hands found her hips; her brows snapped into a foreboding vee. "All right, you brigand," she said, squatting to retrieve a stick. "
En garde!
" Much to Leonard's delight, she lifted her stick, assumed a fencing position, and stabbed at the air. She pushed Leonard backward, then allowed him to advance on her. Back and forth they went, laughing gaily at their play.
    "Miss Hill?"
    Her head snapped around at the sound of that voice. She had just a glimpse of his handsome face before Leonard drove his stick into her unguarded belly. Startled, she toppled onto her rump with a bounce, knocking the breath from her lungs.
    "Dear God, are you quite all right?" Mr. Christian asked, suddenly on his knee beside her. He put a steadying arm around her shoulders as she gasped for air.
    "Mr. Christian," she rasped, "I have concluded you are quite determined to see me slain in a pumpkin field."
    He laughed. "And I believe you are quite determined to give me every opportunity!" His arm slid around her and she was suddenly lifted to her feet. Her breath still would not come, but it had nothing to do with her tumble. Mr. Christian bent over her, peering into her face, a slight frown creasing his forehead. God, but his hand covered the whole of her ribcage. She smiled sheepishly as his strong arm slid away from her. His green eyes flicked to a point past her shoulder, and she suddenly remembered Leonard and turned.
    The boy was gaping at her, clearly mortified by having toppled her. "I am sorry!" he cried. "I thought you were looking!"
    She laughed, tousling his hair. "You will be the finest pirate yet, Leonard. My goodness, but you are
very
quick. That is very important in sword play, wouldn't you agree, Mr. Christian?"
    "I would consider it more important than footwork or strength," he agreed solemnly.
    "There, you see?" She smiled, cupped his face in her hands, and kissed him lightly on the forehead. "Do you think you could pull the cart to the barn?"