Free Ravishing in Red by Madeline Hunter

Arousal awoke, in a slowly tightening coil. “I am supposed to apologize now, even though you behaved in ways that begged for misunderstanding.”
    “I did not beg for misunderstanding. I did nothing to encourage you to be a scoundrel.”
    “You did little to stop it either. And your mere presence there alone excused my misunderstanding. However . . .” He made a little bow. “Miss Kelmsleigh, my sincere apologies for my forwardness the other evening. A lady should not have to suffer such inexcusable behavior. Please forgive me.”
    Her hands went to her hips. “You astonish me. It is beyond the pale that you came here to insult me further with such ridicule.”
    “I came to return a pistol that you aimed directly at me, fully loaded and hammer fully cocked,” he reminded her.
    That checked her gathering ire. Her soft, pale cheeks flushed prettily, the way they would if she had been walking in the cold. Or suffering a kiss that she did not mind too much.
    “That was wrong of me. It is true that apologies are due on my part as well. I admit that I must share the blame for almost everything that happened during our peculiar meeting together.”
    He smiled his best smile. “I insist that you place all the blame on me. Remember the events in any way that you choose, and I will not correct them. However, do not demand that I lie to myself, even if propriety demands that you lie to yourself.”
    Anger flashed again. She had a quick little temper, apparently. “I do not lie, sir. Not even to myself.”
    “I think that you are talking yourself into believing a lie. You are convincing yourself that you did not enjoy that kiss, and that I importuned far more than I did. I, on the other hand, freely admit that I am not sorry for it, except that my distraction got me shot.”
    She studied him with a gaze that reflected perplexity and astonishment and a touch of fear. The last reaction was for all the best reasons, although she probably did not realize that yet.
    “My cousin said that you were infamous for trifling with women not long ago, Lord Sebastian. Preposterous though I find the notion, it appears that you are flirting with me now.”
    He looked past her, in a vain attempt to thwart the compelling heat rising in him. He surveyed the far end of the garden. Only the corner of the house could be seen. The conservatory blocked the view of the greenhouse completely. The confirmation that they were out of sight of all the house’s occupants hardly helped matters.
    “Perhaps I am flirting, Miss Kelmsleigh. Old habits die hard.”
    She laughed. “I hope that in the past you did not flirt with such little hope of impressing a woman. If I was a little . . . distracted at the Two Swords, that does not signify now, so you use that smile of yours to no effect. Please remember that I did not know who you were when you importuned me.”
    He turned his attention back on her. On the way the breeze plucked at the tendrils of her hair, and the way those green eyes carried the memories of that night. The cool light in this little woods gave her skin a snowy cast.
    “And now you do know who I am, Miss Kelmsleigh. And I know who you are. It is odd, don’t you think, how little difference that makes?”
    It made almost no difference, from the way she reacted. Not nearly as much difference as it should. She tried to maintain a pose of sophisticated indifference, but she was unpracticed in dissembling in such situations.
    “It makes all the difference, for reasons that should be plain to you.” Her words faltered, and carried a tremor.
    “Does it? I sense not.”
    “A rock would be more moved by your flattery and flirting. I could never be distracted by you now.”
    “Really?” He stepped closer, even though he knew damned well he shouldn’t. “Never? Not at all?”
    Her eyes widened in charming, innocent shock. She pivoted abruptly, to bolt. He could not permit that now.
    He caught her arm and twirled her into his embrace.
    He