Free Secrets in Mourning by Janelle Daniels Page B

she stood to meet him toe to toe, her body gently brushing against his.
    He sucked in a sharp breath at the contact before cursing his desire. She wasn’t for him. She belonged in London where the glittering parties and balls ruled her life, where she could be ruthless in her pursuit of her next husband. The reminder of her character had him narrowing his eyes slightly, but he couldn’t fully squelch his desire for her.
    Looking up, her eyes were swimming with deep emotion. “Why can’t you just leave me alone? I don’t want to see you. I don’t want to speak with you. And believe me, I am in no mood to take your gloating.” She looked over his shoulder briefly. “I’ve had enough taunting from one Lynwood this day,” she added softly.
    “My mother.” It all made sense now. “What did she say?”
    She shook her head forcefully as her lips pressed tightly together. “Nothing. Her party was lovely.”
    “I see.” And he did. Lady Victoria didn’t have to tell him that his mother had invited her closest friends who would feel no guilt in tormenting Victoria if that was his mother’s wish. “What was said that upset you?” His voice sounded soothing, but his blood began to boil. He thought Victoria deserved anything she got when it came to his mother, them both being contentious, but seeing her hurt, seeing her cry, he wasn’t so sure anymore.
    Her face scrunched up. “What part of ‘nothing’ do you not understand? I have no wish to speak with you about it. You’ve made your feelings about me perfectly clear.”
    He reached out, gripping her arms. “Tell me what she did to you. I won’t have anyone treated this way in my home.”
    She laughed bitterly. “I see. So what, you’ll go to your mother and tell her to stop bullying me? To stop making fun of how far down I’ve come in the world?”
    His jaw clenched. “So, that’s what happened.”
    “That’s beside the point.”
    “Not to me. I won’t tolerate that behavior in my home.”
    “You can’t just go up to her and tell her to stop. It will only make her upset that you know about it and it will continue on even worse than before.”
    “Of course I can. She wouldn’t dare go against what I have to say.”
    She was silent for a moment, her eyes searching his face. “Why do you even care? I know you hate me.”
    Her words were like a punch to his gut. She really did think he hated her. She couldn’t be further from the truth. While there were aspects of her character that make an attachment between them impossible, her callousness wasn’t enough to stop his desire for her. “I don’t hate you,” he said softly.
    “But you don’t like me either.”
    He wanted to quickly deny her words, but he couldn’t. What would he say? Yes, I like you? Impossible. While he didn’t hate her, he couldn’t abide her selfish behavior, couldn’t tolerate her superior attitude where no one else mattered.
    Just like his father.
    He cursed the thought as it jumped into his mind. He knew his father’s failings, his selfishness, his infidelity, but it wasn’t right to apply those weaknesses to her.
    She laughed bitterly again and moved out of his way. “Your silence says it all. What is it about me that you can’t stand?”
    “I feel no such thing.”
    “Of course you do. It’s written all over your face. Have I offended you with my, what did you call it?” She paused dramatically, tapping her chin. “Ah, yes. My bitter disposition.” She moved around him toward the door before turning dramatically, her skirt swirling around her legs like a black cloud. “Well, I have no wish to disrupt your peace a moment longer, my lord. I’ll go off the kitchens and kick a scullery maid.”
    She waited for his response, which surprised him. He had expected her to turn around in her righteous indignation and flee the room without a response. But instead she stood there, holding her ground, challenging him with her eyes and her body.
    A lusciously curved