Free Forbidden by Lauren Smith Page B

her completely in his bed, was driving him mad. If he played his cards right, he wouldn’t have long to wait.
    “And you want me to act as hostess for this party?” Celia scooted back in her chair to allow their waiter to set down two bowls of hot soup.
    Steam curled up in thick tendrils as Tristan swirled his spoon in his bowl. He wanted nothing more than to eat a burger with brown sauce, but the café didn’t have anything like that on the menu. But this was the only place located near G. David’s bookshop where he could meet his cousin.
    “I’d like you and Carter to help me extend some invitations. You still have connections at Magdalene College, don’t you?” It had been Celia’s college when she’d attended Cambridge as an undergraduate a few years before.
    “Yes, why? You want me to invite the entire college?”
    He knew she was joking. Shaking his head, he continued. “I want you to invite a woman named Katherine Roberts and anyone she’s friends with.”
    His cousin’s eyes gleamed like topaz gemstones. “Ah…the truth comes out. So all of this is for a woman? I suspect you think she won’t come unless her friends do. Don’t tell me you’re getting soft, Tristan. Unable to seduce an undergraduate?”
    His cousin’s teasing bruised his ego, and he winced.
    “I’m taking care with this one. She’s not like the others.” It was no secret that his past relationships had been numerous and easy. Those girls hadn’t needed any convincing to climb into bed with him. But he didn’t just want to take Kat to bed, he wanted to spend time with her in whatever way he could manage.
    “You taking care? What makes this one so special that you don’t just sleep with her and toss her to the side like the others?”
    Her words dug deep like barbs, even more so because he knew what she said was true. It made him feel like a cad. “Feeling ruthless today, are we?” He turned one of his most charming grins on her.
    She giggled against the rim of her teacup. “Perhaps a tad. So who is this Katherine Roberts?”
    Tristan had no interest in sharing details on Kat, not with Celia. She was too nosy. The last thing he needed was his cousin inserting herself into his affairs.
    “She is an interest of mine. You need know nothing else.”
    Rather than grow cross with him as she often did when he didn’t tell her what she wanted to know, Celia clapped her hands. “Oh, this is famous! Whoever she is, she must be quite a woman to have you tied in knots.”
    “She is quite a woman. One I can’t seem to figure out. Now, you’ll see to getting her invited? Drop on by Fox Hill in the next day or two for dinner so we can plan the party. I want it to be perfect.”
    “Perfection. That I can do.” Celia was almost humming.
    “Good. Finish your lunch. I need to collect something at G. David’s before my next class, and I should like your opinion.”
    It was time to begin his seduction of Kat. He wouldn’t let up, not until she lowered those barriers and gave in to the passion he’d glimpsed the night before.
    I will win her .
    He smiled, as his gaze drifted back to the cheery shop entrance of G. David’s bookstore.
    Books were the key to Kat’s heart, and Tristan was going to find his way in. At any cost.
    *  *  *
    Kat lay across her bed, eyes half-closed as she tried to read her textbook. The same sentences kept blurring together over and over. Not a good sign. Exams were two weeks away and there was so much cramming to do. Except for classes, she’d spent the last seventy-two hours holed up in her room.
    Lacy had stopped by twice, attempting to entice her out, but Kat couldn’t spare the time, not when a mountain of reading loomed on her desk. The books were stacked more than a foot high, teetering, mocking how she felt about her studying. Classes had proved to be quite a challenge, and although she liked that most days, around exams, she definitely didn’t.
    Blinking, she turned a page, then gave in and