Free A Matter of Temptation by Lorraine Heath Page A

once,” Diana said.
    “If you’ll excuse me,” Torie said, touching his arm lightly, gazing into his eyes. “I won’t be long.”
    “Take whatever time you need.”
    He watched the sisters walk away, wondering what Torie saw when she looked at him as intensely as she did. An impostor? No, the true impostor was the man to whom she’d been betrothed. He wondered how she’d react to the news, if he could confess to her…
    Just as suddenly he acknowledged that he could confess to no one, not until he discerned whom he could trust and whom he couldn’t. He was now in the world, surrounded by people—yet still as alone as he’d been in prison.

Chapter 6
    “I see what you mean.”
    “What are you talking about?” Torie asked as she stood before the mirror, waiting patiently while her maid buttoned the last of the buttons on her traveling suit.
    “Your duke. The way that he stares. I’d never noticed before. But he begins to get this look on his face as though he’s popped over to France or somewhere equally boring.”
    “I thought you liked France.”
    “I like the way Frenchmen kiss.”
    “When did you ever kiss a Frenchman?”
    “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
    Torie captured her sister’s challenging gaze reflected in the mirror.
    “If you’ve kissed a Frenchman then I’m not a virgin.”
    “Won’t your husband be surprised when he discovers that?”
    Her maid, Charity, cleared her throat.
    “You’re teasing me,” Torie stated.
    “Am I?”
    “If you’ve truly kissed a Frenchman then tell me what I don’t know about kisses.”
    “Why must you always call my bluff?”
    “Because you always bluff,” Torie said, again looking in the mirror, watching as Charity worked to arrange her hair so her hat would sit perfectly at an angle. “I think he’s missing his brother.”
    “Who?”
    Torie rolled her eyes. “The duke. That’s who we were talking about. Honestly, sometimes I think there’s something amiss with you, the way you speed through conversations.”
    “I’m just always so frightfully bored. I want to get onto the next thing. So you think he misses his brother?”
    Diana also had a habit of jumping back and forth between conversations. Torie had to stay on her toes sometimes to keep up with her.
    “Yes, I think that’s the reason he seems not quite himself today. We were discussing his brother on the drive over. A special bond exists between twins. I think that makes it all theharder when they’re separated. Don’t you think?”
    “I think I shall miss you desperately when you’re no longer here. And we’re not twins.”
    “Thank God. You have a funny nose,” Torie said, striving to keep the mood light when she knew it was in danger of becoming filled with the sadness of parting. She’d never been away from home without her family before.
    “Better a funny nose than a hole in my cheek,” Diana retorted.
    “It’s called a dimple.”
    “The duke stares at it as though he’s never seen one.”
    “You spent an awful lot of time watching my duke.”
    “Oh, so now he’s your duke.” Diana crossed her arms over her chest. “The doubts seemed to have left you.”
    No, they were still there, but it was far too late for them. As Charity moved aside, Torie turned and spread her arms wide. “I shall miss you desperately as well.”
    Diana moved into her embrace and hugged her tightly. “Send for me when you can.”
    “As soon as we’ve settled into marriage.” Torie stepped back, took her sister’s hands, and squeezed. “Be kind to Mother while I’m gone.”
    “You want to take away all my fun.”
    Leaning forward, she kissed her sister’s cheek.“And watch out for Frenchmen. I hear they use their tongues when they kiss.”
    Diana gave her an impish smile. “Indeed, they do.”
     
    “I’m so looking forward to going to your ancestral home,” Torie said as the coach traveled through London. “You’ve spoken of Hawthorne House so often that I feel as though