Free Scoundrel (Lost Lords of Radcliffe Book 4) by Cheryl Holt Page A

luxurious, and her eyes were big and brown and expressive. Her figure was curvaceous and shaped to draw a man’s attention.
    She’d reveled in the excitement of naughty flirting, but when she’d been caught sneaking off with the local squire’s son—an inappropriate boy who’d been far above her in rank and station—she’d been packed off to the convent so fast her head was still spinning over it.
    One day, she’d been a loose, frivolous girl in a comfortable home where she’d had pin money to spend and no duties to plague her. The next, she’d been swaddled in black clothes and scrubbing floors for grumpy older women she couldn’t abide.
    She’d gradually adapted to her quiet world with only female companions. She’d stumbled on a calling of sorts in the nursery, caring for babies. They sheltered unwed mothers and helped them to either locate husbands or place their children out for adoption.
    She was clever with children, and her skill was the reason Mother Superior had let her travel to the convocation in Rome. She’d needed Rowena to act as nanny to Mary, Martha, and Millie on the way back.
    Rowena had wrangled a marvelous adventure for herself, and many times during the journey, she’d thought about running away. It was an easy scheme to ponder, but in reality the prospect of traipsing off alone with no funds or friends was incredibly daunting, fraught with peril, and most likely to end in tragedy.
    She hadn’t run. She’d stayed with Mother Superior and Faith, had been pleasant and biddable and thoroughly delighted after the girls joined their tiny caravan.
    But the lure of freedom was beckoning, and with Mother Superior deceased, there was no authority figure to demand restraint. Rowena would welcome any chance to walk down a different road.
    As she gazed into Ralston’s kind, handsome face, she definitely believed he could be her ticket to a new life. Why not? He was a bachelor from a good family. He was loyal and steady and true. There was no rule or law to prevent her from trying to persuade him.
    “They locked you away?” He appeared suitably aghast.
    “Yes. They claimed I was too wild and would ultimately embarrass them by getting myself into trouble with a neighbor boy.”
    “Would you have?”
    She shrugged. “I never had the opportunity to find out. Plus they refused to pay for a wedding for me. They’d frittered away all their money on my sister.”
    “That wasn’t very charitable of them.”
    “I agree.”
    “Would you think me horrid if I said I hope I never have the misfortune to meet your parents? I’m sure I wouldn’t like them.”
    “I’m sure you wouldn’t either. I don’t like them, and I’m their daughter.”
    “Why haven’t you taken your final vows? Is it because you don’t feel called? Don’t you care if you become a nun or not?”
    “I never wanted to be a nun, and nothing’s changed my mind—even after so many years have passed.”
    “How many years has it been?”
    “Five.”
    “Five! How old were you when they sent you away?”
    “Fifteen. I’m twenty now.”
    “You were just a child.” He was indignant on her behalf, which made her love him.
    “I keep expecting something will happen to provide me with a better fate.”
    “Your Mother Superior wasn’t upset by your delaying over the vows?”
    “She would never force anybody. That’s not how it works. You have to be ready and you have to proceed freely and without coercion.”
    “And you’re not ready?”
    “No, and I never will be.” Brazenly she reached out and stroked a finger across his hand. “How about you? What future awaits? With so many brothers, you must not have many options through your family.”
    “No, I have to earn my own salary. I was employed as clerk for a wealthy grain merchant.”
    “He was thrown overboard when you were?”
    “Yes. Dear Mr. Fitzwilliam. I was sort of an apprentice to him, and he didn’t have any sons of his own. He might eventually have promoted