Free The Only One by Samanthya Wyatt

all that’s necessary to make you a diamond of the first water. Only a few months before the start of the London Season. You will be the belle of the balls. Men will take one look at you and profess undying devotion.”
    “But I don’t want anyone else. I want Giles.”
    “My child, you cannot address a duke, thus.”
    Alex didn’t miss her aunt’s look of horror, but she concentrated on the word child .
    “Aunt Cornelia, this is the very crux of my dilemma. The duke thinks of me as a child.”
    “He is not a young man, but he is not in his dotage. Men much older take young brides right out of the schoolroom,” Cornelia explained. “Besides, we will change all that. We will turn you into a woman even His Grace cannot ignore.”
    Alex liked the sound of that. She threw her arms around her aunt’s neck and pecked a kiss on her plump cheek.
    “We must devise a well-laid plan. First, you must learn to walk.” Cornelia disentangled herself and rose, gesturing toward the door. “Come with me to the library.”
    Walk?
    “Why are we going to the library?”
    “To get a book, of course.”
    “I need a book to learn how to walk?”
    “You balance a book on the top of your head.”
    An image of her performing such a feat quickly appeared. It was all Alex could do to avoid laughing outright.
    “You must pay attention, Alexandria. The clock is ticking.”

Chapter 10
    Scents of oranges and cherry blossoms dawdled on a gentle wind. Giles lounged in a meadow on a bed of grass with his hat pulled low over his eyes. His boots crossed at the ankles, he laced his fingers behind his head and chewed on a twig. He couldn’t remember a day when he’d lolled without watchfulness or caution. There was something to be said for a life of leisure.
    His eyes heavy, his body tired, maybe he’d take a nap. Through the night, visions of Alex had kept him awake. When sleep finally claimed him, he woke with the blasted girl on the edge of his dream. Deny as much as he liked, a vivid awareness assaulted him.
    He desired her company.
    Surely he’d lost his mind. A child should not affect him so.
    A child should not kiss like a bloody courtesan .
    He’d thought to shock her, but the minx had in turn stunned him. The girl was alarming.
    Terrifying.
    Tempting.
    She had him at sixes and sevens. Since his first introduction to the opposite sex, he’d been chased and pursued by all manner of female, enjoying each and every one. Yet he had never settled on a particular woman. One day, he would choose. There were no delusions of happy-ever-after. Honor bound by his duty to marry and produce an heir, he would have permanence with a wife.
    Why was he even thinking of such considerations now? Did it have anything to do with a certain obstinate urchin, with that small chin of hers hinting to willfulness? Or her chocolate eyes full of adoration and exhilaration?
    The chit dogged his heels. Everywhere he went, somehow Alex showed up—in a gown showing her agile body, accenting her curves, leaving nothing to a man’s imagination. Not that he should notice, of course. But . . . Damnation. She didn’t look the least like a child. Her eyes seemed always sparkling, a youthful ember in her gaze. He fancied the vibrant color of her hair, golden wheat shining like the sun’s rays.
    A rather incredible wrench jerked at his insides.
    Never had a female had such an impact on his sensibilities. Thinking of her, his heart sped up an anxious beat. He imagined her rosy cheeks while his calloused fingertips traveled over buttery, youthful skin. If he’d been standing, the powerful jolt in his loins could have knocked the legs right out from beneath him.
    He shook his head to clear his imaginative musings, and tried to enjoy the quietness around him. But before long, he found himself thinking again of his fingers twined in blonde silk, cascading over velvety flesh.
    God’s teeth.
    He’d always prided himself on his self-discipline. He controlled his actions.