Free An Affair Downstairs by Sherri Browning

between them, she reminded herself. So why was she feeling hurt?
    She squared her shoulders, determined. He hadn’t said anything that should occasion her tears. He simply had no idea how she dreamed about being in his arms, and he still hadn’t entertained any thoughts about her. No matter how intimate things had seemed. She’d been in his bed. Likely, he hadn’t even thought of her as a woman in his bed. To him, she was still Lady Alice, nuisance. Would she ever get anywhere with this man?
    â€œAre you paying attention?” Halfway through rattling off the catalog of parts, he paused and looked at her.
    She felt a hot tear sliding down her cheek, but she refused to acknowledge its presence. It was a reminder of her failure, and that was all. It certainly wasn’t a sign of her emotional engagement. She refused to believe it. “I’m sorry. I find I’m slightly distracted. Hunger, perhaps. All that talk of dinner. Could you start again?”
    â€œOr maybe we should quit for the day. I don’t want to overwhelm you. There is a lot to learn.”
    â€œYes. That’s probably best,” she said quietly.
    â€œI’ll leave you with the most important lesson of all. Never point a rifle at anything you don’t intend to shoot.”
    Her heart dropped to her stomach. “You’ve already broken your own rule. You pointed a rifle at me earlier today.”
    â€œBut the rifle wasn’t loaded. I was sure of it. And you were invading my home. Had you been a robber, I might have intended to shoot you.” His lips were drawn to a flat line, no hint of a smile.
    â€œYou might have shot me by mistake, and who would blame you?”
    â€œI didn’t shoot you, though, Lady Alice. And perhaps you should take it as a lesson not to go sneaking around where you don’t belong.”
    If his words hadn’t already cut her, he certainly went in for the kill with that last bit. He might as well have shot her. His words blasted a hole right through her center, and she wasn’t sure she’d ever be the same. None of their day together had been a pleasure for him. He couldn’t have made it clearer to her. His laughter, his hands on her, sharing details from his past. It was all necessity. Business. She’d become his responsibility for the day, and he’d followed through with what was required of him. Nothing more. She had no idea why it bothered her so. It was a setback, but not a personal affront.
    â€œYou’re right, Mr. Winthrop,” she said, careful to keep her chin up and show no sign of weakness. “I’m learning. I won’t bother you again. Thank you for the lesson. Good night.”
    With that, she turned and marched straight into the growing darkness, not stopping until she reached the Dower House’s gate. Then she leaned against one of the iron railings and let the tears fall until she was all cried out.
    ***
    â€œCongratulations, old man. You’ve done it,” Logan said out loud to himself, standing in the dark as he watched Alice walk away.
    He hadn’t expected it to be so easy. Lively, buoyant Alice had proven to be more thin-skinned than he suspected. In his mind, he’d planned to be much more direct and cruel. In execution, he felt that he’d only managed to come off as a bit severe. And still, she could barely contain her emotions when she walked away. Once he saw the tears, it had almost been all over for him. The temptation to take her in his arms and comfort her, to tell her how he’d really begun to feel about her, had been almost overwhelming. Almost. But he’d managed to carry on and get it done, to prove to Alice once and for all that there was nothing but business between them. He was doing his duty, nothing more.
    He didn’t wake up every morning eager to see her smile. He never went out of his way hoping to bump into her. She wasn’t on his mind unless she was directly in