Free Once Upon a Rake by Samantha Holt

been. Yes, being reminded of her lonely state
stabbed at her heart. But if she wanted to make some sort of mark in life, she
would tolerate all these agonies and more.
    So instead she merely smiled
and said, “A little. But not enough to keep me abed. I was hoping to look over
my notes today.”
    “No rest for the wicked,
eh?”
    Eleanor peered at him and
saw the mischievous glint in his eyes before it vanished. For the briefest
moment, she had seen the old, flirtatious Lucian. Of course, he had never
turned his flirtations upon her and she hadn’t expected him to now. No amount
of lemon juice, rouge and fine fabrics could make him forget the homely girl he
knew.
    He tugged the brim of his
hat down when he caught her peeking at him. It appeared a self-conscious move
and she realised she was on his scarred side—something he hadn’t let happen at
all yesterday. Did it bother him? He had always been so handsome, perhaps it
did, but surely women still fawned all over him, leaving him in no doubt they
found him as beautiful as ever?
    “What brought you here so
early?”
    Lucian touched the brim of
his hat again. “I wanted to make sure you were well.”
    The admission seemed to cost
him. His voice took on a strangled tone. Eleanor couldn’t help but smile. “I am
well, thank you. I have a lump the size of an egg and I feel like my head might
drop sideways at any moment from the weight—”
    His surprised look cut her
off. She was rambling, speaking like a fool. Warmth rushed up her cheeks but
then...then he laughed.
    “You always did recover well
from bumps and bruises.”
    She didn’t know whether to shrink
into a puddle on the ground until she was nothing but pale muslin skirts or to
laugh with him. He referred to her clumsiness—that clumsiness she strove so
hard to hide. Knocks and bumps had been commonplace for her and she’d always
laughed them off.
    She chose the latter. She
laughed. It was freeing and frightening at the same time. She should not be
enjoying his company. Lord, she really was lonely if a dissolute rake gave her
the most enjoyment she’d had in days.
    “It’s a fine job you still have
so much hair.”
    Eleanor clamped her mouth
shut and snapped her head forwards as they made their way towards the house.
Any joviality was sapped from her. Her hair—her boring, frustrating, ugly hair.
Why did he have to mention it? It was bad enough feeling like a giant,
unrefined haystack around him but did he have to draw attention to the fact?
    “I’ve never been inside
Broadstone,” he mused, oblivious to the seething annoyance she would shoot
through her eyes like daggers if she could.
    “Not many have. Edward’s
first wife was of a sickly constitution and did not tolerate company well. And,
of course, we travelled for much of our marriage so the house was closed up.”
    He paused as they entered
the shadow of the house and peered up at the wide sash windows. The house was
perfectly square with an extra level on each corner like turrets of a castle.
Most of it was new with the exception of the Tudor entrance, though even that
had been significantly improved.
    “It’s a fine building. A
shame for it to be unoccupied.”
    “Well, it is not anymore.
Though I am not sure I count as keeping it occupied.” He glanced down at her,
one brow raised and she suspected he’d heard her snippy tone. “Come, Jonathan
can take your horse.” She motioned to the gardener who was busying himself
trimming a box tree. “Will you take Lord Rushbourne’s mount to the stables,
please, Jonathan?”
    “Of course, my lady.”
Jonathan took the reins from Lucian and led the horse around to the rear of the
house.
    Eleanor led Lucian up onto the
terrace and through the courtyard. She had the oddest feeling of being watched
closely, though why he should be looking at her and not the house, she did not
know. It made her acutely aware of every footstep and she felt the urge to
clutch her skirts and hasten along.
    Instead,