Free To Love A Lord of London (Wardington Park; Raptures of Royalty) by Eleanor Meyers

This close, with the sunlight coming through the door, Nathaniel, for the first time, noticed the scatter of freckles across her nose. His hands came up and captured her face in his hands. She gasped but didn’t move. Then he leaned forward, slanting his lips over hers and rejoiced when she didn’t stop him, when she pressed closer to him, placing her hands on his shoulders to keep herself upright.

    B ut he wouldn’t have let her fall. He wouldn’t have let her go. Not for anything in the world. His lips travelled up her cheeks. “I don’t regret what I did. Were it to happen again, the only thing I would change was getting rid of the men sooner.” He kissed her again. “I’d kill any man that attempted to touch you.
    She sighed and asked, “Such bravery for a man who simply wants a mistress.”
    He stared into her eyes, “Men have gone to war for less. For the promise of a kiss. For the look in a woman’s eyes...”
    Amy turned away, breaking their contact, “Well, I want more.” She moved away from the window. “Thank you for the flowers. I’ll set them beside the others in my room.” Her words were meant to cut him deeply, to make him feel as though he were simply just another man in her flock of potential mates.
    “And where will you set this?”
    Amy turned and her eyes went to the package in his hand.
    Nathaniel smiled. He was nothing like the other men. The paper wrapped gift was small and had fit in his coat pocket. Assuming she’d have been with her chaperone, he hadn’t wanted to give it to her until they were alone. Until only he would have the smile that touched her lips when she opened it. A private, intimate moment.

    A my’s eyes moved from the package back up to his eyes. “What is it?”
    He grinned, “Had I any plans to simply give out that information, I would not have taken the time to wrap it.”
    She lifted a brow, “You wrapped it yourself?”
    He shrugged, “No.”
    Amy rolled her eyes.
    “But I picked it out myself.” That got her attention quickly.
    Walking back to him, she stopped a few feet away and asked, “Is it appropriate to take gifts from a man I’m not courting?” The concern in her eyes was sincere. She really didn’t know the rules. Had no man ever gifted her before?

    “ N ot usually .” He told her the truth. “But, no one has to know.”
    She looked at the gift again and saw the temptation play in her eyes. Then she grabbed it and immediately tore at the paper. Her hands hesitated once she saw its contents. She looked up at Nathaniel and then back at the gift in her hand. It was a book. “ Don Carlos .”
    He nodded, “Open the cover.”
    Her hands slid over the book’s worn cover before flipping it open. She gasped, “It’s signed.” Friedrich Schiller’s name was scrolled in bold ink.
    He nodded again.
    She looked up at him and shook her head, “How? He died nearly twenty years ago.”
    “It was my father's. He gave it to me years ago. Don Carlos is also my favorite.”
    She stared at him in surprise, “How could you give me something so precious?”
    His finger brushed her cheek as he lowered his voice, “How can you not see how precious you are to me? How can you not see how well we go together?”
    Amy frowned and opened her mouth, ready for rebuttal.
    His finger slipped to her lips, silencing her. “Come see Cain with me.”

    H er frown deepened . It didn’t look like a yes, so Nathaniel did what he thought was necessary and replaced his finger with his lips. When they parted, Amy’s eyes were closed and her mouth red from their play. And that was when he decided: she’d won. He couldn’t bear the thought of her with anyone else. He’d have to marry her in order to claim her. His Amy. His beautiful, enchanting Amy Ott.
    He whispered in her ear, “I’ll be around at eight.” And then he strolled from the room, feeling as though he’d been the true winner.
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10

CHAPTER
    TEN
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    “ … I don’t care how many