Far Too Tempted Read Free Page B

around in nappies.”
    Some hero .
    Alex gritted his teeth. “She rode over to the house yesterday and especially asked me to say good-bye, Rob.” It was a small white lie. “So I’m here. Tell her to just come down here and talk to me for a second. I should have left two hours ago.”
    Robert shrugged. “Don’t see why it matters one way or another if you say good-bye to Jess. I’ll tell her you’re in a hurry, if you like.”
    Despite the cowardly temptation to accept that offer, Alex shook his head. “She’s like my…my little sister. And I want to talk to her. Just do it, please. If she refuses, tell her I’ll come up there and haul her down myself.”
    “All right, all right. If it’s so bloody important.” Robert threw up his hands and walked out.
    Alex glanced around the room, idly twirling his hat in his hands. There were paintings missing, he noticed with dismay, and the furnishings looked shabby and worn. Sir Richard would spin in his grave if he saw how his son had let the place go. Alex paced over to the window and stared out over the gardens. The neglect was evident there too, with leaves in drifted piles and dying overgrown bushes lining the walkways.
    Jessica didn’t make a sound, but he sensed when she came into the room.
    Turning around, he saw her in the doorway, a wooden expression on her pale face. She looked considerably older than she had the day before, but perhaps it was due to the hardness he saw in her gray eyes. She wore a rose day dress that was out of style and hung on her slender figure. He suspected it had once been her mother’s, dead these four years. Rich dark hair spilled over her shoulders and down her back like gleaming, spun silk.
    He’d hurt and disillusioned her and wasn’t sure what he could do about it—except one thing. He couldn’t ride away with it on his conscience. He had to try.
    “If you plan on telling Robert I was spying on you, it won’t matter. He won’t punish me. He doesn’t care what I do.” The declaration was quiet and defiant.
    Not quite yet a woman, with a child’s fears so evident. Alex felt his heart tighten. He was only too afraid she was right about Robert. “No, I don’t plan on telling Robert anything.”
    “Then why are you here?”
    “To say good-bye.”
    Stonily, she responded, “All right then. Good-bye.”
    He hesitated, not sure of how to handle the situation. What happened needed to be addressed, he was sure of that. After a moment, he asked, “What were you doing there, Jess?”
    She shrugged, feigning an indifference it was obvious she didn’t feel. “I was home here alone. I’m here alone a lot. I guess I just wanted to see people enjoying themselves.”
    An awkward pause ensued. He had no idea how to approach what she had seen happening between him and Miranda. He felt acute guilt over her shattered innocence, though it hadn’t been at all intentional on his part.
    He smiled at her. “You’ll have fun soon too. There will be more parties than you can attend and I’m sure you’ll be invited to them all.”
    She stared back with hostility blazing in her eyes. “Perhaps.”
    Though she was young, it was a sour realization—apparently the outrage of a scorned woman knew no age limits.
    Hell. He swallowed and said in abrupt apology, “Jessica, look, I’m sorry.”
    “Are you going to marry her?” The question was brittle and accusing.
    Damn it, a chit of fifteen should not make him feel so ashamed of himself. “No, I’m not. The lady in question is already married.”
    Silver eyes widened in open shock.
    Good, he told himself violently. He wanted to shake her out of this foolish notion that he was someone she should love.
    The worry was unnecessary, of course.
    He already had.
    Slim hands clenched into fists in her skirts. Her chest heaved under the ill-fitting dress. She said between her teeth, “You’re a…promiscuous cad. I hate you and all you stand for.”
    The accusation hit a bit too close to home