One Whisper Away Read Free

unnecessary.
    “Am I about to receive a lecture on propriety?” he asked over the rim of his cut-crystal glass, grateful to be out of the stuffy ballroom and on the terrace. The London sky always held a slight haze from chimney smoke, but at least this evening there were stars, due to a welcome breeze scented with the promise of rain.
    James, his first cousin, son of his father’s younger brother, just smiled with cynical resignation, propping one arm against the balustrade. “Is it worth it to point out you shouldn’t have done it?”
    From the shocked expression on the young lady’s face, that was true. So Jonathan equivocated. “She’s very beautiful.”
    James blew out a short breath. “So are many other ladies who already eye you with both curiosity and willingness. Different sorts of ladies than the innocent daughter of the Duke of Eddington.”
    He’d didn’t have to be told she was innocent. It had been there in the slight—and very arousing—swift intake of her breath as he leaned close and whispered in her ear.
    It wasn’t a guess that no man had ever done that before. He’d shocked her, but then again, she hadn’t reacted like an outraged innocent either.
    How intriguing.
    She wore a floral perfume, the provocative scent drifting from her smooth pale skin. And her eyes were an unusual clear topaz color. He’d expected blue from her golden blond hair and ivory complexion. The delicacy of her bone structure and the way her slenderness emphasized her feminine curves had struck him with a surprising impact.
    Usually he didn’t favor pale blondes, but the duke’s daughter was lovely indeed. “What’s her name?”
    “Cast your interest elsewhere, Jon.”
    They knew each other well, courtesy of James’s service in the Royal Navy, which had sent him to America, where by virtue of family connection their paths had crossed. Considering the tension between their countries—only recently resolved—their communication had been both friendly and constant despite the conflict. Jonathan liked James and would have considered him a friend, their close family tie aside. They even looked a little alike, they’d both been told, though their coloring was very different.
    Jonathan arched a brow in amusement. “Are you my keeper now?”
    “Thankfully, no.” James’s grin was rueful. “I doubt anyone could manage that task. But if you’d like some advice, keep in mind this is not the wilderness. The rules of decorum chafe, I agree, but they do exist. I know you dislike autocratic sanctions.”
    “Boston is hardly a wilderness.”
    “And how much time do you actually spend in Boston?” James sipped his whiskey and looked bland.
    Too much , Jonathan wanted to answer. He disliked cities. Still, he did business in Boston often because he was a partner in a venture that owned several banks there. James was correct in that whenever he could, he resided at his country house. Long rides, early swims in the lake, the sun coming up over the trees . . .
    He missed it fiercely already, and he knew his time here had barely begun.
    “Tell me about her.”
    “Shall I begin with how she comes with a price you have expressed no interest in paying? If you wish to stand in a cathedral in front of witnesses and pledge your name and protection for her place in your bed, then go ahead and pursue her. Otherwise, I advise you to look for amusement along other avenues. Her father is a very powerful man. The Duke of Eddington is one of the richest men in Britain.”
    A night bird sang somewhere, the call unfamiliar. Three weeks in England now. Jonathan felt like such a stranger. Back home he could have identified the bird with unerring accuracy. “I hardly said I wished to dally with her. I’m just curious.”
    His cousin gave him a long, considering look that was a mixture of amusement and skepticism, and then shrugged. “She made her debut this spring and her older sister is also considered eligible, though not as popular