Swept Away Read Free Page A

been assured that she was a beauty from the time she was old enough to toddle. The eager pursuit of her since she was sixteen by every gentleman within the vicinity of their country house had done nothing to disabuse her of the notion. Indeed, looking in the mirror each day was reassurance enough of that. Her figure was tall, slender and high-breasted, the perfect body for the high-waisted, soft, flowing styles that were currently popular. Her hair was a rich auburn, thick and inviting, and her eyes were a vibrant blue, accented by thick lashes. Everything about her face, from her creamy white complexion to the narrow arch of her dark brown brows to the sweet curve of her full lower lip, all combined to create a perfection that would perhaps have been cold if it had not been for the warmth of her smile and the pert little dimple that often creased her cheek.
    Julia was not vain about her beauty. She accepted it as a fact, just as she accepted that she could handle a horse or read a book. Her beauty, she had found, meant a great deal more to others than it did to her. Indeed, there had been times when it had been a trial, when she had wished when conversing with a man that he could talk to her about something more interesting than the quality of her skin or the brightness of her eyes. It seemed to her that, in choosing a wife, it would be more important to find a pleasing personality such as Phoebe had than great beauty.
    â€œDo you forgive me, dear Julia?” Phoebe asked with some anxiety, and Julia bent to give her a reassuring hug.
    â€œOf course. I was merely teasing you. You have paid me compliments often enough to turn my head, I assure you.”
    Phoebe smiled and relaxed. “Good. What I meant to say was that Lord Stonehaven has had far more experience than you. I am sure that he will admire you the moment he sees you, but it is what he might do that worries me. You intend only to tease him, but he is a dangerous man. An unscrupulous one! Think what he did to Selby, who had been his friend for years. What if you arouse him, and he—he does not behave like a gentleman? What if he—” She lowered her voice. “What if he forces you?”
    â€œI may not have made my Season, but I have had some experience with men. I do not think the ones in Kent are that different from other men. I have always been able to handle my suitors, including the one or two who made less-than-gentlemanly overtures to me.”
    Phoebe’s eyes widened. “No! They did? Who?”
    Julia chuckled. “Squire Buntwell, for one.”
    â€œSquire Buntwell! That old pudding!” Phoebe exclaimed indignantly. “What would he think a woman like you would want with him? Why, he’s fifty if he’s a day, and married, besides.”
    â€œI don’t think he was overly concerned with what I wanted, only with what he wanted. Anyway, I made it clear to him that he should look elsewhere for his satisfaction.” Julia’s eyes twinkled with laughter as she recalled the incident.
    â€œWhat did you do?”
    â€œI stamped hard on his instep and punched him in that fat stomach. And while he was doubled over, trying to catch his breath, I told him that if he ever tried it again, I would tell his wife, the pastor and all the gossips in the county. He would be a laughingstock. I think he saw my point.”
    Phoebe giggled. “I am sure he did. But I don’t think that would necessarily work with a man like Stonehaven.”
    â€œPerhaps not. However, I can carry Selby’s detonator with me,” Julia said, naming the small pocket-size pistol in her brother’s collection. “I would think that a man’s ardor decreases dramatically when he’s staring down the barrel of a firearm.”
    â€œJulia!” Phoebe looked shocked, but could not keep from bursting into laughter.
    At that moment they were interrupted by the tumultuous entrance of a six-year-old boy.
    â€œMama!