The Husband List -2 Read Free Page A

thought, but then he hadn’t been this close to her in years. Not since before her marriage, and then she was a mere girl fresh from the schoolroom.
    The woman now beside him was lovely in the fair-haired, creamy-skinned tradition of classic English beauty, with an intelligence that only enhanced her appearance. This was a woman to fulfill the fantasies of any man. Even a man with deep, dark secrets.
    “I liked what you said about it. About the soul of God.”
    He raised a shoulder in an offhand manner. “I don’t know a great deal about art.”
    “Yet you are extremely perceptive.”
    “Not at all. For example, I don’t have so much as an inkling of what your business proposition entails.”
    At once her casual air vanished. She raised her chin and stared into his eyes. He sensed a determination in her even as she appeared to gather her courage.
    She drew a deep breath, the blurted out her request. “I need a husband. I must wed within the next two months.” Her voice was resolute, her gaze steady. “I think you will fill the position nicely.”
    Shock held him still and stole his voice. For a long moment he could do nothing but stare in disbelief. “You wish to marry me? Me ?”
    “Yes, I do,” she said, her voice a shade less adamant than before. Again, she seemed to summon strength.
    “My lord, would you do me the honor of becoming my husband?”
    Chapter 2
    “Your husband?”
    Without warning, the absurdity of her request struck him, and he laughed long and hard.
    “This is not funny,” she said indignantly. “I expected any number of possible reactions to my request, my lord, but laughter was not among them.”
    “Richard.” He sniffed and wiped a tear from his eye.
    “Richard?”
    “It’s my name. You should call the man you intend to marry by his given name.” The very idea of this eminently desirable woman proposing to him... he struggled to contain himself against a fresh wave of mirth.
    “I wish you would stop that. I am quite serious. And I must say, this is all rather disquieting. First a smile and now a laugh? From a man who has never been observed to do either?”
    “I neither laugh nor smile, at least not in public, because I do not wish to become the target of any number of women who are more than willing to disregard the state of my finances in exchange for my title. In addition, I’m not completely unattractive, and I learned long ago that that alone is enough to attract the unwanted attentions of marriage-minded females.” He chuckled and shook his head. “You, however, are obviously made of sterner stuff. I find your courage quite intriguing—”
    “Well, I don’t—”
    “As well as your blunt nature. None of that coy, flirtatious banter for you. No, it’s straight to the point. I can do no less.” He stepped toward her, unable to stifle a grin. “What was it that attracted you, Gillian?”
    “Lady Gillian.” Her eyes widened, and she stepped backwards.
    “Gillian,” he said firmly. “Formality will not do with my betrothed.”
    “I am not yet—”
    “But you wish to be.” Again he moved closer. “Was it my brooding, aloof manner?”
    “You don’t seem particularly aloof now,” she said cautiously and once more backed away.
    “I’m not and never have been. Lady Forester was right—I do have deep, dark secrets.” He narrowed the space between them. She tried to step back, but a sofa blocked her retreat. “My demeanor in public is one of them.”
    “That isn’t why—”
    “Then what is it, Gillian?” He stood close enough to touch her, her body within a hairsbreadth of his own. His voice softened. “Why me?”
    She stared up at him, a stunned look in her eyes, blue and bright as no sky an artist could ever capture on canvas. At once he knew, regardless of her reasons, he was not at all adverse to having her as his wife. Or anything else. “I...”
    It was more a sigh than a word. For a long moment his gaze held hers. Without warning, he wanted to