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"Are you all right?" she whispered He hadn’t followed her He couldn’t have--or else he wouldn’t have stayed his hand with just the butcher This was pure chance that their paths had crossed

"No" Hoarse words He reached out and splayed a hand over the pitted brickwork The very preciseness of his movementsShe’d seen this before in Balfour

This wasn’t theon to it by the thinnest of leashes

"What are you doing out?" he asked harshly "It’s martial law I should da for h her "He’s not coht tears to her eyes She was holding on to sanity herself by the slightest grip Every day only tightened the knot inside her heart, where Jereed No matter how busy she kept herself, the quiet moments still crept up, where she couldn’t help but dwell on her growing sense of loss

Still no sign of hiive up She wouldn’t… But why couldn’t she find him?

Lynch turned black eyes on her, the irises completely obliterated by darkness "How often has that man harassed you? Has he ever--"

"No," she hastened to assure him "He hasn’t dared before I ca--" She shook her head "And I have my pistol For men like that"

Lynch pushed away from the wall "Then why didn’t you draw it?"

Rosalind was tempted to back away but didn’t dare "I didn’t think I needed to I was in control"

"It didn’t sound like it"

She gaped for words, not understanding the change in hier was so fierce she could almost feel it on her skin "Well I don’t think I shall have to be concerned in the future Word will spread after that little perforrabbed her aruild, but I don’t think that wise I’ll set a man to watch over you instead"

The closeness of his body set her on fire, her heart haet the feel of those clever fingers between her thighs and the rasp of his teeth against her throat Concentrating was hard, but she would not be undone like she had been in the bathing roo possible "That’s quite all right I don’t need a Nighthawk on my doorstep" Then she frowned "And why don’t you want ht…after this afternoon--?"

His gaze lowered, but he wasn’t staring at her breasts as the butcher had "This afternoon was a ently but fir your forgiveness" He , but the iain, Rosa It can’t"

She should never have provoked it in the first place Yet her heart clenched at his words, a dangerous sense of…so her Disappointment?

"Why?" she blurted recklessly

Lynch see up walls "You’re my secretary," he said, "and I your ee"

"I didn’t mind," she murmured "I wanted what happened--"

"I kissed another woht," he said bluntly "You should know that"

She’d known Of course she’d known Yet the way he threw it in her face actually hurt She could feel the heat draining fro sharply in her ears How ridiculous… To feel such jealousy over as essentially herself

"Why?" she whispered

Lynch dreay, raking a hand through his hair "I don’t know," he snapped "It’s a complicated situation"

"Is she… Is she someone you know?" It seemed ridiculous to ask, but she was suddenly desperate to knohat he truly thought about her Or about Rosa Marberry

Anger filled her She wasn’t Rosa Marberry The woman was just a role Yet it felt real A tiny little part of her wanted to be Rosa Marberry So burden of her past or the pressure of abrother Someone that Jasper Lynch had wanted, even for a second

Lynch’s bleakness surprised her "No," he said "She’s no one I know, no one…important"

That made the ache fiercer "I see"

"I should never have touched you The shame is all mine," he replied A faint hesitation "Come, I’ll walk you home"

"No" She jerked away "It’s fine I can find ht her upper arht hand into a fist and driving it into his gut "Don’t touch me! Just leaveof his ar at her hand, heat bubbling up behind her eyes