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At first, as a boy, he’d been afraid that he would turn as white as an ostrich Then he realized that the ducal picture gallery held a portrait of an ancestor from years back, who had the same hair The same face too Nasty cold-eyed bastard, he looked, and so Villiers didn’t have any illusions about his own visage

The whole idea that Tobias had his hair and eyes gave hiave hireet everyone He’d seen many beautiful women--his former fiancée, Roberta, was exquisite--but Lisette was extraordinary She was like sooddess

"Join us," she cried, gesturing toward the floor She was seated in thelike a flower It was refreshing to see soard for convention, as opposed to the Duchess of Montague, a woman whom he would personally nominate as the person one most doesn’t want to welcome into the fa herIt seeotten about Eleanor

Who From all appearances, Eleanor had decided to kick over the traces, but he didn’t have any real belief that she had actually decided to marry him She had announced that merely to silence her land ould dare to announce their engage for him to propose

Eleanor walked back into the rooold, Eleanor had the crilish hare existed

Without a word to him she dropped on the floor next to Anne Her side panniers were too large for the indignity of sitting on the floor One of thelimpse of a deliciously slim ankle before she slapped it back down

"I was about to ask if I ht offer you a chair," he said, just for the pleasure of having her scowl at him

Her eyes were as sooty as a fashionable strumpet’s But she was trained to be a duchess, and so she sat straight upright, even though seated on the floor A ducal doxy, that’s what she was A dissipated duchess Whatever she was, his body responded to her signals as if he really were in a brothel--not that he ever entered those establishroup on the floor, but he loathed that sort of infor skills, either

"What do you do besides throw the bones and try to catch the ball?" Eleanor was asking She had the ball in hand and seeh

"Juby says he and other boys make up their own rules," Lisette put in "I don’t see any reason e should have to be precise I want to try riding the elephant"

Riding the elephant? Villiers realized he had clearly missed an important part of the conversation It was a pity that his blood was at a slow boil, all due to Eleanor’s pouty lips It ued little thing ould probably turn into her hten awould

"Juby?" Eleanor said to Tobias "That name makes you sound like a boiled sweet"

Villiers had to stop hiued, but she was echoing his opinion He pulled over a chair and sat down behind his son

Eleanor cast hiet to sit in a chair while we’re on the floor?"

"You chose to sit there," he said pleasantly "I choose not to join you"

"What a stick-in-the-hed She put her ar on the floor, don’t we?"