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Chapter One

London, 1848

Winter

Win had always thought Kev Merripen was beautiful, in the way that an austere landscape or a wintry day could be beautiful He was a large, striking le The exotic boldness of his features was a perfect setting for eyes so dark that the irises were barely distinguishable from the pupil His hair was thick and as black as a raven’s wing, his brows strong and straight And his widecurve that Win found irresistible

Merripen Her love, but never her lover They had known each other since childhood, when he had been taken in by her fah the Hathaways had always treated him as one of their own, Merripen had acted in the capacity of a servant A protector An outsider

He came to Win’s bedroom and stood at the threshold to watch as she packed a valise with a few personal articles from the top of her dresser A hairbrush, a rack of pins, a handful of handkerchiefs that her sister Poppy had embroidered for her As Win tucked the objects into the leather bag, she was intensely aware of Merripen’s motionless form She knehat lurked beneath his stillness, because she felt the sa hi her heart And yet there was no choice She had been an invalid ever since she’d had scarlet fever two years earlier She was thin and frail and given to fainting spells and fatigue Weak lungs, all the doctors had said Nothing to do but succumb A lifetime of bed rest followed by an early death

Win would not accept such a fate

She longed to get well, to enjoy the things that h the countryside She wanted the freedom to love… to marry… to have her own family someday

With her health in such a poor state, there was no possibility of doing any of those things But that was about to change She was departing this day for a French clinic, where a dyna doctor, Julian Harrow, had achieved remarkable results for patients just like herself His treatments were unorthodox, controversial, but Win didn’t care She would have done anything to be cured Because until that day cao," he said, so softly that she alled to remain outwardly calm, even as a hot-and-cold chill went down her spine

"Please close the door," she ed to say They needed privacy for the conversation they were about to have

Merripen didn’t move Color had risen in his swarthy face, and his black eyes glittered with a ferocity that wasn’t at all like him He was all Rom at this moment, his emotions closer to the surface than he ever usually allowed

She went to close the door herself, while he moved away from her as if any contact between them would result in fatal harently

"You won’t be safe there"

"I’ll be perfectly safe," she said "I have faith in Dr Harrow His treath success rate-"

"He’s had as many failures as successes There are better doctors here in London You should try them first"

"I think my best chances lie with Dr Harrow" Win s the things he couldn’t say "I’ll conored that Any atteht was always met with rock-hard resistance He would never ad other than a fragile invalid who needed his protection A butterfly under glass

While he went on with his private pursuits

Despite Merripen’s discretion in personal matters, Win was certain there had been iven hi bleak and angry rose fro with someone else It would shock everyone who knew her, had they understood the power of her desire for hi his expressionless face, Win thought, Very well, Kev If this is what you want, I’ll be stoic We’ll have a pleasant, bloodless good-bye

Later she would suffer in private, knowing it would be an eternity until she saw hi like this, forever together and yet apart, her illness always between them

"Well," she said briskly, "I’ll be off soon And there’s no need to worry, Kev Leo will take care ofthe trip to France, and-"

"Your brother can’t even take care of hi You’ll stay here, where I can-"

He bit off the words

But Win had heard a note of souish, buried in his deep voice

This was getting interesting

Her heart began to thump "There…" She had to pause to catch her breath "There’s only one thing that could stop lance "What is it?"

It took her a long e to speak "Tell me you love me Tell me, and I’ll stay"

The black eyes widened The sound of his indrawn breath cut through the air like the doard arc of an ax stroke He was silent, frozen

A curious h Win as she waited for his reply

"I… care for everyone in your fa for" Win moved toward hi her pal h hie in her own voice, "I wouldn’t care if I died torowled, backing away

Casting aside all caution, Win followed She reached out to grasp the loose folds of his shirt "Tellthe truth out into the open-"

"Hush; you’ll ht She could feel the fa with her pounding heart and laboring lungs She cursed her failing body "I love you," she said wretchedly "And if I ell, no power on earth could keep me away from you If I ell, I would take you into my bed, and I would show you as much passion as any woman could-"