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To Catherine, who had gone so long without wearing anything pretty orShe saw a stylishly turned-out wo

"Oh, irls they paint on tins of sweets," the househt, Catherine," Poppy said, bea "Wait until my brother sees you! He’ll rue every aord he’s ever said to you"

"I’ve said awful things to him too," Catherine replied soberly

"We all knew there was a reason behind the aniree on what it was Beatrix was right, of course"

"About what?"

"That you and Leo were like a pair of ferrets, a bit rough-and-tumble in courtship"

Catherine smiled sheepishly "Beatrix is very intuitive"

Poppy directed a wry glance at Dodger, as carefully licking the last residue of egg off the saucer "I used to think Beatrix would outgrow her obsession with animals Now I realize it’s the way her brain works She sees hardly any difference between the animal world and the human one I only hope she can find a man ill tolerate her individuality"

"What a tactful way to put it," Catherine said, laughing "Yourabbits in his shoes or a lizard in his cigar box?"

"Exactly"

"She will," Catherine assured her "Beatrix is far too loving, and worthy of being loved, to go unfully She went to scoop up the ferret as he proceeded to investigate the contents of the basket "I’ll take Dodger for the day I’, and he can sleep onli at Catherine as he was carried away

Leo hadn’t wanted to leave Catherine alone last night He had wanted to stay beside her, watch over her, like a griffin guarding an exotic treasure Although Leo had never possessed a jealous nature before, it see up for lost ti that Catherine was so reliant upon Harry But it was natural that she should want to depend on her brother, especially when Harry had once rescued her from a dire situation and had been her only constant in the years afterward Even though Harry had shown little love or interest in her until recently, he was all she’d ever had

The proble to Catherine He wanted to be her exclusive confidant, her lover and closest friend, to tend to her most intimate needs To warm her with his body when she was cold, hold a cup to her lips when she was thirsty, rub her feet when she was tired To join his life with hers in every significant and esture, one conversation, one passion-filled night He would have to chip away at her, reic slivers here and there until her objections finally collapsed That would require patience, attention, ti at the door of Catherine’s suite, Leo knocked discreetly and waited She appeared pro," she said with an expectant glance

Any words of greeting Leo had intended to say vanished instantly His gaze traveled slowly over her She was like one of the exquisite fees painted on bandboxes or displayed in print shops The pristine perfection of herto unwrap her, like a bonbon done up in a neat paper twist

Leo’s silence went on so long that Catherine was forced to speak again "I’?"

"I can’t re Heher ground, Catherine placed a gloved hand on his chest "I’m afraid I can’t allow you inside, my lord It wouldn’t be proper And I do hope that for this outing you have hired an open carriage instead of a closed one?"

"We can take a carriage if you prefer But our destination is a short distance, and the walk is pleasant, through St Jao on foot?"

She nodded immediately

As they left the hotel, Leo took the side nearest the curb Walking with her hand tucked into the crook of Leo’s ar the park, that King Ja camels, crocodiles, and an elephant, as well as a row of aviaries along what beca her about the architect John Nash, who had designed the central h the park The avenue had becoham Palace

"Nash hat they called a coxcoant and self-important, which are requirements for an architect of that caliber"

"Are they?" Catherine see amount of money expended on an important work, and the public nature of it … it’s effrontery, really, to believe that a design in one’s head has enough s in a museum where people have to seek it out, or avoid it if they prefer But there’s not , and God help us all if it’s an eyesore"

She glanced at hi close attention "Do you ever drearand public palace or monureat architect Only a useful one I like designing smaller projects, such as the tenant houses on the estate They’re no less important than a palace, in my opinion" He shortened his stride to h patch in the pavement "When I went back to France the second time, I happened to encounter one of my professors from the Académie des Beaux-Arts, while I was on a walk in Provence Lovely old man"

"What a fortunate coincidence"

"Fate"

"You believe in fate?"

Leo gave her a crooked grin "I with Rohan and Merripen, don’t you think?"

Catherine smiled back, and shook her head "I’m a skeptic I believe fate is e are and e make of our chances Go on … tell me about the professor"

"I visited Professor Joseph often after that chancein his atelier" He pronounced the surname the French ith the stress on the second syllable Pausing, he slasses of chartreuse I couldn’t abide the stuff"

"What did you talk about?" came the soft question

"Usually architecture Professor Joseph had a pure view of it … that a srand public edifice And he spoke of things he’d never mentioned at the Académie; his sense of the connections between the physical and spiritual … that a perfect , sculpture, or a building, could provide you with a liliive me"

"No, it’s not that at all" They walked in silence for nearly a half minute before Catherine burst out, "I’ve never really known you You are overturning so "