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"You look like a girl again," hein his voice prompted her to look over her shoulder

The intense look in his eyes as he surveyed her snatched the breath froain and tried to still her racing heart

Seeking to fill the charged air, she asked, "Did you hs of the sea and squawking gulls rilled the air For a ht he would not reply and warned herself not to expect friendly banter froht her here because of Julianne Not because he wanted to spend tiive her a real honeyrew damp where they clutched her skirts

"I missed my faravelly and thick with an undercurrent of emotion "I did not know Albert had died until I returned and found my cousin ensconced at the Priory"

"It was rumored that you were dead"

"Rurowled

"In any case, I was glad to hear the rue to his voice "And did you think much of me over the years?"

More than a married lady should More than you will over know

Deliberately avoiding the question, she said, "It must have been a shock to return and find Albert dead"

He snorted "That I should return home unscathed from years of war to find hed, the sound bitter and caustic, twisting inside her belly "Yes, you could call it a shock"

She nodded, staring hard ahead, afraid to look over her shoulder at hiht suddenly stop when he realized he was _talking _ to her As he used to As friends Despite the painful subject matter, she did not want him to stop, to seal hie

"I had received word of my father’s death," he continued, "but he was lost to me before I ever left"

Her sto the day he had earned his father’s undying reproach

Their mounts had jumped that fence countless times There was no reason to expect any of them would not clear it No reason for Seth to blame himself for Julianne’s fall But he did That much Jane had known as she stood with hi his as they waited for the physician to finish his exaed from the room and struck Seth, her own heart had broken

"Your father loved you," she murmured, not entirely convinced she spoke the truth

"Once," his voice cracked the air "He loved , she crossed her arms and faced him, "He needed someone to blame"

"He bla his head, dragged a hand over his face "Never s My father is dead

Whether he lovedhis hand froaze "I’m sure you would like to rest in your room before dinner"

"Of course," she replied, not the least bit weary

Crouching, he gathered her shoes and stockings Before she quite realized what he was about, he was brushing the sand froers a caress that sent a spark of heat up her leg to the core of her Her stomach quivered and contracted

A luher beneath the he around one ankle Her breath caught at his warm touch on her dailded the brown strands Whiskey trapped in cut glass Her fingers itched to caress the tendrils, to feel the softness against her open pal a trail toward her garters, fingertips light as a feather stroke on the sensitive flesh of her thighs Her throat tightened, the lu into a painful knot as he turned his attention to her other leg

By the ti her lip to keep froaze snared hers, the centers of his eyes gloith the knowledge of her arousal

Without a word, he took her ar to the night ahead Would he come to her?

The pulse at her neck shuddered wildly at the prospect She prayed he would Her flesh longed to join with his again, to feel with her body what her heart could not

Gregory rose fro a robe, he opened the door, sensing, as he did so, ould be standing on the other side Yet even knowing, he did not hesitate Could not stop if his life depended on it With his heart in his throat, he pulled open the door

"Julianne," he greeted, his voice a croak as he drank in the sight of her The upturned angle of her face, so expectant, so hopeful, so pure, captivated him and made him ache in a way he never had He clenched his hands at his sides to stop fro her

With Seth on his i relations, he had been thrust into the role of co that had been both a pleasure and a torested that Seth leave him behind A consuestion, insisting that Seth eschew his use for a valet during his honeymoon