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She jerked up her gaze to find his wicked smile aimed at her

"Yes, well, you shall have to be content with thinking about it A kiss involves lips, not hands"

"Ah, you are obviously not well tutored in the art of kissing, Princess"

She felt as though the winds had unexpectedly risen up frorearm Her throat knotted with the iht be rateful she’d not begun chewing She’d no doubt choke Best to change the course of their topic "What are you carving?" she asked

He chuckled darkly as though he understood her strategy, and she feared he’d continue on with his innuendoes Instead, he said, "A toy ship for my nephew"

"You have fa fully forhtly "I did on occasion suspect that ht have been the case" She couldn’t envision him with a family "You seem more a lone wolf than part of a pack Have you a wife then?"

"I wouldn’t be bartering for kisses if I did"

"Yes, of course, I’ you"

"As I explained that first night, where I’"

"I suppose" She took a bite of ha, "So tell me about your fa about rinned "Servants will talk"

"So you know I have a father and four brothers What of you?"

"Two brothers"

"Older? Younger?"

"One older One younger"

"You don’t like speaking about them Why is that?"

He placed an elbow on the table, leaned forward, and tucked behind her ear several strands of hair that had co around her face "Because they don’t interest led and she wondered if he would kiss her now But he only perused her features as though every line and curve were a fascinating oddity She suspected in his travels he’d encountered the most exotic of women How plain shethe distance Reaching for the orange, she began to peel it with slightly tre he wouldn’t notice that he could set her nerves to dancing with so little effort "Have you traveled the entire world?"

"Most of it"