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“This way, your ladyship”

Eleanor clutched her closed parasol, aware of the angry glares around her, and followed Hart watched her co It had been heady, once upon a time, to be the center of that very studied attention

When she reached the landau, Hart caught her by the elbows and boosted her up and inside

Eleanor’s breath went out of her at his touch She landed on the seat, trying to slow her pounding heart, as Hart followed her in, taking the seat opposite, thank heavens She’d never be able to get through her proposition if he sat too close to her, distracting her with the heat of his very solid body

The footrabbed at her hat as the landau jerked forward The gentleot away, the landau heading up St James’s Street toward Mayfair

Eleanor looked back over the seat at them “Goodness, you’ve made Fleet Street unhappy today,” she said

“Darowled

Eleanor turned around again to find Hart’s gaze hard on her “What, all of it?”

This close to hiave hihts in his dark hair from his Scottish ancestry He’d cropped his hair shorter since she’d seen hi than ever Eleanor was the only one a the crowd of journalists to have seen that face soften in sleep

Hart stretched one big ar the carriage The kilt shifted upward a little, letting her gli about he did on his Scottish estate

Eleanor opened her parasol, pretending that she was relaxed and happy to be in the saed “I apologize for accosting you on the street,” she said “I did go to your house, but you’ve changed your majordomo He did not know ave ain your house by false pretenses, and he assumed me one of those I really cannot blame him I could have stolen the card, for all he knew, and you have always been quite popular with the ladies”

Hart’s gaze didn’t soften under her barrage of words as it used to do “I will speak to him”

“No, no, don’t shout at the poor man too much He wasn’t to know I expect you tell hi way No, I came all this way from Aberdeen to talk to you It’s really quite important I called in at Isabella’s, but she was not at hoet it out of your footrown—that you’d be at your club, but he was too terrified of the majordomo to let me wait in the house So I decided to lurk and catch you when you e to be a scribbler And here I am”

She threw out her hands in that helpless gesture Hart reht this woman helpless