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“So you say,” Sir Owen pursued

“Devil seize your heart and then feed it to the lions,” the viscount shouted “Get out of my home”

Sir Oas up already and started for the door, “As a true friend of the Sherborne’s, I have to explore every possibility”

“As do I,” the viscount shouted after him “We all know that you and Celia were as you called it ‘inti her clandestinely up until nearly theto court Mandy I think you have a sight more to answer for than I, my man!”

“Indeed,” put in the duke “I think your involveard to ti After all, you must marry well in order to fully come about, must you not? Would the fair Miss Sherborne understand how you could so quickly drop her cousin and profess your love of her?”

“How dare you,” snapped Sir Owen “I think you owe h…” Sir Owen snapped towards the viscount as he glared at the duke

“Apology? You co for an apology You have a loose screw, my man, a loose screw,” Skip retorted

“Good day, gentlemen,” Sir Owen said and slammed out of the library

The duke turned to the viscount and said, “Well, this puts things in a new light Sit, my friend…let’s talk”

Chapter Nine

MANDY SAT UP and pushed the thin blanket away from her body The darkness of her self ih the blackness in an atte some few feet away

Although she could hear his breathing, she could notto see if he ake, “Ned…Neddy, are you sleeping?”

She received a caustic response, heard sorihed wearily and loudly No response She tried again—still no response The sound of his heavy breathing continued

It was musky and uncomfortable and her straw bed was certainly not what she was used to—nor did time seem to be an aid to adjustment Her shts for no reason at all were always about the duke What was he doing and as he doing it with? Where was he and did he think her desirable? Could he think her desirable and, would he if she put some effort into it?

She lay back down and her hts—the color of his eyes Such deep sky blue and forever twinkling; at least when he wasn’t glaring at her He seee absurd, which is how she often felt They were alike in many ways—rule breakers, independent, and wildly passionate about life A heavy sigh escaped her as she thought about her life and what a mess she was in