KIND
EYES AND A LION’S HEART
CHAPTER
SEVEN
PART THREE
Barengar also had
a wineskin dangling from his fingers.
His voice was thick, too, although whether from the swelling or the
wine, it was difficult to tell.
Before anyone could answer, his frown
deepened and he gestured at the embracing couple with the hand holding the
wineskin. “God’s blood!”
“Come along, young man,” Lord Percival
said, taking him by the arm and steering him out of the room. “You’re imagining things.”
“Get dressed at once, Viola,” her aunt
said after they had gone, “and get back to your chamber before the household
stirs. Emil won’t say a word of what’s
happened, although his silence will no doubt cost a pretty penny. As for your wedding, Viola, I suppose we’d
best have it at once, lest you’ve gotten yourself…. People can count, so we’d best take care to
avoid a scandal. As for you, Sir Melvin,
you’d better...” She sniffled and dabbed
at her eyes. “You’d best be as good as
your word about treating my niece well!” she exclaimed before she choked back a
sob and hurried from the room.
Still clasped in each other’s arms,
Viola and Melvin looked at one another.
“I’m afraid I’m asleep and dreaming,”
Melvin murmured.
“I don’t,” Viola replied as she raised
herself on her toes. She kissed him
gently. “Do you still think you’re
dreaming?”
“Maybe,” he replied and his slowing
broadening smile was an enticement in itself.
She kissed him again. “Awake now?” she purred.
“Wide awake,” he replied. He glanced at the bed, then frowned. “Your aunt told you to get dressed and go
before the household --”
“My uncle’s given his consent, but
until we’re married, he can change his mind.
We’d best insure that we will
be married, and the best way to do that is not
to hurry. If another servant discovers
us together, well, it may cost my aunt and uncle some more money, but it may be
the only way to make certain he doesn’t withdraw his consent.” She gave him a sultry smile. “Besides, I’ve discovered something else you
do as well as kissing. Perhaps even
better.”
“In that case,” Melvin replied with a
surprisingly seductive smile of his own, “I believe I shall retire. And you, my lady?”
Although her gleaming eyes were
anything but tired, she made a great show of yawning. “I believe I had better join you.”
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Note: This novella is
PG13. With the exception of GWYNETH ANDTHE THIEF and THE WASTREL, my books are usually steamier.
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