Authors: Nichole Matthews
“That partic
ular tapestry is my favorite.”
Persephone was surprised to find the sound of his
deep, rumbling
voice caused a yearning deep in her soul
, setting her hand over her quivering stomach
.
She whirled, almost startled
to find Parker stopped half-way up the stairs looking
at her with a curious half smile
, the corners of his eyes crinkled,
and
gold
glint
ed
in his hair from the lit wall scones spa
ced evenly down the staircase.
Her cheeks were lit on fire and her face felt immensely warm. She didn’t know whether from fear
or from
awareness.
She was a little unnerved by the reality of him.
He was magnificent
, almost too perfect which scared her
.
She had seen men who appeared perfect when in polite society, but behind closed doors
—
she shook her head to clear the disturbing thought.
She exhaled shakily
.
“My lord.”
She
twisted her hands in front of her. She wanted to
dwell on more pleasant subjects such as Parker’s physique and how h
is evenings’ attire displayed it to perfection
.
He wore a double-br
easted frockcoat in dark blue which
turned his eyes a bright blue over a buff waistcoat and gray trousers and a simple knotted snowy white cravat. Sedate, yet elegant and perfectly matched her opinion of the man.
“Fran
ç
ois Boucher.” He leaned back
, resting his back
against the railing
and crossed his arms
enjoying the beautiful blush that highlighted her cheekbones
. “My fathe
r paid a small fortune for it.”
Persephone
allowed her
self to relax a bit and inhaled
his wonderful scent.
Sandlewood
and a multitude of spices
she couldn’t define that assailed her nostrils
.
Parker
pushed off with graceful movements and made his way up
the remaining distance
to the landing to stand next to her. “Said that it reminded him of us when we were children.”
He bowed beautifully to her, the epitome of graciousness, and she curtsied back
giving him a tentative smile.
“What a lovely story.”
His father had been dead many years now, but he could still feel his
throat close up at the memory.
She noticed the slight twitch near his eye as he stared at the tapestry.
“I can
see that you miss him dearly.”
He reached out as if to touch the tapestry but stopped short
dropping his hand back to his side.
“I will miss him until the day I die.”
He turned to her with sad eyes that changed with a blink. “I didn’t meet you to bore you with old family stories, Persephone.”
She stepped aside. “Don’t let me keep you
from your destination
.”
His genuine laughter echoed in the cavernous hall and on impulse he raised her hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss on her knuckles.
“But I have arrived
at my destination
, my dear.”
She stiffened at the same time her
startled gaze
rose to
me
e
t his
and he saw her telltale bush
.
“My lord?”
He didn’t correct her this time for addressing him with his title. He knew that it would most likely take time for her to truly trust him.
“I was com
ing in search of you, Persephone
.
We feared you had become
irretrievably
lost
, never to be heard from again
.
” His blue eyes sparkled, one corner of his mouth tipping up in a wolfishly lazy smile.
He leaned in and whispered,
“There are tales from my youth of weary travelers wondering through these dark halls, never to be seen
or heard
from again.”
“You’re teasing me, my lord.”
Averting her eyes from his
forceful
gaze, she
turned back towards the tapestry and
replied,
“
I was o
nly t
emporarily distracted
by all the beautiful pieces
, my lord.”
He leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, just watching.
“It was thoughtless of me to allow you to find your way through this monstrosity alone.”
Amusement lit his eyes, then his lips quirked up. “My manners are sadly lacking.”
Her brow furrowed, he was
dallying
with her
,
making
her belly flutter. She raised her hand to her hair, touching one of the artfully arranged curls
Nancy
had pinned there
and sighed. She had forgotten her hair was no longer hanging in limp shanks around her head.
That she actually looked like a lady not a penniless beggar
, gave her strength
.
“You look beautiful, Persephone.”
When he spoke he dropped his voice.
She wrinkled her nose as if she doubted his words.
He just grinned.
“Perhaps after dinner you would appreciate a look at our portrait gallery.” He wanted to prolong their time together.
“Perhaps take a gander at some of the past Peregrine reprobates?”
Somehow she appealed to him.
Galahad
? Was he only interested in rescuing her? That had never been the case in the past. Why would that inclination surface now a
t the ripe old age of thirty?
Every fiber in her urged her to flee, to run back to her room and claim a megrim. Her hands fisted at her sides.
I’m not a coward. I’m not a coward. I’m not a coward.
“I would like that, my lord.”
Parker’s big hand touched the small of her back, then slid to her waist, curving over the top of her hip as he turned her and
her skin went cold.
She
froze, unable to move. She took a slow and steady breath, then another.
I’m not a coward.
He immediately removed his hand
at her skittishness
.
“Persephone?”
When she raised her eyes, h
is gaze was tender, concerned. She was amazed at how attuned he was to her reactions.
He stood and folded his arms across his chest and waited with infinite patience. When she didn’t say anything, he
rubbed his knuckles over her cheek. “
Are you afraid of me
?”
Persephone stood there with her eyes wide, unblinking. N
ot moving until a
flutter tickled her chest, like running her hands over the finest fur, this time not fear, which surprised
her how quickly the feeling changed.
She shook her head.
“No,” she whispered
, a slight quaver in her voice
.
“I desire most of all for you to not be afraid. I want you to feel safe.”
He held out his arm and w
aited. No sign of impatience.
She stared at his arm
for what seemed an eternity
,
then laid her hand over the hard muscles and
sighed with girlish longing
. T
hey made their way down the stairs surprised that she would long for any man’s touch after what she had endured. H
e
g
uided her toward the Rose Room
, t
he warmth of his hand still linger
ing at
her waist
. She was
afraid that she would be unable to stand once she was no longer holding his arm. Her legs had turned to jelly at his touch.
His touch comforted on a deeper level she
didn’t quite understand. Just t
he
polite gesture of placing his
hand at the small of her back to guide her in the
direction of their destination
affected something inside her that had been paralyzed with fear for so long.
S
he was surprised that s
uch a simple action
could have a profound impact
.
He cocked his head to the side and studied her.
“Especially since I now know that you enjoy fine art.”
He grinned.
“Our gallery boasts some maste
rful renderings of
my ancestors.” He slanted
a playful glance
her direction
. “Do you like dogs, Persephone.”
“Yes.” Her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out his reasoning
and the abrupt change in topic
. Paintings
,
then dogs? “I had a dog
when I was a
girl.”
She lifted one red brow in question.
To him she was still a girl.
She seemed so innocent.
“Where is your dog now
?” he asked conversationally.
She averted her gaze and tried to think of how to respond.
“She was found dead one day.” Her eyes grew sad
and her voice was bereft
. “Her neck
was
broken,
”
she added without inflection.
“
Bloody
he
…” He stopped in the middle of their descent down the stairs causing Persephone to stumble. He caught her around the waist
with a
n iron-hard arm to keep her upright and caught himself before he finished his words. “I’m sorry, Persephone.”
“It was a few years ago now.” She shrugged
.
“It happened a few months after
the death of my parent’s
.”
Her arm now trapped against his body was rigid and he could feel her hand ball up into a fist.
“How old were you?”
he asked,
resuming
their descent down the stairs.
“Seventeen.”
Her chest constricted painfully
her eyes wide as they looked into his gentle blue gaze
.
“
Still a girl,
”
he said in an even tone.
She shook her head
suddenly afraid that he could see into her soul. That he knew everything she had done
.
“Not for long,” she murmured
tearing her gaze away
.
Parker frowned
at her words, feeling t
he shiver that ran through her body
.
“I’ve thought of getting a dog.” He felt her relax at his turn of the conversation to what he hoped would be a more innocuous subject for her.
He was right. He could see her breathing ease from the corner of his eye.
“Poppy took her pug with her to
Allingham
Park after she wed. I hadn’t realized how much time I spent with the
spoiled
mongrel until he was gone,
”
he admitted.
Persephone looked at him.
“
While you are here, would you be willing to assist me with choosing a suitable pet?”
His eyes crinkled.
“That’s not my place.”
Her cheeks heated under his scrutiny and she looked away, suddenly uneasy with his attentions.
He touched her hand and she stiffened
and
he
instantly felt protective
. “It’s only a dog, Persephone.”
His keen eyes focused on her face.
She paused
on the stairs
, forcing him to stop. “But it will be your dog. You do not need my opinion.”
His eyes narrowed
on her pale face
. “It is always good to have a second pair of
eyes, Per
sephone,” he said after a pause.
“Other’s opinions put things in better perspective.”
She stared down at where his hand held hers. Th
e heat of his hand almost burned
her flesh. She just breathed, in, out, in, out
,
over and over until the panic tha
t threatened to rise subsided.
He stooped down to eye level and looked her square in the eye
, acknowledging her fears but not yielding at all.
His blue eyes gentle. “You are safe, sweetheart.”
He said in his soothing tone, watching her with
observant
eyes.
Her size made him feel powerful.
She m
ade him feel as if he could slay all of her dragons. She was tangling herself into his life without any effort
on her part
.