Sublime

Her eyes saw every inch of him, laying him bare with their investigation. And he couldn’t stop himself as she drew closer and closer, setting his pulse pounding, until the room fell away, and it was nothing but the two of them, and then he fell away, and it was nothing but her. “They hid you from me.”

She narrowed her gaze, unmoved. “You tried to kill him.” “He told me you were dead!” Did she not understand? “You nearly killed Beast’s love.” “I thought they’d let you die!” He’d nearly gone mad with the knowledge of it. Not nearly.

The duke intervened, his voice so dry one could have struck a match off it. “My boy, you’re missing the point. Your sister wants to be compromised.”

“Well,” Jake said testily, “there is a string of Rutledge’s past mistresses who would undoubtedly testify there is nothing wrong with his carrot.”

No heir of mine will lie with the dreck that came from her bitch of a mother, he’d screamed, coming for her. Ewan had defended her, but his father had been stronger, with six inches and a hundred pounds on him. He’d taken Ewan to the ground and left his sadistic mark on him, as she watched. And the next day, everything had been different. The boy s

Another warning sounded from Whit, and the woman looked over her shoulder. “That’s a very persistent nightingale.” “He’s irritated.”

“Oh . . . Reggie,” the first woman cackled. “You’ve got yerself a bit o’ trouble now . . .” She lowered her voice to a stage whisper as she backed farther into the darkness. “The Devil’s found you.”