A Secret Affair by Valerie Bowman Page A

knowledge.
    Charlie took another deep cleansing breath. If it was so bloody clear, why didn’t he retire to the country immediately and start his new life? Jordan was about to marry, the wedding only days away. Charlie was duty-bound to stay in town and help his brother get leg-shackled, then he’d move on with his life.
    But why couldn’t he scrub the inviting kiss he’d shared with Frances Birmingham from his memory? And he was thinking about her again. Blast it! He was behaving like a complete fool. That was all. He’d leave. Immediately. Do his duty to his brother by standing up with him at the wedding and then get on with his own affairs. He took a few more deep breaths of the chilly air and turned to leave just when the door behind him clicked open and Lady Lenora Harcourt slipped onto the balcony.
    “Mr. Holloway,” she said in a sultry voice. “I saw you leave the ballroom. I thought you might enjoy some company.”
    Charlie faced the seductive beauty. He wanted just the opposite, but he could hardly say that out loud. “I thought some fresh air might do me good.”
    “Me too,” she said.
    “Yes, well, I was just about to leave. May I escort you back into the party before I go?”
    “So eager to rid yourself of me?” she asked instead.
    Charlie froze. She wasn’t about to make this easy for him. “No. Not at all.”
    “Then you won’t mind staying with me for a bit while I enjoy the night air, will you? It really is quite bracing.”
    He summoned a smile. “Happy to oblige.”
    Lady Lenora moved closer and slid a hand through his arm. “Take me for a turn in the garden, won’t you?”
    He stiffened. “I’m not certain there’s much to see there this time of year.”
    “Oh, I only want it for the exercise. It’ll do us good.” She plastered herself to the side of his body.
    Charlie nodded. “Very well.”
    He led her down the stone steps and out into the chilly night. A slight frost on the grass crunched beneath his booted feet as they walked.
    “The moonlight is quite beautiful, isn’t it?” Lady Lenora sighed. She looked up into his face.
    “Quite,” he answered with measured nonchalance.
    “Oh, come this way. I want to see the statue of Venus.” She pointed across the way to a little nook beneath an arbor of twisted branches.
    Charlie grudgingly strolled over with her.
    As soon as they were within the arbor, Lady Lenora turned to face him. Charlie looked back. They were quite privately distanced from the house. Just as the lady had planned, no doubt.
    He cleared his throat. “Perhaps we should return—”
    “Or perhaps we should do this.” Lady Lenora raised up on tiptoes, wrapped her arms possessively around his neck, and kissed him full on the mouth. Charlie didn’t react. His mind raced with a thousand thoughts. Lady Harcourt was beautiful, she was obviously willing, and she was clearly experienced. But try as he might, he couldn’t make his lips respond. Lady Lenora was just the sort he should have a brief interlude with. He’d been sorely in need of a woman of late, and the lush widow would have no long-term expectations. She’d be off to her next conquest soon enough, and Charlie would be none the worse for it. But the image of Frances Birmingham kept floating through his mind. He lifted his hands to Lady Lenora’s shoulders and firmly pushed her away. “No.”
    Lady Lenora’s full red lips formed a pout. “No? Why not?” She traced one long tapered nail along his jaw. “It could be fun, if you’d let it.”
    Charlie shook his head. “While the offer is tempting, Lady Harcourt. I’m not looking for that sort of ‘fun’ at the moment. Good evening.”
    He turned on his heel and left the arbor, no doubt with the burn marks from Lady Lenora’s eyes scorching the back of his evening coat.

CHAPTER 12
    Eavesdropping was never a good idea. How many times had Mama told her that? But now that Frances was hidden in the antechamber of the ladies’ retiring room at