Beyond Rubies (Daughters of Sin Book 4) by Beverley Oakley

throat and sending sensation coursing wildly through her, she worried at his words. “But what if I fall in love?” she asked. “What if you fall in love, Lord Silverton? In fact, we’ve already admitted that we have.”
    “We have?” He looked confused. “Of course we shan’t fall in love, but we must like each other very much.  Love is not a prerequisite for what I’m proposing.”
    “I don’t mean with each other, for you’ve just told me you’re in love with a lady who refused your suit. And I’ve already told you that I think I’m in love with another. In fact, I met him earlier today.”
    “Did you indeed?” He quirked a brow. “And who is this lucky gentleman?”
    “I don’t know his name, but I knew he was my destiny, for a fortune-teller told me to look out for a gentleman with raven-black locks and a scar across his left cheek.”
    “You saw him this afternoon? And have you spoken to him?”
    “We exchanged greetings. I think he knew me, too. There was something meaningful in his look. But what about you? I mean, suppose your lady love changes her mind and agrees to marry you after all? I think my presence may complicate matters, don’t you?”
    He shook his head, and a slow smile grew as he settled her more comfortably on his lap. “My dear, you really are the innocent. Have you ever done anything like I’m proposing?”
    “What are you proposing, Lord Silverton? To keeping me in lodgings so you may visit me and we may do what we’ve been doing this evening? But instead of it being practice, it would be real?” She shook her head and added firmly, “But this evening was in the name of practice, and what you are proposing is something I’d only consider doing every evening with someone I loved very much and who wanted to marry me.”
    He put his finger under her chin and raised her face to him. In the dim light, his expression was interested. Earnest and assessing. She felt a strange tug somewhere in the lower reaches of her belly. A tugging that made her want to melt into him, which was quite absurd since he was most definitely not her destiny, and quite clearly was looking to spend the respectable portion of his life with a respectable wife. He lowered his head to murmur near her ear, “What I am proposing would require more than kissing, Miss La Bijou.” His hand slid into hers, and he gave it a gentle squeeze.
    “Lord Silverton!” Outraged, Kitty whipped her hand out of his. “What kind of young lady do you think I am?”
    He looked sheepish. “My apologies if I’ve offended you, Miss La Bijou. I thought if you were so agreeable as to spend the entire day with me, without someone in attendance, then you had no regard for your reputation. That perhaps you,” he shrugged and looked even more shamefaced, “had none. I’m sorry, Miss La Bijou ...” He stood up so that she slid from his lap and stood before him, her hands on her hips, as she looked at him enquiringly, waiting for him to finish, “I had no idea you were so fresh. And now I feel a complete cad for compromising you, much less proposing what I did. Tell me, have you run away from home? Am I to expect some furious papa on my doorstep with a pistol pointed in my direction, demanding that I marry you? Who are you really and what exactly are you trying to do?”
    As he spoke, his face clouded and he looked almost angry.
    Kitty took pity on him. She smiled as she walked to the door. “I’ve run away from home because I’ve always felt an outcast in my village. As my father and my mother are not married, I have no name that needs protecting.”
    “My poor Miss La Bijou.” A look of sympathy replaced his suspicion. “I understand very well now. You have decided to turn adventuress, even though you have no idea of the perils of this big bad city for an innocent young woman like yourself.” The cool night air hit them as they stepped onto the top step, just as his carriage was brought around. “There we are.