Clockwork Blue by Gloria Harchar

her.
     
    This was the pixies' doing. Under no conditions would an earl with his stature in life want to marry a girl who had been born into poverty , a girl without property or prestige . She would wager the pixies—Glissando in particular— h ad cast a spell on Falconwood . B ecause of the pixies, Falconwood couldn ' t see that her short, stubby nose was sprinkled with ghastly freckles , and that her hair was an unseemly barley-color blond.
     
    And why would he trap her into marriage? T hreaten her dear cousin with deportation in order to force her to his will? It plum didn't make sense. The notion that he really wanted her was so absu rd, she had to laugh .
     
    Falcon ' s gaze flicked over her. " I admit you'll make an outrageous countess. "
     
    As she absently noted how the light from the lantern painted strange patterns on his austere face, she supposed she should be insulted that he would have such a low opinion of her. But how could she when his statement was all too true. She would make an outrageous countess, not only in society ' s e ye s but in her own. Why, she didn ' t know the first thing about being nobility. His obvious reluctance only confused her more. " Why do you propose such an unacceptable arrangement?"
     
    He retrieved his lamp and set it on a nearby table. Seating himself on the edge, he gave her a thoughtful glance. " Perhaps because you amuse me. "
     
    What was his motive? She studied him in the darkened room but could see only the gleam of his e ye s and the stark outline of his cheekbones. She scowled, irritated to no end by his casual disregard. " Ah, you ' re jesting, then, and I don ' t find it the least bit entertaining. "
     
    " Am I smiling? Do I look the sort who would jest? "
     
    She gazed into his fathomless e ye s and noted the grim set of his lips, and a nervous tremor rippled down her spine. " No, you don ' t appear the jolly sort at all. Then it ' s true? You really want to wed me? " At his unwavering stare, she blurted, " But for heaven ' s sake, why?"
     
    Her mind reeled with the notion of marriage to such an intimidating man. Even when he ' d been a lad, he ' d been much too worldly ... much too out of her realm of experience—she never would have thought to talk to him, much less even nod as she passed him in the street.
     
    Unease rippled down her back as he continued to watch without answering.
     
    " Why not? " He gave her an appraising perusal and she knew he found her wanting. She had never been the kind to incite poetry or love. As a matter of fact, she had been known to be bad luck for men. She recalled two who had been briefly attracted to her. One had tried to steal a kiss from her, but when she dodged, she accidently tripped him—which resulted in him breaking his nose. Another short-lived suitor lost control of his team when a fox darted in the road and wrecked his carriage. His peers had never allowed him to live down the fact that she was the one who ' d devised the pulley system to lift the wheel off him. No, men found her too intelligent, too manly and simply too intimidating to even consider as a wife.
     
    Falcon continued to observe her with his head tilted to one side. " I like the unusual."
     
    " I beg your pardon. I am a proper woman with decent morals. I merely don ' t see what advantage you will gain by forcing matrimony. "
     
    " Unusual. A woman who doesn ' t know her true value. " His full lips twisted in a derisive smile.
     
    She tossed her head. " For the man who loves me, I would be his treasure trove. "
     
    He continued to lounge against the worktable. " So? Is it wedding bells for you or New South Wales for your cousin?"
     
    That he would threaten Ramsey caused her to shake. She wanted to jump on his back as she had done with that portly merchant and pummel him, pull his hat over his e ye s. But he didn ' t have a hat, she realized almost hysterically. In addition to that, she had a feeling the action wouldn ' t improve her predicament,