Desperate and Daring 01 - Desperate and Daring by Ella J. Quince Page A

sound like chatting, it sounded like flirting, and he is dangerous to you.”
    Heather scoffed. “Do you mean to chase away my suitors in protection of the duke’s interest?”
    “He is not a suitor, he is a rogue.”
    Heather’s eyes widened as she looked forward. They were far from their group now but still visible. “We should keep up.”
    He reluctantly began to move. Heather was still processing not only what he said, but also the way he said it. He sounded… jealous? That couldn’t be. Possessive? Perhaps. Did he view her as property of the Duke of Ablehill? She was suddenly angry. She was no man’s property, not yet anyhow, and if another man had interest in her, a younger man of suitable means to rescue her and her family, why shouldn’t she be open to that choice?
    “I am under no contract with the duke. I can do as I please.”
    He was silent for a moment. “That is true.”
    “Then why are you acting as if I have behaved dishonorably?”
    “There is nothing in your actions that bear scrutiny. It’s his actions I am concerned with, or more to the point, his motives.”
    “Motives?” Heather laughed. “What motives could he possibly have towards me?”
    “I’m not sure, but when I talked about you last night in the billiard roo—”
    Heather yanked him to a stop and turned him to face her. “Why on earth were you talking about me with other gentlemen?”

Chapter 7
    Fallon wanted to cringe at his oversight but instead he settled on a menacing frown to intimidate her. “And if I did?”
    “What right have you to discuss me at any point, at any time?”
    “Aren’t you going to finish that with a withering ‘How dare you!’?”
    “Why are you discussing me with other gentlemen?” She poked his chest with a finger.
    “I was simply trying to get the lay of the land. To find out why your only option for marriage is to the duke.”
    “You have humiliated me. No wonder Lord Draven thought to toy with me as he did. You’ve made a mockery of me.” Heather crossed her arms over her chest and turned away. She looked out over a hedge of dormant roses and fought tears.
    There was a scuffle of feet before Violet rounded the corner. “What’s become of you two?” She looked back and forth between them with a frown.
    “Nothing,” Heather growled.
    Fallon didn’t have a ready excuse for why Heather was clearly upset. He struggled for something to say as her sister looked at him suspiciously. He shrugged.
    “Is it about the duke?” Violet ventured. “Is he worse?”
    Fallon jumped on the opportunity. “His ankle still pains him. He may not arrive for some days yet.”
    Violet’s face crumpled. “What does that mean?”
    “We were going to discuss it with your mother now. Here, take the list and go on with your sister. Keep a sharp eye on Lord Draven and Lady Lucy.”
    Violet took the list without question and turned. She looked back once before rounding the corner and then they were alone again.
    “I have nothing I wish to say to my mother,” Heather said with her back to him.
    “I don’t think you should continue on in this state. You are upset.”
    She spun around. “You think you know me so well? You act as if you have some claim to me. I do not belong to you or the duke, Mr. Calder. You are trying to manage me like I am some property or thing—”
    “No.” He stepped closer and grabbed her arms. “I’m trying to protect you, I’m trying to understand you and heaven above, I’m trying to resist you at all costs, and I’m failing.”
    Heather’s mouth went slack. “Excuse me?”
    He grabbed her hand and pulled her back towards the house, then took a path to the left that led to a gazebo surrounded by dense evergreen shrubbery lined up like tall sentinels around them, enclosing them completely. He pulled her up the steps and turned to face her. “I want to kiss you again, Heather, but I won’t. Not unless you give me permission.”
    “I won’t.” Heather was quick to