Beloved Enemy by Mary Schaller Read Free Book Online

off her head. “That is, no,” she countered. “I fear I do not have a precise definition of ‘ruination.’ My books failed me in that respect. I had presumed that you, being a man and a Yankee, would know what to do.”
    The way she said “Yankee” gave Rob some pause. Was he in the company of a Confederate spy? Was this a ruse to blackmail him into revealing government secrets? Before he could take action, she fell against him. Her eyes flashed with unfeigned shock.
    â€œOh, my! This is not what I had planned at all. Do forgive me, Major. I’ve never had more than one glass of wine before. I had no idea how fluffy it makes one feel. Will my intoxicated condition present a problem for you? Can you ruin me anyway?” Her beautiful eyes focused into a look of pure desperation. “Please, sir,” she whispered. “You are my only hope.”
    Rob ignored his distaste for Rebels—at least for the moment. Confederate or not, his Fairy Princess was clearly a lady in real distress. He turned her toward the open window. “Hold on to my arm and keep your eyes open. Breathe deeply.”
    She gripped him as she leaned over the jet of cold air that blew inside. When he felt her steady herself, Rob continued, “Now, please explain to me why you wish to have me…ah…ruin you. Before I do anything, I must understand the particulars.” Despite the cold air on his face, perspiration dampened his hair.
    The auburn beauty nodded. “My parents want me to marry my cousin down in Richmond.” She paused for breath. “He’s a toad.” She stopped again, as if to gather her strength. “So I thought that if I were well and truly ruined by another man—a total stranger—” She breathed in again. “Payton would refuse to have me, and my parents would not object to me becoming a schoolteacher,” she finished in a rush of words.
    Rob grunted. She was beginning to sound more reasonable. He gave her a weak smile. “You want to teach children?”
    She looked up at him as if he had offered her the world on a silver tray. Her askew holly leaves and her fetching black mask made her even more like Shakespeare’s fairy queen. Rob recalled that Titania had also done some silly things while under the influence of a flower’s potent juice.
    â€œVery much,” she replied softly. “Little girls and perhaps even some of the black children, now that they are free. But my parents would be dead set against that idea. Proper ladies do not teach school.”
    â€œSo you decided to be improper—with me?”
    â€œExactly so,” she confessed, looking away from him. “Just a little bit. As you have discovered, I have no idea how to do it. My apologies, sir, for embarrassing you.” She straightened her smooth shoulders and pulled up her fringed shawl over her ivory flesh. “I feel like such a fool. But you can have no idea…” She sighed.
    Don’t get involved. She’s a Reb.
    Rob’s skin prickled. He moved closer to her until there was no space between them. Her violet scent filled his nostrils. Her lips, moist with her outrageous request, were less than twelve inches from his yearning mouth. He knew they should return to the ballroom before someone missed them. Miss Cobweb did not have any idea of the true costof a ruined reputation, but Rob knew. Even if she were a Confederate, he did not want to be the one to debauch her. He wanted revenge for his injury, but not at the expense of this innocent. What she needed was a good fright to put some sense back into that pretty head.
    The cold moonlight shining through the windowpane glinted in her jade-green eyes. Staring into their depths, Rob tried to ignore their magnetic pull on his senses.
    â€œTo ruin a young lady means to take her virtue,” he began in his best attempt to remain impervious to her attractions.
    â€œOh!” gasped the