A Highwayman's Honor: (A Highland Highwayman Novella #1) by Michelle McLean Read Free Book Online Page B

according to my father.”
    “Your father told you that?” Alice asked, horrified.
    Elizabet nodded and Alice’s eyes flashed with fury. But before she could respond again, Lord Ramsay stood before them. He politely greeted Alice and then turned his full attention upon Elizabet. She gazed up the long, muscular length of him, her eyes finally meeting his. He bowed his head, his gaze hidden from her for a moment.
    He was dressed as most of the men at court were. Silk hose and knee breeches covered legs that looked as strong as tree trunks. His waistcoat, shirt, and elaborate coat were of the finest material, embroidered and embellished until they gleamed under the light of the chandeliers. His curled wig lay over his shoulders, but there was no hint of powder or rouge on his face. Against fashion, maybe. But it suited him. Even in his finery he still managed to look rugged. Dangerous.
    She blinked, her cheeks reddening. That seemed an odd word to attach to him. Perhaps it was something in the depths of those deep brown eyes that hinted at a power barely restrained. She fanned her face again, trying to rid herself of such fanciful thoughts. She wished she could see him without the wig. See the true color of his hair.
    He turned that piercing gaze of his to Alice and bowed politely, tipping his hat. “Good evening, Lady Alice. I trust you are well.”
    Alice curtsied, snapping open her fan with a practiced flick of her wrist. “I am indeed, my lord. Allow me to present a dear friend of mine, Miss Elizabet Harding, daughter of Lord Thomas Harding.”
    He focused his attention back on Elizabet. She gave him a shallow curtsy, not sure her knees would hold her if she tried anything deeper.
    “Good evening, my lady,” he said, his cultured voice flowing through her like molten gold.
    He took her hand, bringing it to his lips to press a lingering kiss to its back. His thumb rubbed across her knuckles. Each stroke sent tiny embers swirling through her veins, igniting a heat inside her she’d only known before with one man.
    Alice grinned and turned to speak to another gentleman at her side, her presence apparently no longer necessary now that she’d satisfied custom and acquainted them with each other.
    “May I say how beautiful you look this evening, Miss Harding?”
    She froze, the echo of a deep, Scottish brogue ringing through her ears. The man before her betrayed only the faintest accent. She might not even have noticed it if she hadn’t been replaying the encounter with the enthralling highwayman over and over in her mind since it had happened. She hadn’t been able to forget him. Damn him. She’d never forget that voice, no matter how he tried to conceal it. It haunted her dreams, chased her every waking moment. Turned her into a fanciful, scatter-brained chit who wanted nothing more than to hear her name on those honeyed lips again.
    And now she had. She was sure of it. The way he said it, with the same inflection, as if he were savoring every syllable on his tongue. It was him .
    She met his gaze again. Those eyes. They were the same eyes that had stared at her from behind a worn leather mask. Deep, dark pools of dangerous secrets that tempted her to all manner of folly.
    She froze, her body tightening, seeing those eyes behind a mask, not framed by a long, curled wig and bejeweled linens. An emotion she couldn’t name flashed across his features, so quickly she might have imagined it. One thing was certain though. She recognized him. And he knew it.
    Other than that fleeting look, however, he showed no indication that they’d ever even spoken before let alone touched. Kissed. Slept in each other’s arms. He gazed down at her and spouted off some more nonsense in that slightly accented and oh-so-deep voice of his. He took her hand, giving it another light kiss. Elizabet squeezed her hand tighter before she could stop herself.
    “I was just going to take a stroll around the gardens. Would you care to join me?”