A Valentine Wedding by Jane Feather Read Free Book Online Page A

sufficient for a man of such expensive tastes.”
    Alasdair’s thumbs pressed upward into the soft flesh below her chin. He wasn’t hurting her but she could feel the force of will that kept him from doing so. “You really have a vicious tongue,” he said.
    “From a master, that’s compliment indeed,” she returned. Dimly she realized that they’d both now taken the high road of pure anger, and there was something almost heady about it. Almost a relief. It was as if finally she was free to give rein to the dreadful hurt he’d done her. She’d left him three years ago without a word of farewell, and they’d barely spoken to each other since. Now the red-hot surge of rage was like a cleansing fire.
    There was a moment’s silence, then suddenly Alasdair moved. One arm swept around her waist, clamping her tightly against him. His other hand clasped her head. He brought his mouth to hers, ignoring her struggles. There was passion in the kiss, but it was not of the soft and loving variety. It was hard and punishing and vengeful, and when at last he released her, she caught his cheek a ringing slap with her open palm.
    “You bastard!” she declared, her voice choking with outrage.
    “I thought you were asking for it,” he responded with acid mockery, lightly touching his cheek where the marks of her fingers stood out. “It seemed clear that you were provoking me to some action. In my experience, when a woman picks a quarrel, she’s usually seeking another, quite contradictory response.” His smile was pure insult. “Have you been so long without passion, my sweet, that you must satisfy your need in such a perverse fashion? You have only to ask, and I shall be more than happy to oblige, you know.”
    This time Emma kept her hands at her side, her fists clenched against the folds of her wrapper. He would let her hit him again without physical retaliation, such crudity was not his way, but to lose control herself would be a kind of defeat. Alasdair was a past master at verbal fencing, and when he was as angry as he was now, he would put no check on his tongue. He might regret what he said later, but for now he would be as savage as he pleased. And so could she.
    “I would not touch you if you were the last man on earth,” she said softly. “You disgust me. You’re a rake with all the instincts of a rutting stallion.”
    Alasdair’s breath hissed through his teeth, but his voice was cold and deadly as snake’s venom. “You must forgive the assumption then. There must be some reason why a passionate young woman would choose to spend three chaste years. I can’t believe you’ve had no offers since our own ill-fated little venture. Could I be blamed for thinking that just maybe you might be finding it difficult … or even distasteful … to find an alternative mate?”
    “You arrogant, conceited, overbearing, odious …”Emma could find no words strong enough. “Get out of here. I never wish to see you again!”
    “Ah, now there we have a problem.” Alasdair perched on the corner of the dresser, crossing his long legs at the ankle. “For as long as I control your fortune, my dear Emma, you will have to put up with seeing me on a frequent and regular basis.” A grim smile flickered across his tightly compressed lips.
    “Oh, you may rest assured that your control will be very short-lived!” Emma cried. “Rather than endure it a minute longer than I must, I will take the first offer made to me, Alasdair Chase. And I will be betrothed by … by the middle of February.” She flung her arms wide in an all-encompassing gesture.
    Alasdair’s laugh was scornful. “Don’t be absurd, Emma. You’re going to be besieged by fortune hunters—”
    “Not for the first time,” she interrupted. “And it wouldn’t be the first time I succumbed to one, would it?” Even though she knew that her fortune had never been Alasdair’s motive for proposing to her, she couldn’t help flinging the accusation at him,