A Visit From Sir Nicholas by Victoria Alexander Read Free Book Online

that without emotion, without love , involved. "You don't care for me? You don't want me?"
    "I most certainly do. A man would have to be long dead and moldering in his grave not to want you. It is sheer desire that has simmered between the two of us. Only a fool would deny it. And given the way you kiss…" He chuckled wickedly. "Good God, Elizabeth, you're lovely and charming and have a passion within you I confess I never so much as suspected. You would be most amusing."
    "Amusing?" Her voice rose. "I would be amusing?"
    " Most amusing." His gaze raked over her, as if thoroughly assessing her charms. "We could have a very good time together, you and I. I learned a great deal on my travels about men and women and the very, very good times they could have together. My uncle is extraordinarily knowledgeable about such things. He has been an excellent guide."
    "Has he?" Was that the answer then? Did his kiss curl her toes and sap her will only because he did it so very well? Was it the result of experience and practice rather than any affection on his part? And was her response that of any inexperienced woman to a man of his skills?
    "Most certainly. My uncle is a man of the world, and he has introduced me to… well, I suppose that's neither here nor there."
    "No, it isn't." Her words were stiff, her tone overly proper, and even to her own ear did not sound like her at all.
    "However, I must admit," he narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, "your proposal to accompany me is most intriguing."
    Fury welled within her, and she raised her chin. "I don't—"
    "You're the daughter of a most prestigious and wealthy family. Your dowry and your family's influence, together with my uncle's money, are most appealing." He nodded in a considering manner. "Indeed, I am more than a bit tempted to say honor be damned. To abandon this making my fortune nonsense and stay right here."
    "Nicholas!" She stared in horror. As much as she wanted him to do just that, the tone of his words, as well as the calculating look in his eye, were not those of the man she knew. Or thought she knew. Or thought she might love.
    "Still," he shrugged. "It would never work. I am committed to this quest of mine, and were I to marry at this point, it would be to a wife who was willing to work by my side to achieve my goals. As charming as you are, I need a wife far more serious and far less frivolous than you."
    "Frivolous?" She tried not to choke on the word. She had thought he knew her better than that.
    "Come now, Elizabeth, surely that estimation of your character does not surprise you? In point of fact, I suspect you have actively cultivated just such a manner."
    She stared at him for a long moment. Regardless of what they'd shared, what she thought she'd felt for him and what she'd been confident he'd felt in return, she obviously didn't know him at all. He was a stranger. And she would not now, not ever, allow him to see how devastating his callous words were. She cast him a blinding smile that belied a rising tide of anger and an equally powerful sense of hurt and betrayal. "You have found me out, Nicholas. It has long been my experience that men are far more interested in women who have little more on their minds than the latest fashion or the current social season than they are in those who are serious and dreary.
    "And dear, dear, Nicholas, I fear you have misunderstood me as well." She lowered her voice in a confidential manner. "I was not actually suggesting marriage."
    "Oh? You would be content to come with me without benefit of marriage?"
    "Don't be absurd." She forced a lighthearted laugh. "I really wasn't suggesting anything at all beyond the kind of companionship you and I have shared. I was simply carried away by the prospect of your adventures."
    "Were you?" He raised a skeptical brow.
    "I was indeed. Why, you are off on adventures that I, as a woman, shall never be privy to. For a moment, and no more than a moment, mind you, the idea of leaving behind